Do chickens like snow?

[tripletfeb]

My ladies hate the snow. They can be outside in their run, perching or scratching around, in negative temps. But the minute it starts to snow, they beeline for the coop. I'm like the OP, food and heated water in the coop but their pop door is always open for them, giving them the option to go out if they want.

 

[gtaus]

I'm like the OP, food and heated water in the coop but their pop door is always open for them, giving them the option to go out if they want.

If my chicken run was predator proof, I'd consider just leaving the pop door open, too. However, I only have 2x4 welded fencing for the chicken run - which is predator resistant but definitely not predator proof. I would be concerned about mink or weasels getting into the coop at night if I left the pop door open.

 

[gtaus]

This is bigger and more complicated than you need, but you see the steepness of the roof.

I have been thinking about maybe building a small barn out in the back yard, but it's hard to justify investing that money for my 10 hens. I have suggested to Dear Wife that we should consider maybe some goats and/or pigs. She has no interest in that idea, at least, not at this time. But I could certainly build a small barn like your picture.

Another option I have been considering is building a cattle panel greenhouse/chicken run with a domed top - so the snow would in theory slide off the plastic. The advantage to that idea is that it could also be used as a greenhouse for Dear Wife's plants in the spring when I would not need it anymore for the chickens.

 

[CindyinSD]

I have been thinking about maybe building a small barn out in the back yard, but it's hard to justify investing that money for my 10 hens. I have suggested to Dear Wife that we should consider maybe some goats and/or pigs. She has no interest in that idea, at least, not at this time. But I could certainly build a small barn like your picture.

Another option I have been considering is building a cattle panel greenhouse/chicken run with a domed top - so the snow would in theory slide off the plastic. The advantage to that idea is that it could also be used as a greenhouse for Dear Wife's plants in the spring when I would not need it anymore for the chickens.

You might consider making your greenhouse with a peaked roof like this: (this is this year’s project)

It sheds snow better than a Quonset shape. You could either do a bend in the panels at top or if you want it bigger/taller, do a panel on each side—maybe four or six or eight total, depending on how big you want it. The inside support looks like this:

I’ll bet you could do a great greenhouse out of cattle panels and your birds would love it. So would your DW, I’ll bet. That’s a wonderful idea.

 

[gtaus]

I’ll bet you could do a great greenhouse out of cattle panels and your birds would love it. So would your DW, I’ll bet. That’s a wonderful idea.

Well, at least with a cattle panel greenhouse/chicken run, the chickens could use it all winter as a covered chicken run and then in the spring, summer, and fall my wife could have it for her use as a greenhouse. I'd make it big enough to walk in, but small enough to move around with my lawn tractors. Fortunately, there are lots of YouTube videos on how to build them.

 

[CindyinSD]

Very cool. I can hardly ever watch YouTube videos because we’re on satellite, but yeah—of course there would be. I can’t wait to see your pictures! I made some Suskovich tractors and thought I’d move one into my run for some winter shelter (a little anyway) but the gate was just a teensy bit too small. Oh well. They’d work for mini greenhouses, too, but spring is also when they’re wanted for broilers and mobile chicken housing.

 

[CindyinSD]

Hey... are you on the Surviving Minnesota thread? You should check it out if not.

 

[gtaus]

Hey... are you on the Surviving Minnesota thread? You should check it out if not.

Yes, I have been on the Surviving Minnesota thread, but for some reason I never get notified of any new posts.

 

[CindyinSD]

I thought I might have seen you there. I usually have to look it up in the alerts page. I sometimes get emails but I’m not specially good at checking my email. I think what happens is, you get an alert from a thread but you don’t go to it right away or you don't notice it and it gets buried. If you don’t look at the post, you don’t get any more alerts until you visit the thread. That resets it. I guess it’s BYC’s way of not pestering you.

 

[Shezadandy]

Yes, all about the pitch - also consider where all the runoff will go when deciding location.