Consolidated Kansas

[lizzyGSR]

Long time no talk everyone! I've been crazy busy and just simply haven't had time to jump on here. We got a thick dusting of snow last night, and our high is barely supposed to get into the 20's today. Quite the shock after we were in the 50's yesterday and had most of the snow we had on the ground melt, just to get more last night. Our overnight lows are supposed to be in the negative single digits with bitter wind chills (-15 to -25). this up and down weather is rough!

I'm curious. How many of you offer supplemental heat for your chickens? I have a hoop coop topped in with metal. The front and back are plywood. I have a door and a window on both the front and the back. I currently have the North door and window closed, but the coop is still a little drafty (though way better than being outside). I leave the south walk-in door and window open 24/7 unless it gets really, really cold (like maybe tonight). I've got a sweeter heater in my coop for my girls, and I've noticed that a majority of the flock sleeps under/near the heater. This is the first year I've done this, and I've not yet had any unexpected deaths this year (and hopefully won't). What do ya'll do for your birds?

 

[chicken danz]

I don't supplement heat for my layers. I have some juveniles that have a single light bulb, Not a heat bulb in their hoop coop shelter. The coop faces north so I put some plastic sheet things I repurposed along the bottom on the West and north sides, and put some regular clear plastic over part of the north, but the wind blew it off so it's not helping right now. I have a light bulb in with the juvenile peacocks, but none of the peafowl, geese, ducks, or turkeys besides them have any heat. The only heat I have for the birds is in the building which is just enough to hopefully keep the auto waterers from freezing. It didn't our last major cold front though. I did shut their pop doors which are usually open, but there's lots of air movement out there. In fact I have a big fan running to move the air around so all the heat doesn't collect on the ceiling.

 

[Trish44]

I don't use heat either, I've always read they don't need it. In my main coop there are plenty of birds to keep them warm with body heat. If you have electricity or can run an extension cord you can put a light in there on a timer that will give them a little heat if you're worried about it. I have birds in pens at my place that only have 3 sides covered by plastic. I leave the south sides open for air exchange. Those birds aren't the ones that have gotten the worst frostbite. The ones that have gotten it the worst are actually in my breeder coop. I do have air circulation at the top of the coop & the pop doors are open but two of the roosters still got frostbite.

 

[Ralph Moyer]

I never use any heat source, once they leave the brooder. I try to provide a dry place, but with blowing snow, sometimes its not possible. My free-ranging turkeys choose to roost on top of one of the pens. There are open sheds they could roost in, but they still choose to be outside in this zero, snowy weather. I only have four geese, and they do the same, but stay on the snow-covered ground. Poultry do have the ability to regulate their body temperature, by adjusting their feathers, as long as they are not molting. My biggest concern is keeping water available to them. As I have many pens, it does take a lot of time to get water to them twice a day. During this freezing weather, I recycle 1/2 gallon plastic juice bottles. I cut out an opening on the top quarter, and lay the bottles flat. I carry two gallon cat litter jugs with warm water to fill these waterers. They don't get it all drank, because there is always ice in them when I water the next time. As we drink a lot of cranberry juice, I have a winter's supply on hand. I still keep larger tubs, with water, for the free-range ducks, geese and turkeys.

 

[Trish44]

I have a lot of pens too Ralph & I have extension cords all over the place because I use heated dog bowls. It sure beats having to go out & beat out frozen water. I still have to do that in the duck pen because they're just too messy, but that's just one bowl I have to deal with, all of the rest have heated bowls & the goats & sheep have heated buckets.

 

[Ralph Moyer]

I have lost two goats over the years, that have bit into live extension cords. My latest guard dog ruined a 100 ft cord, that I was using, to pump water, out of a pasture well. Lucky for him it wasn't plugged in at the time. I just can't leave extension cords unattended. In non-freezing weather, I fill 30, 15 gal. drums, and use them to hold water. Even if they freeze solid, the black drums seem to thaw out, when it is above freezing, and sunny weather.

 

[chicken danz]

I use heated water bowls as well. With so many pens to deal with it's the only practical way to handle it. I wish I could find a more economical way to do it cause the electric bill is always insane. I normally dump them all anyway and put in fresh. But at least if something happens I can't get out there then they still have water.
I converted some 5 gallon buckets with nipples on the sides by using the heating element from some of the heated water bowls. That option has been great. It's a learning curve for chickens who aren't used to them, but once they use them it keeps the water clean and thawed. It won't work for all species but the chickens do very well with them.

 

[CayugaJana]

I started defleshing the cowhide today. That took forever. I finished my using a high powered pressure washer. I was covered from head to toe in cow fat.

I started the tanning/pickling process and should take about 4 days. Maybe more since it’s huge. I’m excited to see how it turns out.

 

[Trish44]

Wow that is big, good luck with it & let us know how it turns out.

 

[chicken danz]

I hadn't heard of using a pressure washer for that before. Curious about the outcome.