Consolidated Kansas

[Trish44]

Well I did all I could yesterday to get ready. I went out with my winter hose & changed out all the water so it was fresh & then hauled two more bales of straw up & took the pup some for his house again. He won't leave it in there but I tried & put some more out in his pen. So far he has not used the dog igloo just like the other two LGDs. He plays in it & takes his bowl & stuff in there but that's it. At least it's in there if he wants it. My other two are sitting out in the snow as usual. It is snowing here now but small stuff, it may be getting a little bit bigger. HEChicken you were the smart one going out & getting chores done, I still have to brave it & go out & do mine. I was hoping my DH would get back & come out & help me, but so far he's not back. I'm still coughing quite a bit, I have this congestion in my lungs I haven't gotten rid of yet. The head part of it is getting better but I'm still not well yet.

 

[lizzyGSR]

We had freezing fog yesterday which caused lots of havoc on the roadways from what I saw on FB. We've got several inches of snow now. Doing morning chores was no fun. It always takes longer to do morning chores when it's cold out, and it was COLD this morning! I felt like a human marshmallow with all my layers on. The sad thing is that I could've used a couple more... Even worse, it is supposed to be even colder tonight. Actual temps are forecast to be down to -11*F. BRRR! I sure hope all the outside animals are okay in that. Neither my ducks nor my chickens have come out of their respective shelters today. I don't blame them one bit!

 

[lizzyGSR]

I just came back in from doing evening chores. it is miserable out there and only supposed to get worse! The thermometer says 0*F with a forecasted low of -11*F, and that's not including wind chill. I hope ya'll are staying warm!

I've got a question for some of you more experienced chicken keepers. I usually keep my food and water outside the chicken coop. Judging by the foot prints, it looks like I've only had maybe one or two birds come out of the coop for water and none for food. I moved the food bowl into the coop for them but moving the water is more work because it involves extension cords and such. Will they go out if they really need a drink? What about the little chicks? Any suggestions to get them through this cold spell? Ugh! Ducks are so much easier!

 

[sharol]

I brought my oldest chicken in the house. We have an area that isn't as warm, and I have a really large dog kennel for her. She lives alone in the hoop coop (by her choice), and it is just too cold out there for that drafty thing without someone to cuddle with.

Lizbeth is the last of my "My Pet Chicken"s from 2010, and she is the only real pet in the flock, so she gets special treatment.

 

[HEChicken]

I have a few - well more than a few - pets like that too Sharol.

Lizzy, so funny you think ducks are easier. I got rid of my ducks two years ago because they were such a pain compared to the chickens! I actually moved my water bowl into the coop this afternoon for the first time ever. I have no option but an extension cord and I was finding that outside the heating element wasn't able to keep up and kept tripping the GFCI. So finally I decided to try it in the coop instead, in hopes it will actually stay unfrozen. Part of the reason for my decision was that where in good weather I have to refill the bowl several times, today it got to late afternoon and they'd barely touched it. Sure enough, as soon as I moved it into the coop, there was a crowd around it getting a drink. So I guess they were thirsty but just didn't want to brave the -20 wind chills to get water.

 

[lizzyGSR]

Hechicken - I might have to follow your lead and move the water. Those silly chickens just don't wanna go outside. It is supposed to warm up some today so that will be a good thing. Still below freezing but better than being in the single digits. I'm about to go out and check on everyone.... time to get all bundled up. Stay warm everyone!

 

[chicken danz]

