Chickens who HATE snow?

[theacw]

I have had 5 hens throughout my chicken raising, all who hate snow. REFUSE to even look at it, touch it, go outside the coop. If I carry them outside and put them on flattened or light snow, FREAK and run back inside... even with treats outside.

I live in Minnesota where there is snow often 8 out of the 12 months a year and often below 0 degrees for 3 months.

I always see people posing pictures of their chickens roaming around, free ranging in snow and curious why mine won't. I feel bad that they only enjoy their lives outside their coop for 4 months out of the year. Just curious on other peoples experiences with this.

 

[memere maynard]

My girls don't like the snow at all either, but my granddaughter was able to get them out to sit on the swing in the sun....they loves that!

 

[azygous]

Has it occurred to anyone that perhaps chickens are instinctively adverse to snow because they feel exposed against the background of white? I lost a hen to a red-tailed hawk two years ago after I let them out and the snow was everywhere.

My chickens have all hated snow on principle though, and they're also spoiled with a spacious covered, enclosed run. They would just rather stay in where it's comfortable, and there really isn't anything attractive about snow to them, except eating what I track in on my boots.

I had a young Cochin cockerel who had never experienced snow before. He found himself faced with a stretch of snow that he was loathe to walk on so he tried to fly over it. It was the most hysterical sight to see him plant himself head first in a snow drift, with little feathered feet wiggling frantically. Good thing for him I was there to fish him out.

 

[Bogtown Chick]

First year. Young and Naïve. Curious.








This one ended up that we had to carry them all back to the run. They were stuck, and Eagle bait for about a half hour in the same spot.



And Since then....... When there is snow wattle deep.... This is where they prefer to be in their older and "wiser" years. LOL.






Big "chickens"!

 

[RedDrgn]

Ours will eat the snow and have no issues whatsoever with venturing out into it, as long as I shovel for them.

 

[Happy Chooks]

My chickens also hate snow. Good thing for them that they live in CA and not MN.

 

[earlybird10842]

My gals do too. So I just made them some boardwalks in their pen, leading to their scrap dish so they have an incentive to use them.
Here's the link to the article about it: chickenplayground

 

[Katt66]

Mine don't like deep snow either. Poor EE pullet a couple of weeks ago took a flying leap off the doorjamb of the enclosed run. I don't know where she thought she was going but when she made it about ten feet and landed smack in the middle of about 2ft of fluffy white stuff she wasn't happy. She screamed like crazy flew straight up out of the snow, landed on the edge of the retaining wall and sat there crying until I made it over to her. When I put my arm out to put it around her she couldn't get under it fast enough. And sat there in my arms cooing and puck pucking at me all happy till I carried her back over to the coop.

Pretty much, if the snow is deep everybody just sits in the doorway of the enclosed run and looks around at at the lovely white yard but doesn't venture out. Once I have a path shoveled and packed down out to and around the run and coop my Black and Buff Orpington, White Leghorn and EE rooster will come out and pick around a bit. Occasionally the Sebrights will join them. But once they find there's nothing out there but white and nothing underneath it but more white and frozen solid ground, they just wander back into the coop and resume working on whatever pit they're currently digging.

From my guys' behavior, I'd think that if you are truly hellbent on getting them out of the coop and don't have an enclosed run, maybe shovel and pack it down really well and throw out some scratch for them. Sort of give them an incentive to leave the nice cozy coop area. Chickens ARE indeed incredibly smart. But if there's nothing in it for them, they'll have no parts of it no matter how much coaxing or brute force we use. ^_^

 

[deacons]

I have one Golden Laced Wyandotte who will only fly over it to get from her run to the "comfort" of my garage on days when there is a lot piled up. Hanging out in the garage:



The rest don't seem to mind much though, they'll go out and track through it to get to their favorite scratching spots. When we get more than a few inches at once, I shovel them paths and clear off a big patch of my yard so they have some access to grass to move around in for about an hour of free ranging.

Their run is covered only in hardware cloth, which is a huge pain to keep shoveled out, but I shovel the snow and replace a thick bed of straw for them to keep them off the frozen ground, which they seem to appreciate. My lovely husband has agreed to put a real roof on the run this year!

Realizing no one is going to let her inside:


The head girl always on the lookout for treats:

 

[TaraBellaBirds]

Snow sure makes a great "fence" though!!! My girls won't dare cross!