Can chickens eat snow?

[team_realtree]

Quote:
Are you kidding me? In your mind this is not a legitimate question? I don't need wise ass responses I'm looking for away around a problem I'm foreseeing in the future...a poor animal owner would wait til winter and then be stuck with freezing chickens. It is mid august and I'm already thinking about it. And no I can't run an extension cord there is no house or electricity on the property.

In the freezing cold what does every other ANIMAL do for water? I capitalize ANIMAL because that is what chickens are. I find on this site the majority of people treat their chickens like new born babies when in reality they have lasted thousands of years on their own without plugging in lamps, heaters, fans ect.

 

[UrbanChick101]

I haven't got our chickens yet, waiting on the city with permits, however I too have no electricity to the coop. We are going to look into extension cords on very cold days / nights. Our coop is relatively small 32sq ft, we are allowed upto 6 hens. We have sufficient room, hoping the smaller coop will keep warm, from thier body temperatures/bedding and we insulated the roof of the coop with R-11 and plywood. We will probably get a heated watering dish of some kind, probably electric. I wonder if there is any type of battery powered heated dish you could get, when the temperatures drop well below freezing? It may be something to look into, a farm store or a pet store? Good luck!!

 

[AllTheseCreatures]

Quote:
Chickens are animals, but more specifically they are domesticated animals and they are NOT native to very cold climates. They rely on us as they are. I don't see them as pets, but I am responsible for them as long as they are in my care.

If we knew more about the situation I'm sure we could provide more ideas, for example I had no idea there was no house or electricity. You didn't mention that before.

My only idea is to get some pocket hand warmer packs. You know, the type that you flex and they become hot for several hours. That might be enough to keep the water from freezing all day. You'd have to try it and see. My husband says they can be reused and and reactivated. If you're interested, I'll try to find the name of it. We can't remember off-hand.

I have also heard that placing a piece of wood in the bucket will help keep the from forming. Maybe someone can verify that.

 

[Wolfwoman]

Quote:
Are you kidding me? In your mind this is not a legitimate question? I don't need wise ass responses I'm looking for away around a problem I'm foreseeing in the future...a poor animal owner would wait til winter and then be stuck with freezing chickens. It is mid august and I'm already thinking about it. And no I can't run an extension cord there is no house or electricity on the property.

In the freezing cold what does every other ANIMAL do for water? I capitalize ANIMAL because that is what chickens are. I find on this site the majority of people treat their chickens like new born babies when in reality they have lasted thousands of years on their own without plugging in lamps, heaters, fans ect.

You're absolutely right that it's a good question.

How many of us started out knowing EVERYTHING there was to know about chickens when we got them. Give her a break.

team realtree, I'm in Alaska. This is my 2nd time having chickens and I know a LOT more now because of this site than I did a few years ago when I only had 5 chickens (see, I didn't know about chicken math either). So, let me tell you how my 5 chickens fared for 2 winters before I was a know-it-all

I threw some chicken wire around a batch of trees on my property where I did not have have electricity OR running water. I had no coop, no nesting boxes. I had an upside down 1/2 of an XXL dog kennel that they slept in. They came out during the day and ate and scratched and ATE SNOW for two winters because there was no way to keep water not frozen at FORTY BELOW. They did fine and they all lived 7 years as PETS.

So to answer your question, yes they can eat snow as mine did it.

Now, watch the onslaught of people telling me I abused my chickens, they were quite happy and tho (of course) they didn't lay eggs in the winter (and I didn't know that they could at that time) they were always healthy and never lethargic or sick.

Of course, now I'm going to have a semi-heated coop for my new chickens, as now "I know better"

 

[AllTheseCreatures]

I had another idea. Maybe if you found an insulated cooler at a thrift store and removed the lid. If it was filled with warm water once a day it wouldn't freeze over?

I think chickens will learn to eat snow, I know mine will peck at it. I don't think that is good for them as an exclusive source of water even if a hardy chicken would survive it. Snow and a steady diet of layer ration sounds like a recipe for impacted crop to me. Maybe provide a pan of grit? That is easy and inexpensive. If the water is frozen, the ground will be frozen too.

