Cold, wet weather delaying everything?

[MykaMom]

It's been unseasonably cold with massive thunderstorms rolling through every day. My 10 pullets are so crowded in the indoor pen I've had to pull the banty and 2 chicks to a smaller cage.

If I put the outdoor playpen in the run and start 'look but dont touch', am I risking pneumonia and death? We have 3 days coming expected to be warmer, then it drops again. Any advice?

 

[Criticalicious]

I put my 4 week chicks outside with lows at night down to around 45 degrees, although highs during the day have been 70 to 90 degrees. They've done great. As long as they are kept dry and away from drafts when it's cold, if they're off heat and mostly feathered, they will do fine. Especially if they have friends to snuggle with at night they'll be fine.

 

[PirateGirl]

Is there a way to divide the inside of your coop with a bit of wire fencing or something so that your birds can get used to your outside weather without being forced to be in the rain? It's not that your birds aren't big enough and feathered enough to handle the weather, provided they can go in and out of the coop as needed, but you do have a bit of a dilemma since they aren't integrated with your other birds. If they could just have a divided off section inside the coop (even if it means they don't have access to the run) this might help you start your integration.

 

[MykaMom]

Is there a way to divide the inside of your coop with a bit of wire fencing or something so that your birds can get used to your outside weather without being forced to be in the rain? It's not that your birds aren't big enough and feathered enough to handle the weather, provided they can go in and out of the coop as needed, but you do have a bit of a dilemma since they aren't integrated with your other birds. If they could just have a divided off section inside the coop (even if it means they don't have access to the run) this might help you start your integration.

The coop is an odd one, was already here when we bought the property. It was an old shed(100+years) the prior owner converted into a coop. There is no place I can divide off that will successfully work. Instead, I've always used a puppy pen with an old door for a lid. Its half screen so there's a roof over half of it. Heavy layer of hay on the ground, food and water placed on bricks elevated over the hay. It doesnt take more than a few days before they will be loose in the run with the big girls. I've never had a banty before, I'm most concerned about her getting sick. She is tiny!

 

[MykaMom]

I put my 4 week chicks outside with lows at night down to around 45 degrees, although highs during the day have been 70 to 90 degrees. They've done great. As long as they are kept dry and away from drafts when it's cold, if they're off heat and mostly feathered, they will do fine. Especially if they have friends to snuggle with at night they'll be fine.

I've never put mine out so young! Good to know they'll be ok. I've been considering setting up a large old dog house as a separate coop/run while they adapt to outside. My existing hens use it as a weather shelter when theyre foraging and it rains but they dont want to go back into the coop yet, lol. There's plenty of room for them all. I worry about the banty, she is such a little thing.

 

[littlebarngirl]

Mine have been faring well in the rain. Their little barn and run do have shelter from the rain but the latest rain has been coming from all directions, and they do like to walk in the rain. So it's inevitable that they'll have some wet feathers. After each rainfall I go out and inspect for uneven wood chips and mud ratio on the ground and excessive puddling on anything. And I've been topping with hay and dry grass so they have something to play with.