Winter is Coming! Checklists, tips, advice for a newbie

[kim10261]

I made my 1st run out of chain link dog fence panels, put rafters on it and roofed it,the coop in totally inside the run,they only sleep and lay eggs in there,they are free to roam the run when they wake up until they go to bed,i do free range on my off days all day long and on the days I work they get an hour or so after I get home to run the yard...I have six 7 months old chickens 3 are BO roos and 3 are RSL hens, that is why I got 15 more females BO so the guys would not be fighting for "rights", so with my coop enclosed in the run I still need to make vent holes at top of coop and close all walls, except for pop door and windows is that correct,this is our 1st winter and this is the 2nd night in a row of 30^ temp ,i just want to make double sure I am doing right for them

 

[MindyNE]

Thanks for all the information on ventilation! I think I will move the roost a little lower in the coop because it's right by the window that I open and not far below the roof level. Everytime I think I'm done with the coop I want to change it

 

[Alaskan]

I made my 1st run out of chain link dog fence panels, put rafters on it and roofed it,the coop in totally inside the run,they only sleep and lay eggs in there,they are free to roam the run when they wake up until they go to bed,i do free range on my off days all day long and on the days I work they get an hour or so after I get home to run the yard...I have six 7 months old chickens 3 are BO roos and 3 are RSL hens, that is why I got 15 more females BO so the guys would not be fighting for "rights", so with my coop enclosed in the run I still need to make vent holes at top of coop and close all walls, except for pop door and windows is that correct,this is our 1st winter and this is the 2nd night in a row of 30^ temp ,i just want to make double sure I am doing right for them

yes, venting is very important.

And don't worry, 30F is pretty warm....

 

[kim10261]

I suppose it is not a cold temp coming from someone who lives in Alaska...lol but for this "southerner" it is chhhhilllly....I just found out today what my coop could be considered...although the diminsions are not correct,it is an open air coop,but the open air coops I have seen are standing alone mine is inside my enclosed and covered run...so with this new info will my chickies be okay with leaving that wall off or do I still need to modify?

 

[Alaskan]

I suppose it is not a cold temp coming from someone who lives in Alaska...lol but for this "southerner" it is chhhhilllly....I just found out today what my coop could be considered...although the diminsions are not correct,it is an open air coop,but the open air coops I have seen are standing alone mine is inside my enclosed and covered run...so with this new info will my chickies be okay with leaving that wall off or do I still need to modify?

hard for e to picture that....do you have a photo?

They really just need to have the wind blocked, and kept free from rain and snow.

 

[K Epp]

I'm in the mountains of GA and have open coops. I wrap the sides in heavyweight clear plastic. I leave about 2 inches around the top open. Right now I still have the doors open as well. It was 25 this am and we had snow for Halloween. That's a big deal here in Georgia. We're supposed to have a bad winter by our standards. I'll keep y'all posted for the entertainment value of it. You know we close down for 4 inches of snow.

 

[Vosify]

Granted I only have 2 hens. I do have RG Pheasants. All my runs get tarped. And use zip ties to keep them in place. This keeps the wind and snow drifts out (I also live in the canadian plains and wind is always howling)

I never supply any of my birds with heat. And I water twice a day. All their bowls are rubber so they can easily be banged out if the water freezes. Without breaking the bowl.

I go out and feed twice a day anyways, so watering them to isn't that big a deal. I would supply the pheasants with unlimited food. But the sparrows are impossible to keep out, and they eat the majority. And the pheasant food is by no means cheap!

My chickens roost in their shelter (the garage) but the pheasants won't. They roost outside year round, so as long as they have wind breaks they are fine. They use their straw filled shelters during the day to hide. Since their trees no longer have leaves.

A friend has chickens who free range year round (their dog protects all the livestock) but they do have a huge coop to roost in. They made the mistake of offering heat lamps the first year. It cause the coop to have to much humidity. So when the chickens went outside at all (they like to pester the pigs for their scraps) the chickens combs would be wet and freeze. They haven't lost a comb now without heat lamps.

 

[kim10261]

I have covered the runs in plastic all sides, top to bottom,we just expanded the run and will be making a larger coop,i just have 6 chickens outside right now 3 BO roosters and 3 RSL hens,I just bought 15 BO females,because 3 rooster is way to many for just 3 hens I had not planed on putting heat out there at all I do have hay down so their feet are not on the cold ground and it gives them something to do,i do free range on my off days and for an hour or so when I get off work,the main run will always be covered so when ever it rains they can still have a place to be in that is dry the run we just added on I am going to put lattice on the top for summer so the sun is not just beating diown in there,i am also going to put hardware cloth on the bottom of that run so grass will grow through it and give the chickens some fresh greens in the summer also while I am here the 15 BO babies they will be 3 months old by the end of January they are in the housre in abroody in one of the bedrooms,how do I get them used to the chill of outside,or do you think they would be okay I am going to partition off part of the coop and run so they will be sleeping in the same coop with the older birds

 

[Alaskan]

can you shut off the heat to the room the chicks are in? Or, set the up in a colder area? (garage, workshop, greenhouse)

Otherwise, they will need a heat lamp at first until they acclimate.

 

[kim10261]

I can close the heat off at what age should I do this and for how long