 

[teach1rusl]

Quote:
Are you kidding me? In your mind this is not a legitimate question? I don't need wise ass responses I'm looking for away around a problem I'm foreseeing in the future...a poor animal owner would wait til winter and then be stuck with freezing chickens. It is mid august and I'm already thinking about it. And no I can't run an extension cord there is no house or electricity on the property.

In the freezing cold what does every other ANIMAL do for water? I capitalize ANIMAL because that is what chickens are. I find on this site the majority of people treat their chickens like new born babies when in reality they have lasted thousands of years on their own without plugging in lamps, heaters, fans ect.

You know, here is what I see: Many people telling you that chickens DO need fresh water (I'm one who offered suggestions). Your reply was " At the most I can get out there once a day. So if I bring them warm water and they all get a good drink will that be sufficient? I'm told by all the local chicken owners that they do not drink much in the winter." So it sounds to me like you feel you're being put out to have to provide fresh water ONCE per day for these ANIMALS that are providing you with eggs and/or meat. Maybe you should only drink liquids once per day and see if that feels like enough for you???? I certainly don't think it's coddling an animal providing it with the basic necessities of food, water, and shelter. I was not intending to be a wise-ass; based on how you reacted to other's suggestions, I honestly assumed you were jerking our chains. We obviously differ on our opinions of humane treatment of animals...

 

[team_realtree]

Quote:
Are you kidding me? In your mind this is not a legitimate question? I don't need wise ass responses I'm looking for away around a problem I'm foreseeing in the future...a poor animal owner would wait til winter and then be stuck with freezing chickens. It is mid august and I'm already thinking about it. And no I can't run an extension cord there is no house or electricity on the property.

In the freezing cold what does every other ANIMAL do for water? I capitalize ANIMAL because that is what chickens are. I find on this site the majority of people treat their chickens like new born babies when in reality they have lasted thousands of years on their own without plugging in lamps, heaters, fans ect.

You know, here is what I see: Many people telling you that chickens DO need fresh water (I'm one who offered suggestions). Your reply was " At the most I can get out there once a day. So if I bring them warm water and they all get a good drink will that be sufficient? I'm told by all the local chicken owners that they do not drink much in the winter." So it sounds to me like you feel you're being put out to have to provide fresh water ONCE per day for these ANIMALS that are providing you with eggs and/or meat. Maybe you should only drink liquids once per day and see if that feels like enough for you???? I certainly don't think it's coddling an animal providing it with the basic necessities of food, water, and shelter. I was not intending to be a wise-ass; based on how you reacted to other's suggestions, I honestly assumed you were jerking our chains. We obviously differ on our opinions of humane treatment of animals...

I haven`t acted on anything that I have said here. There is no snow outside. It is 95 degrees. I didn't know chickens needed to have thawed water all day hence the reason I am registered on this forum asking questions. Now I do know. I'm not here to argue I just wanted some suggestions on how to get around this problem.

Thanks to anyone that offered suggestions. I will figure something out.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Is the coop insulated? That may help keep the water from freezing.

 

[adkchickmama]

If you have no way to get electricity out to the coop to keep the water thawed, then you might look into using a solar heater in a large black rubber container. I have seen them for bird baths and small 100 gal ponds in Plow and Hearth and other gardening books. Just a thought...

 

[NYREDS]

I know some game breeders who only provide their birds with snow as a water source in the winter. Their birds do fine & are some of the most beautiful birds you'd ever want to see.
We had sheep for years. They never got water in the winter. They ate snow & did fine.
I'm in upstate NY & we get some pretty cold weather here. I water once in the morning. My coop gets some southern exposue so the water usually doesn't freeze until in the afternoon. I don't rewater then, I knock the ice out of waterers & they're good 'till the next morning when I water again. I don't have the illness problems that so many here write about & I rarely lose a bird to anything other than old age. Can't be my watering program is doing much harm.
You're right, many on this board treat their chickens like new born babies. You'll note that many refer to themselves as "mommy to...some list of chickens". In my book they're livestock & should be treated as such. If you can water once a day & they can eat snow on top of that they'll be fine.