Do my chicks need heat at 22* tonight?

[djaousfarm]

I live in Northern Michigan and I just put out 13 Lavender Orpingtons that are 2.5 months old as well... I just checked on them... It's 10:34PM... there is wet snow coming down and its around 30 degrees outside, and they are all together in a group sleeping and do not seem to be destressed. They have a pretty large hen house they are in, with dry straw for bedding, are being fed corn scratch mixed with other grains, and chick starter, also housed with ducks. I give them hot water in the day time in plenty amounts, this is their first night out of the warm house but they seem to be doing fine. In 3 days its supposed to get down to 14 degrees at night and 12 degrees the next night, I am going to continue to check on them those nights to see if any are having a hard time coping, but I am hoping they can make it with having plenty of warm water in the day time with the corn/grain chicken scratch and chick starter. Has anyone else had any experiences with 2.5 month old juveniles in 10-15 degree weather at night?

I am not wanting any losses at all with my animals, and especially since these guys costed around 20 dollars a chick, I also have a 60 dollar pullet outside with them thats 3.5 months old, a little more leggy then the orpingtons and a little less feathering...

 

[Ridgerunner]

Has anyone else had any experiences with 2.5 month old juveniles in 10-15 degree weather at night?

Probably but I would not have noticed by that age. I’ve had 5-1/2 week olds in an unheated grow-out coop with overnight lows in the mid 20’s Fahrenheit. They were raised in my large brooder in the coop with one end heated and one end allowed to cool off as it would. Sometimes I saw frost on that far end. The brooder had great ventilation up high but great breeze protection down low where they were. They were acclimated to colder weather. The grow-out coop had tremendous ventilation up high but great breeze protection down low where the chicks were. The floor of that grow-out coop was wire so they did not have any bedding to snuggle down into, bedding would help I’m sure.

I had no losses, saw no distress, and saw zero problems. Those chicks were fine at 5-1/2 weeks in the mid 20’s. That was late fall going into winter so they probably saw temperatures in the teens before they were 2-1/2 months old but that is just something I would not have worried about enough to even notice so I can’t say for sure.

 

[aart]

As long as they are healthy, dry, and out of any strong drafts, they should be fine.
I'm assuming they've been living out in the coop for quite some time.