arctic cold front--special precautions for texas hens?

[scarter]

I would just let them acclimate to the cold if I were you. Give them some cracked corn to warm up before night falls and make sure they are dry and draft free. If you start heating them and your power goes out they are in for a shock and possibly death if they aren't eased into the cold.

Right now I even have my silkies in the coop with the other chickens with no heat. We have the heated platform for their waterer and that's it besides shavings. Our temps have been in the negatives lately and the chickens are doing just fine. I just went out to give them some scratch treats and they were talking and scratching around like it was the middle of summer.

 

[mdbokc]

The heated dog water bowl keeps water from freezing to -5 F for sure. But no heat is added to the coop. It does not heat the water up either, just keeps it from freezing. It has an internal thermostat.

With our temp swings, up here to the north of you Texans a bit...I have a couple of girls that the temps swings bother when temps fall below 20. Otherwise, all the rest are good to at least 10 F. But this time we are going to below zero so I'll give them some extra heat and they can decide where they want to roost. Wind chills projected to -20 here so they are staying in tomorrow. It's over 40 as I type. But about to start changing big time in the next 60 minutes.

My coop design doesn't allow for body heat to increase temps in the coop as some smaller ones do. Whatever the outside temp is what the inside temp is...just draft free which is the biggie! But the girls do fine.

 

[cimarron]

this is great thanks everybody. us texans are wimps when it comes to the cold, but it sounds like the chickens are tougher! we don't have any exotics or tropicals so i think they'll do ok with some draft protection. hot water bottles and warm/warming feed...and hot chocolate. hot chocolate for the humans.

we love the chickens. and we have piled their composted old hay onto our bamboo and garden plants to mulch and protect them from the cold. thanks, ladies!

 

[FortWorthChicks]

So.... thanks to some sound advise the waterbowl is out. Instead I am just going to use a small heat light during the day while it is too cold.... they all got their combs slicked up with vasoline and are roosting happily. We shall see what the morning brings!!

Thanks yall.

 

[MissJenny]

Yesterday someone posted about using a crockpot filled with gravel, set on a cookie sheet or bricks, to serve as a safe sort of radiant heater. I think it sounds pretty clever. I have no idea how much heat it would put off or what size building he has, but it would be worth a try.

Jenny

 

[chuckzoo]

I'm in Alabama and it's getting about the same temperatures here, unusual for us! I first of all bought an infrared light to warm up the coop, but one of my 2 hens would not settle down - didn't like the light! So today I went out and bought a blue "Moonlight" light which contains the blue spectrum of light. It is supposed to calm chickens down. Now both are resting peacefully. Got it at the pet store. Also I bought some thick plastic from Walmart - the kind your grandmother used to cover her furniture with - and wrapped a part of the run to stop the wind, which is really cold. I added a "Show and Grow" plant light to the run for extra light and warmth.

 

[RocketDad]

Cable ties on all clamp lights please!! Let's not roast anyone before we pluck 'em!

 

[mdbokc]

Through 2 seasons, my heated waterer is located like this. They don't poop in it or turn it over. FWIW

 

[duckie mama]

Hey ya'll
I love the deep litter method. So for the past 2 weeks every time i clean the nest boxes,I add DE to the hay on the floor and dump the nesting material on top of it, It has reached about 8 inches thick and the sleeping boxes for the ducks are full of hay and covered with burlap and hay. Needless to say the girls and guys are warmer than us. And being they are our babies, there are no drafts. In the morning will give some warm mash and they will be happy.
We are from Texas, We are TOUGH!

 

[CountryMom]

I have heat lamps tied into the rafters and hanging out of the reach of the chickens. I did this last year and it helped the combs mainly. I have a couple of hens molting badly now so I will need the extra heat to keep them warm. I also tarped most of my coop, but may add in some plywood to open areas to keep the drafts down. I also have vasoline to rub on combs. I mainly worry about my SS roo...in my avatar. So far vasoline last year kept it looking nice!

I will have to bring water in if the dishes freeze. I do not have heated pales or bucket heaters like used in horse buckets.