Colorado

[Double Kindness]

No one seems very happy outside atm who can blame them? A pasture raised pork roast is in the oven

which I hope makes my bf more amenable to helping thin the flocks tonight. As I have to start integrating the ac & haffies and Wobbles the sweet healed up slw.

They are in the barn brooder box (no heat lamp). I have more ac, haffies and white bresse that are younger by 4 weeks in a big brooder box next to them that does have a heat lamp, so it is kinda warm in there. I have no idea what to do, I'm afraid the shock between the warmth of the barn and how cold it is outside to kill them off. I need their brooder space b/c the ac & bresse are getting too cramped in the one. I usually keep the barn doors open for light and ventilation, but the wind keeps slamming the doors shut.

I can't keep them inside the barn all winter, it's going to get very hot in there soon with the attached indoor grow venting inside the barn. The coop design was with integration and rooster quarters to give the ladies a break. Nugget my haffie roo is harassing Wobbles, who is 5 weeks older than everyone else.

I'm keeping our production red capon Pink to fatten him up, a barred rock named Michelle Obamhen, Edith a slw, and 3 or 4 muscovy ducks. I'm keeping one drake Elvis and debating on keeping my other 3 ducks, the one light brown/lilac is HUGE @ 5 months old. The youngest one keeps getting in trouble, she flew up on top of the barn. And a dark chocolate girl I like. Unless my bf gets very good and fast at caponizing, they're all going to freezer camp (our favorite roos which there are several). Unless someone needs a pair of nice white star (guessing at breed?) Roosters named Brazen and Yellow Foot that have seemed to become the flock protectors here for me. I can't keep them to breed. And my poor wheaten ameracuna Jeanette looks so miserable and sad, hasn't laid an egg since early aug, I need to cull her. And figure out wtd about these ayam cemani and white bresse.

 

[yawningreyhound]

Hi everyone! Here we go again with the cold weather. I'm a native; you'd think I'd be used to this.

Not.

The birds are still molting but have feathers covering all their skin. I hope they'll be warm enough tonight and this week. I loaded them up with BOSS, their heated water bowl is functioning, the run is tarped. We changed out all the bedding yesterday and they have fresh barley straw strewn thickly in the run, the sleeping coop is as cozy as I can make it and maintain ventilation. Save bringing them in to watch TV with me, don't know what else to do for them.

I'm monitoring the temp in the sleeping coop and if it drops too much, I'm turning on the heat for a while--something I never did last season and wound up with a frostbitten wattle. Of course, it was 18 below that day. The next few days promise to be brutal.

Great to read all your posts. Hope you're all doing well!

Marcia in Pinewood Springs

p.s. Look who's frequenting our junipers and birdbath. According to internet research, she/he's a mutant robin. The other robins don't like him so I feel sorry for him.

 

[trsturself]

We did some winterizing yesterday. Of course my stupid automatic door decided to stop working the other day. Brought it in to see if I could figure out what's going on. Seems that the motor in the screwdriver burnt out. Now there's nothing on the coop. I have to block their opening with chicken wire and trash can I use for food. It's going to be pretty cold for that tonight.
The area my friend's chickens are in has one side almost all wire. We hung up plastic sheeting over that area to help keep wind/snow out.
We got home a few hours ago and looked out at the chickens, my flock was all inside their coop, my friend's were all huddled by the door. I figured the door must've somehow fallen shut and ran out in the freezing wind to check. It's still open. I look inside and see the bunny sitting in the doorway staring at the chickens. They were afraid to move her. lol! I had to go in and move the rabbit so they could get out of the cold. 2 of her chickens never go inside the door though and I can still see them sitting out there. I really don't want to go out there in the freezing snow to shove them in the coop but I guess I should.

I wanted to block off one door of the stall for the horses but I only got it half way done before the cold came. I put some hay in there to try to entice them in instead of standing out in the snow.
We at least got it cleaned out and fresh straw in there. Fresh shavings in the coops too.

I made a bucket waterer for my friend's chickens so I can hang it inside their coop area. She's going to order a bucket heater, hopefully it will stay warm enough to keep the nipples from freezing.

Since this is our first big storm here I didn't know where to block off the run to block the snow. Hopefully this storm will show us a good place to put something up to hopefully give them a little area snow free.

 

[Mtn Margie]

Low of 3, currently 7. Oh well at least it is not windy!

 

[yawningreyhound]

Low of 3, currently 7. Oh well at least it is not windy!

We're creeping up here...12! The coop got down to 15 last night, our outside temp got down to 7; but the ladies look no worse for the wear. Everyone tumbled out of the coop like it was no nevermind. I can tell they didn't move much as the poops were all very neatly segregated into 4 little gatherings. I gave them warm chicken (I know, I know; but they don't) pieces, coconut oil and some BOSS buried in their covered run so they have something to peck for. The straw is fresh and deep, I warmed their heated bowl freezing cold water a little. I opened their door to the outside and they just stared at it, so I shut it. I hope they leave each other alone. Now that we're down to 4, maybe our 75sq will be adequate for them to hang out in today. Those pecking habits they established at their first home are certainly hard to break.

 

[COChix]

Brrr, I am kicking and screaming into the winter.....but I put on a brave face as our gang needs the support, lol.

The gang didn't pile out of the coop like they normally do when I opened the pop door. They all are puffed up and didn't know what to think of the heated water bowl, silly girls. Gave the gang some warm oatmeal with boss, BSM and some chia seeds this am, they seemed to like that. We have gotten 6 eggs so far this am, but need to go check for more....

I need to do a few things to the coop today, mainly covering a couple of the openings except one. Also want to rig up a tarp or hardware cloth for a wind break in the run....

Happily we got a Treager smoker, for those who don't know it is a pellet smoker and OMG we will never go out to eat, lol. Had one before and been without one for a year, we picked one up yesterday. I cannot wait to fire it up, gonna start tonight with a few cornish hens (not from our flock). Hope everyone is keeping toasty, tomorrow is suppose to be worse as far as the cold....

Just curious what everyone does for warmth for their girls, how many of you have a heat source in your coop. Please share your experiences, good and bad, with various methods to add heat to the coop. We will probably set up a heat lamp in the coop on a timer for those days coming up where we are bitterly cold.

 

[Mtn Margie]

Not really in to heating the coop. Figure they are wearing down coats anyway and Alaska/ Canada/ Minnesota are a lot colder than here. No heat, just keep the wind out.

 

[Ashdoes]

Funny you talking about the pellet smoker, and I was just looking at one for hubby. Let me know how yours does, in the colder temps. Does it take longer to heat up, use more pellets to stay hot? Things like that.

 

[maggiemo]

It was a balmy 11F here in South East Boulder last night. 17F now.
Mine mulling around in the run and coop and not venturing out into the inch or so of snow we have here. My heated dog bowl seems to be working so far.

We have a Treager pellet smoker. I we have to use a welding blanket to hold the heat in the smoker below freezing.

 

[Double Kindness]

The temps are dropping. I'm out every hour checking for frozen water, putting more straw and roosting poles up. This gives me new meaning to freezer camp.