- Sep 4, 2013
- 37
- 1
- 34
Hi,
This is my first year with hens. I'm in MN and we have a small coop with lots of ventilation, and the last time it got to -15 I covered the coop with a blanket for 2 days to cover some of the ventilation and a few of my girls got some frost bite on their combs.
Now it's supposed to be WAY colder. Are they okay? I don't have a coop door or hatch that I can close up to reduce the cold, I have vents, so in order to "help" increase warmth I'd have to cover them with a blanket, which increases the moisture and puts them at risk for frost bite.
Can they survive -65 wind chill? It could get that cold overnight tonight. Our coop is not heated or insulated. It's small, so the heat from our 6 birds has been good enough in the cold, but this is a major deep freeze which scares me.
Is there anything I need to do for them in this EXTREME cold? Or can they deal? I have good cold weather birds, a langsham, buff orphington, Plymouth Barred Rocks, etc. But darn, I don't think I've ever seen it get this cold in my adult years.
This is my first year with hens. I'm in MN and we have a small coop with lots of ventilation, and the last time it got to -15 I covered the coop with a blanket for 2 days to cover some of the ventilation and a few of my girls got some frost bite on their combs.
Now it's supposed to be WAY colder. Are they okay? I don't have a coop door or hatch that I can close up to reduce the cold, I have vents, so in order to "help" increase warmth I'd have to cover them with a blanket, which increases the moisture and puts them at risk for frost bite.
Can they survive -65 wind chill? It could get that cold overnight tonight. Our coop is not heated or insulated. It's small, so the heat from our 6 birds has been good enough in the cold, but this is a major deep freeze which scares me.
Is there anything I need to do for them in this EXTREME cold? Or can they deal? I have good cold weather birds, a langsham, buff orphington, Plymouth Barred Rocks, etc. But darn, I don't think I've ever seen it get this cold in my adult years.