Counting Dead Birds

[Hokum Coco]

It is really cold here this morning -13F the temperature is not the worst it is the wind that is cutting. It is that cold that if you start your car and turn it off the temperature difference from the inside of your engine and the outside temperature in some cases is causing the engine block to crack. That is cold my friend. I have pigeons sitting on eggs and these two squabs outside in an unheated uninsulated baby barn with 1/4 inch plywood between them and the elements. I wonder how many dead birds I have out there this morning.





Plus I have 6 Golden Comets and one Delaware Rooster housed in here it is insulated however.

 

[Time-Out]

Why didn't you insulate the barn?

 

[Hokum Coco]

Had a hard time opening coop and loft doors today. I could hear birds inside so I knew I had NOT lost all my birds.

The fluid in my eyes seemed to be freezing. There were no ill effects in my buildings all the birds are active and vocal.

It is -36F with the wind chill and there does not seem to be that much of a breeze. Thank God if it would have dropped 4 more degrees they would have cancelled schools. That being said it is business as usual in balmy Canada.

All of my chickens were doing well only one egg at 0800hrs this morning. I will go out again at 1100hrs and change their water and top up the feed dishes (extra corn for the guys and the ladies today).

 

[my sunwolf]

Wow, that's incredible that you didn't lose any! Must have all been very healthy to handle that cold.

 

[Hokum Coco]

I thought it would be a good idea to shut up my ventilation ports and the litter in my buildings is like walking on concrete. The hottest thing outside in the buildings is chicken poop and that freezes in about 3 heart beats (not counting the birds) which came down off their roost to sample the warm water I brought out.

 

[my sunwolf]

I thought it would be a good idea to shut up my ventilation ports and the litter in my buildings is like walking on concrete. The hottest thing outside in the buildings is chicken poop and that freezes in about 3 heart beats (not counting the birds) which came down off their roost to sample the warm water I brought out.

Any idea why this would be?? Is it because of moisture buildup and subsequent freezing of all the bedding? Some patches of my bedding in a pasture coop are doing this, but it's 12˚F here so not really the same kind of cold.

 

[From the North]

I'm also in Canada and getting the same type of weather here. I don't have chickens yet but it is encouraging to hear that yours are doing ok in this cold!

 

[Hokum Coco]

What COLD can do!! Well Mysunwolf; there is a crust on the top layer of bedding this morning. I imagine if I turned things over there would be soft material underneath. However I thought that could wait until this cold snap is over. I wanted back into my coop more than I wanted to stir up bedding. Also there is very little poop in the litter yet as I had just put them in their a few days ago with fresh litter.

 

[Hokum Coco]

I can not believe the COLD could kill that many acclimatized birds I went out and checked my birds again at 1300hrs and still they are ALL vocal and happy. What am I doing wrong???

 

[Time-Out]

Are you hoping they die?