Consolidated Kansas

[Naughty]

water was frozen over this morning - but not solid - so was easy to break. Not sure how much I will love my chickens in the winter... but so far everyone seems h ealthy.

The only one who would probably be in danger is my lb roo - cause the others won't let him roost - but I take pity and move him over near one of my big ol biddies so he'll have some warm. We're going to let him go feral anyways - turn him loose at some property my bro owns in Oklahoma. Just don't have the heart to butcher him - can't find a home - figure he'll become something's dinner but as tough as he is -they'll work for the meal. He'll have a fighting chance. I've noticed that the birds you can't stand live forever and never die - but the sweet ones die way too young... I just have to get him out of the yard - he's too determined to attack my kid! Anyone who wants to save him let me know...

I am still getting at least 3 - sometimes 4 eggs a day from my girls. Guess they didn't get the memo about that slowing down the egg laying in fall thing - except for my banty did - so I don't get my lil bitty eggs right now

I was such a good girl that all last week I refrained from my usual breakfast from my girls - so I'd have enough eggs for cookie baking... yummmmmmmy - those fresh eggs make cookies sooooooo better!

 

[averytds]

Picked up some of those nice heavy duty shelving units Lowes had on sale to make more tiered cages. Only waterer that's had an issue one morning was a 5 gallon bucket with 3 poultry cup waterers tubed off it. Thawed with a heat lamp and warm water in about 10 minutes. It's on the base from an old heated waterer now.

 

[sharol]

I broke down and put my brooder light in the coop yesterday. If it really gets down to 7 like my Yahoo weather says it will tonight (Weather.com says 20), I'll plug it in before I go to bed. I have a Thermo Plug on order that will turn on at 20 and off at 30, but it won't be here until next week, and there wasn't anything available locally.

My Delaware, Angel, sat in my lap on the patio this morning in a place out of the wind and cooed happily for a while. Her feet were freezing. Even the Campine was friendlier. I guess warm legs are an attraction to them.

I know chickens can handle the cold (intellectually), but I don't want them to be miserable.

 

[mikeksfarmer]

I may be wrong but I think less energy fighting the elements (be it temprature or disease) the more eggs they lay. I am betting a little heat goes a long way!

 

[OzawkieBantams]

Anyone else ready for their babies to go outside?
Let it be known I WILL NEVER HAVE ANOTHER DUCK IN MY HOUSE after these I have.

Ducks:
this is their night time pen. It looks so much smaller than it is.

O.E.G.B:

both:

 

[CarolAnn]

I've had to flip my big solid frozen rubber water pan over on several mornings to knock the ice out. I've found it a WHOLE LOT easier to empty it in the evening when I shut the coop up and haul a couple milk jugs of water out in the morning. I'm having hubby install an outlet outside so I can use a heated dog water bowl. I'm getting smarter. It may be slow in coming but I'm getting there. LOL

 

[Ivywoods]

My first BCM hatched late on 11/30. They weren't due to hatch until 12/2.

Hopefully I will get more. These dark eggs are pretty hard to candle. I have one more egg pipped already. The first chick looks fine.

It looks like this batch will have to spend most of the winter in the basement. Work is progressing slowly on the barn and coop,, but they are no where near ready to keep chicks in this cold weather.

I bought one of those refrigerator/ heater incubators off ebay that they advertise for reptiles. I bought a VERY accurate thermometer/hygrometer from Sper Scientific. That thing was so accurate it worried me to death. I think eggs are more tolerant of temp variation that we think. It's been interesting. I'd be willing to bet there is more variation in temperature in most incubators than we realize.

I work from 6p to 3am. Then I come home, hop in the computer and dring one glass of wine. When my head starts nodding toward the keyboard it's time to get up and go to bed.

I'm there.

 

[Naughty]

I have one of my girls that keeps trying to go broody ... and I keep grabbing the eggs out from under her... hence the peck marks on my hands right now.. lol I just don't want her to hatch them out and worry about keeping them warm all winter!

Good idea on the water CarolAnn - when I go out at night to make sure things are okay- I think I will start dumping the water - should make things faster in the morning... I usually make sure every morning to put a big pile of scratch near their roosting area - hoping that they eat it on their way in that night lol

 

[sharol]

I went out at 6:30 and plugged in the heat lamp (it was 18 degrees here) and took them scrambled eggs. Their light comes on at 6, so I figured they would at least be awake. They were scratching around in the shavings. Water frozen solid -- I gotta get a heated water dish. It is down to 16 now (at 7:45), so I'm glad I plugged the thing in. I set it up a couple of days ago, but I'm not planning to use it unless the temp gets below 20. I ordered a Thermo Cube (on at 20 off at 30) yesterday, but it will probably be a week before it gets here. The only ones I can find locally are on at 35 off at 45 -- too warm.

Supposed to be better later today and tonight. The older I get, the less tolerant I am of extremes of any sort (weather or people).

 

[ChooksChick]

Please, everyone remember that if you use a heat lamp, make sure you have screws through the clamp on each side so it can't fall.

I can't tell you how many folks I know who have had fires and lost everyone.

Also: check into flat-panel oil-filled radiators for small spaces, as they don't pose a fire hazard and are cheaper to use. For large spaces, the big ones are great!!

I have an extra waterer that I keep inside, and I fill it and take it out every morning- the frozen one comes in and thaws in the sink.

My breeder coops have a water inside that won't freeze until it's REALLY cold, and I'm working on solar heaters for those, with a heat-sink so the water won't freeze overnight.