Cold Climate Coop- What do I do?

[patandchickens]

Quote:
It's reasonable to expect that Sussex will lay relatively well through Michigan and Wisconsin winters. Ontario winters, being harsher than the Midwest's, may be a different story

Nope, most of Michigan and Wisconsin has consistantly-colder winters than our part of Ontario; and my coop is unquestionably warmer inside than most other peoples' at this latitude (who don't heat). So it is for sure not that.

It must either be strain -- perhaps yours is better at winter laying -- or maybe you are adding supplemental light? (I'm not. I may next year tho). My chanteclers, two different colors from two different strains, have been pretty good winter layers without extra light but as I say my Sussexes just quit outright in October and are totally "off" for several months.

Pat

 

[ketcham]

I'm new at this and thanks for the anwsers!!! I live in NE Ohio,and looks like a light bulb should be enough.Air movement seems to be big[though not a lot of air] And straw in nesting boxes and a wide roost.Thanks!!!! Kevin

 

[booker81]

Here's a bad picture of the "summer" setup we have - the door is also a full sheet of plywood framed, so the breeze goes through completely. The fan helps - sometimes I swamp cooler it by hanging a wet towel over the coop door with the fan blowing on it for hte 90+ days.

In the winter, I tyvec'ed over that big three part hole, initially covering all three holes, and then opening the small one on the far side from the roost. The top vent, and the matching one on the front of the shed, were never covered, though I would bang on it occasionally to knock snow out.

Like I said, everyone stayed in pretty much from December through March, and was happy.

Roost on the other side - there is a low one, and then the "high" one on the left. They all sleep on the top roost, but rest and hang out on the low one.

 

[Fred's Hens]

I also found the Spotted Sussex, as said earlier, to be a great, hardy bird, but an extremely poor winter layer. FWIW.

When we moved "up north" three years ago to our retirement property, I took full account of our micro-climate, which is far colder than Southwest Ontario, harsher even than the eastern upper peninsula of Michigan and most of Wisconsin.

After much research, I made some decisions. To keep chickens up here, a couple things had to be factored. 1. Only cold hardy breeds were going to be kept. There are a dozen really great choices. 2. I would go broke trying to effectively raise the temperatures in a coop to any meaningful degree. Insulation is simply not an issue if one commits to natural raising and working with, not against the winter. 3. I committed to not only winter hardy breeds, but also winter laying breeds. 4. I committed to not pushing birds in the winter for egg production, but allowing them to use their food calories for self heating purposes. Still, laying is good enough.

I read the many, many posts here of folks with little tupperware tubs worried that their chicks cannot go outside at 8 weeks because it is only 55 degrees. OK, I admit. I smile.

Not only can natural, unheated flock keeping be done in cold climates, but it has been done for hundreds of years. Most of the famous American breeds were invented, kept, and flourished in New England, Ohio and Quebec, a century before Thomas Edison and electricity. As always, your mileage may vary.