Chickens this winter

[jennmoore]

This will be my first winter with my chickens. I have 2 rhode island Reds and a buff orphington. They have a coop and lay their eggs in their boxes but when it rains and now that it is getting in the 30's at night, they are still sleeping outside in their outside area....even in the cold rain. Is this normal?
There is a mouse or 2 that I have notice eating their food and I can't catch them with traps...they are too smart. The chickens wouldn't be afraid of that, would they??
Just wondering how cold is too cold for them?
I'm wanting to be prepared for when the real winter hits. I'm in Texas so we don't get crazy cold, but we do get in the 20's and sometimes teens at night.
Thanks!!

 

[junebuggena]

They aren't afraid of mice. My girls actually hunt those meaty little snacks. Chickens can handle temps well below freezing, provided they are kept dry and out of the wind.
How secure is their outside area? Is it safe/racoon proof? Are the roosts outside higher than the roosts inside? They naturally want to roost as high as they can get. Are the roosts wide enough for all of them to roost together? Perhaps the coop doesn't have enough ventilation and that is why they prefer outside.

 

[3riverschick]

This will be my first winter with my chickens. I have 2 rhode island Reds and a buff orphington. They have a coop and lay their eggs in their boxes but when it rains and now that it is getting in the 30's at night, they are still sleeping outside in their outside area....even in the cold rain. Is this normal?

Best,

There is a mouse or 2 that I have notice eating their food and I can't catch them with traps...they are too smart. The chickens wouldn't be afraid of that, would they??

If they can catch the mouse, they will kill it, LOL.
Just wondering how cold is too cold for them? colder than 32 degrees. They should be indoors if it is colder than that.

I'm wanting to be prepared for when the real winter hits. I'm in Texas so we don't get crazy cold, but we do get in the 20's and sometimes teens at night.
Thanks!!

 

[gander007]

Alright

great to have you joining the BYC flock

Yes it is normal for a chicken to sleep outside of the chicken coop and if a mouse in in the coop at night this is a better reason for them to do so as the mouse can and will chew on them wile the chicken sleeps and no a chicken will not move if it is dark .... But if a chicken gets wet this is not good at all so the chickens should have some sort of shelter to be chased or placed into and as far as temp the chicken has a body core temp of 106F degrees and with the feathers to help insolate them a chicken can easily take temps to +10 F degrees but the rain and cold winds will change this ......

 

[N F C]

Thanks for joining us, it's nice to have you here!

 

[yolaleah]

We used a light for about a month to get our ladies into the coop each night and were eventually able to stop using it. Now they go into their coop on their own but the light really helped! I've also heard you can pick them up and put them on their roost at night to help train them to go inside. We haven't had to do that but it's worth a shot! Good luck!

 

[drumstick diva]

Chickens tolerate cold much better than heat. I would put them on the roost at night and close the coop door. They are safer from predators inside.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Welcome to BYC! I'm glad you joined us!

 

[trailrider330]

Welcome to the BYC flock! We are glad you joined us!