Coops on Fire

[skunknchatter]

Here's a quick reminder about the dangers of heat lamps in chicken coops. I woke up at 2AM this morning to my husbands fire pager going off. He was dispatched to a chicken coop that had caught fire and then caught an apartment complex on fire. The cause? A heat lamp. Having a heat lamp in your coop is much more dangerous than letting your well equipt chickens tough out the cold. Luckily for these chickens most of them were rescued and thrown in a shed... However the damage to the apartment complex will likely top $100,000. Mostly exterior. But if someone hadn't driven by and seen the flames it could have ended a lot worse. Lots of families/young kids in those apartments.

 

[Chicken girl 15]

Don't get me wrong , I love my flock however they compare in no way to my love of no criminal record. Not wanting a heat lamp for fear of fire is why I will not have fuzzies until spring. I feel so bad for the people (and flock) who lost belongs and thank God there was no loss of life.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Almost all barn fires around here in the winter is from heat lamps, I'm not understanding why people keep heating their coops instead of spending the money on making sure the coop is good for the winter, that being said my chickens live in a metal pole building with a east facing open door, a few drafty cracks and temperature can get down to -40, inside with the wind blocked and the sun coming it it can be quite nice, and my chickens not only survive but they go outside all winter. Chickens don't require extra heat, and I do make sure to raise chicks in the proper season as well.

 

[Chicken girl 15]

I help out at 2 separate horse barns as well as tending my flock . All power to both barns stays shut off at the breaker until we need light to tend stalls and passout feed. If no person is in the barn there needs to be no power. That's just a safety thing. If the animal can survive in -40 Temps it can survive a chilly draft free barn.

 

[bobbi-j]

Almost all barn fires around here in the winter is from heat lamps, I'm not understanding why people keep heating their coops instead of spending the money on making sure the coop is good for the winter, that being said my chickens live in a metal pole building with a east facing open door, a few drafty cracks and temperature can get down to -40, inside with the wind blocked and the sun coming it it can be quite nice, and my chickens not only survive but they go outside all winter. Chickens don't require extra heat, and I do make sure to raise chicks in the proper season as well.

Because it makes them feel better. People tend to humanize their animals and forget that they are made to adapt to the weather. It helps if you're raising chickens that are compatible to the environment in which you're raising them. The little froo-froo chickens and Mediteranian chickens won't do so well in our frigid winter temperatures. The heavier breeds suffer more in warmer climates. Something to think about when building a flock.

 

[Jesusfreak101]

No heat lamp for our gals but most of ours are to fluffy for our summer so they get a fan and water/mud puddles to help keep them cool outside of that i am sure God made them to be able to handle the wearher just fine.

 

[AuntNomi]

Glad no one lost their life due to the fire! The heat lamps are def not worth all the trouble of that.

 

[donrae]

It's all those Humane Society ads on tv....

"If you're cold, they're cold". If it's true for an abnormal creature like a Chihuahua, of course it must be true for an animal that's still pretty "natural" and comes equipped with it's own down coat, right?

I'd love to put a nice fluffy down parka on those folks, zip it up nice and snug, pull the hood on, thick wool socks and long johns, then make them wear that all day in a 70 degree house. Can't take it off! Then tell me how warm chicken need to be.

 

[appps]

Wow, so lucky somebody spotted it! Great reminder!