15 degrees & 30 mph winds (up to 40 mph gusts)

[Rockergirl]

Hi. I have 4 pullets (2 Americauna, 1 ISA and 1 Austrolorp) - they are about 6-7 months old now (time flies)! I live in North Carolina. We are about to have 3 frigid days (for us), something these little babies haven't seen. Highs in the low 30s and will get to 15 degrees with 30-40 mph winds. I've read you shouldn't worry about the cold unless maybe it gets to single digits (it will be really close) and I also read to not use heat (it's dangerous and they may have a hard time acclimating if the power goes out - which happens all the time for us). What I am worried about is the high winds on top of the frigid cold. It will not get above 30 for 3 days and like I said in the teens. They have a very small shed for a coop they sleep in at night that stays open to a fully covered run (that does get gusty with winds). Any suggestions? Anything I should be doing to help them? I am pretty worried. Also worried about frostbite.

 

[DickMidnight]

for the coop: make sure none of your ventilation (windows or vents) allows wind to blow directly on the birds while they roost at night. you don't want strong breezes to ruffle their feathers, which will make them cold. if you have windows at roost height, you can block the wind with furnace filters that will allow airflow but stop strong winds.

for the run: you can wrap the lower 2-3' of your run with some kind of wind-blocking material. a lot of people like thick vinyl sheeting or plastic panels. that will keep wind off of your birds while they're in the run. if you can't get that job done before the weather sets in, you can always place hay bales around the run to stop the wind.

once the weather passes, you can break the hay bales up in the run.

 

[Rockergirl]

for the coop: make sure none of your ventilation (windows or vents) allows wind to blow directly on the birds while they roost at night. you don't want strong breezes to ruffle their feathers, which will make them cold. if you have windows at roost height, you can block the wind with furnace filters that will allow airflow but stop strong winds.

for the run: you can wrap the lower 2-3' of your run with some kind of wind-blocking material. a lot of people like thick vinyl sheeting or plastic panels. that will keep wind off of your birds while they're in the run. if you can't get that job done before the weather sets in, you can always place hay bales around the run to stop the wind.

once the weather passes, you can break the hay bales up in the run.

Thank you! We wrapped the run. It's kinda freaking the ladies out because it's "blurry" instead of perfectly see through. but it protects them!