Colorado

[mythreehens]

Hi! We're a family of 7 (10 if you count the chickens!) living in Colorado Springs. Our chickens' names are Harriet, Eleanor and Martha and they're 12 weeks old. We love our new adventure of raising these fun birds and our children enjoy caring for them. Even our toddler loves to play with them and has learned to be very gentle!

 

[Coopa Cabana]

Great pic!!

 

[coloradochick]

Hey there mythreehens!! What a cutie with his BR girl

 

[wildflowerseed]

Mythreehens, that is such an adorable pic!! One of my ladies is named Eleanor, too. (We gave all our hens "old lady" names... Faye, Eleanor, Betty, June, etc.)

I have a question for the Colorado winters--if anyone could offer some advice. My birds are "winter hearty" but I can't help but wonder how cold they actually get at night when the temps drop. I keep a light on until about 10pm, but then it goes off to let them sleep. My coop is pretty small, and keeps six banties. They snuggle up pretty good together (I've noticed no matter who pecks at who during the day, all is forgiven at night) I've been packing the coop with hay each night for extra insulation, but I fear a brooder light would be too much--way to hot. I hate the thought of my lovely ladies suffering... am I over-thinking this? Or are they in danger of getting too cold? Are there better ways than a brooder light to add warmth

 

[Coopa Cabana]

Quote:
Hi Wildflower!! How's the GL pullet? I'd love to see a recent pic!
One of the most important things to worry about, before the cold, is to keep the coop free of all drafts and moisture - they can be more damaging. You should still have some type of ventilation near the top roof, but make sure no drafts can sneak thru around windows, doors, etc. My coop has extra thick insulation in the walls, and the temp inside always stays about 20 degrees warmer than outside (I have one of those huge garden thermometers hanging on the wall). So even if it drops to 10 degrees, they're fine inside at 30 degrees. If it drops too much lower, I do have a 250 watt red heat lamp hanging from the rafters I can turn on. They can sleep just fine with the red light. I still have freezing water issues. I used to have one of those heaters that the water font sits on, but it rusted out a couple of years ago. Now I just rotate 2 water fonts morning and night - for me it works a lot easier.
If your coop is small and portable, you might think about moving it to the most sheltered spot in your yard for the winter - do you have a little "micro-climate" area that always stays a little warmer than the rest of the yard?

SideBar: Here's a pic of your GL's brother, helping me with the yard work a couple of weeks ago:

 

[imthedude]

Do you fellow Coloradans insulate your coops? This will be my birds' first winter, and I'm undecided on the value of insulation since my coop certainly isn't air tight with the ventilation I've provided.

 

[Coopa Cabana]

Quote:
See my post above. We used 2" thick sheets of styrofoam for insulation - doubled up - which means I have 4" of insulation.

 

[imthedude]

Quote:
See my post above. We used 2" thick sheets of styrofoam for insulation - doubled up - which means I have 4" of insulation.

ah i see that now. thanks!

 

[ShysCreations]

The Poultry Swap in Brighton is tomorrow for those braving our cold temps! I about have to for some roos to move on---bringing the portable propane heater! hot mitts, hat, wool....
I'll have a couple silkie roos and 2 young bantam mille fleur cochin roos--

 

[Wifezilla]

Arrgg!!! Why does Brighton have to be so far north and gas so expensive??? I want to find a few more quail hens and rehome a welsh harlequin drake. Do you ever see quail at the swap?