Did anyone else out there have their ABs suffer through the polar vortex? I'm in central Indiana, and the lowest temps I saw outside were -16 and in the barn it got down to -7. My barn is quite dry. I have the pens situated where they don't get any drafts, I sealed off all the doors to the outside pens, but my poor roos still didn't fare too well. They had these wonderful huge combs and wattles, which unfortunately meant they also got quite a bit of frostbite. Most of my roos of other breeds with single combs did too, so it wasn't just the ABs. I didn't lose any birds, and they are all in recovery mode now, but their combs will definitely suffer for it. No issues with any of my hens/pullets of any of my breeds.
On a brighter note, my AB pullet that had just started laying kept on right through the cold. I even had a second pullet that started laying the day after the deep freeze. Only my Wyandotte hen is even close to keeping up with them. All the other hens pretty much shut down and are just starting to lay again.
I'd like to hear how others birds came through the cold, and if they did well, what was done to protect them?
On a brighter note, my AB pullet that had just started laying kept on right through the cold. I even had a second pullet that started laying the day after the deep freeze. Only my Wyandotte hen is even close to keeping up with them. All the other hens pretty much shut down and are just starting to lay again.
I'd like to hear how others birds came through the cold, and if they did well, what was done to protect them?