When I looked while ago the temp here was -6. Not sure how much colder it got before daylight. It's so hard to guess how much snow we actually got yesterday cause it went sideways all day. It stopped around 11:00 Pm or so as far as I could tell. Just looking at higher surfaces where the wind wasn't blowing it as much I'd guess between 2" to 3" but that is only a guess. The ground is showing everything from a brushing to a pile. So far at least I don't see that the road is drifted shut though. The North South road probably is though, cause it has a low dip where the creek runs through and it always collects there. Nothing is moving out there this morning except the dogs. The predators must be looking for food though, cause normally the dogs are sleeping in by now and they are all out by the fence barking. Of course I haven't been out to feed them breakfast yet either. I never let the layers out yesterday but actually did see a few of them out running around their pen in the snow. The cockerels that are in other pens stayed in all day and never left their shelters.
I again didn't get my pop doors rigged up. I had so many other projects to work on out in the building yesterday. I did shut all of them though and it really made a big difference on the heat in there. Surprisingly on the south side of the building it really didn't feel that bad outside. I have a peahen that has been doing really poorly and I fixed up some new quarters for her while I try to nurse her back to health. She wasn't eating and drinking at all but she was doing a good job of eating yesterday. That gives me hope. I emptied the big cage I had been using for her and disinfected it. I'm going to move my little Icelandics out there. The ones that are old enough to have developed wing feathers are flying all over in this room instead of staying in the bin. Too bad they are so messy cause they are really funny little birds. The first little rooster that was hatched is a beautiful buff and blue with white tips and a crest on his head. Just cute as a button. He often flies out and will land on my lap and just sit there for awhile. He seems to like human contact. The pullet that hatched with him is black and gold with almost a partridge pattern to her feathers.
Everyone had water yesterday so I didn't have to water any animals except the pig. It was easy to carry a bucket out to him. I got the rest of my straw out and beefed up beds and such. I brought a bale of straw to the pig. He had constructed a raised bed of dirt with a hollow in the middle that he was sleeping in. He acted like a kid at Christmas. He was so excited about the straw that he was literally dancing around. He couldn't decide if he wanted to play in it, eat it, or nest in it. Needless to say it didn't take long for a whole bale of staw to be strung out over a 150 foot area. But at least it will help him stay warmer.
I gave Enya another bale as well even though I had just given her some recently. Hers doesn't last as long cause lots get shoveled out with the poop. I fixed up another small shelter for the geese and put three more bales in their shelters. They however collected in the old garage last night, even with half the roof gone. I had tried to walk them to the pen yesterday but it's a two person job. I don't see them at all this morning so they may be out in their own pen staying warm.
I'll have to get out later and figure out how to water everyone. I won't dare shut the hose off while I'm doing it or it will freeze for sure. I've had hoses freeze while I used them as well in extreme cold so this may be quite the chore.
The Topeka weather channel forecast -18 for our chill index today. But they also predicted a low of -3 and it was lower than that. Not sure how cold the wind chill will actually be. Way too cold to want to be outside for sure. I still have all of my water outside. I think the birds will go out if they get thirsty enough. And they will eat snow if that is their only option. Of course in this extreme cold the heated water bowls won't do much good anyway.

 

[Trish44]

That's the bad thing danz, the heated bowls can't keep up in this kind of cold. I think my heated base at my main coop might have failed so I don't know what I'm going to do now for those chickens. I hate to put water in the coop, but I may have to till it warms up a bit again.

I'm still under the weather here, still coughing, this stuff doesn't want to let go. Yesterday after going out to do chores I was light headed like I couldn't get enough air. That's been the problem pretty much from the beginning that it started in my chest & has stayed there.

 

[lizzyGSR]

Maybe I just got a good one or something but I haven't had any problems with the heated dog bowls keeping the water thaw in this cold. I did move the chicken water bucket inside the coop but that was just because I have chicks in there that refused to come out. I lost one this morning anyway. I think it just got too cold. Not enough mama bird to go around I guess.

Hechicken - on the duck vs chicken thing. I have had a lot of bad luck with chickens. Danz can attest to the fact that I can't seem to keep my chickens healthy. I have lost quite a few.

I've currently got one hen that is acting "slow". Danz thought it might be a breathing issue... she has one day left of treatment and then we'll reevaluate her situation.

I have not lost a duck and don't have problems with them. Sure they make a mess with their water but I don't have to worry about them getting sick all the time. They seem hardier to me.

For everyone else on here that has had ducks and chickens... which do you prefer and why? I'm interested in what everyone else has found!

 

[rlh1]

I had to break down and put the water bucket in the coop, Its still freezing some but at least its not frozen solid like the ones outside. I did not let them out today. When I let them out yesterday, they looked like Mexican jumping beans! the minute their feet his the ground they bounced up in to the air with their wings flapping! I laughed so hard! One of the hens got all the way out to the sand box, she got stuck there. She would not get off and let her feet touch the ice. My daughter went out to save her and had to carry her back to the run LOL. Our roo Bane was out there yelling from the coop door to get her butt back in there.
I have one little silky that I think has decided to go broody. I putt a sweater on her cause I thought she was cold but she's not. She's not laying any eggs, just laying in the corner of the run, in the same place...
Anyway, we have had a little bit of frostbite but not much. We insulated the coop with visqueen and put two heat lamps out there. They seem pretty happy. Considering they are my hobby and pets, they better be! The run in half covered with a hard tarp so at least some of the run is protected from snow and rain.

Good luck to everyone this winter!
Ricki