do you do anything in the winter to keep your chickens

[Beekissed]

Yes....it doesn't have to be much or often but it does give them a job to do when the snows are deep or the ground is frozen. And it has the added benefit of aerating the bedding, getting the dry and the more moist bedding mixed up well.

 

[aggiemae]

Having spent the summer watching "chicken TV", I know that my chickens like to keep busy, I am so happy to know that I am not the only one who worries about keeping my hens occupied in bad weather.

Today is our first rainy day in 6 weeks and our ladies are confided to the run for the first time ever, mainly because they didn't seem to have the sense to get out of the rain and I got worried that if they didn't dry off they would be wet and cold all night and might get sick.

We have one that never lets us touch her so getting her into the run in the pouring rain was a work out but they are in there and since they have used the run as a walk through between the coop and their 1/2 acre of heaven of weeds and bugs they are keeping busy jumping on and off the roost. I was planning to add some logs and cinder blocks and maybe a shelf up high but I am really interested in what other people do.

I have some questions:

1. Can chickens get sick form being wet and cold?

Our practice has been to not have any food in the coop since it would attract rodents. Our hens stay on the roost until I open the door, or if I open it very early, when it gets light out. They never look for food on the coop floor which is currently covered with a couple of inches of "stall dry" and gets cleaned every day. The coop door is always opened and they could go back in and hang out but (so far) never do unless they are going to the next boxes.

2. Do people leave food (like BOSS) on the floor of the coop or just in the run?

 

[NovaAman]

I keep areas shovelled out, I also keep the entry to the coop, between coops cleared as much as possible so they can go in the weather proofed run, or be out and about... Cabbage head hanging in the run, multiple levels of perches, freeze dried crickets, BOSS, corn tossed in... they were out in snow worse than what I have pictured in the first pic, in the second pic, you can see the snow on the outside of the coop thru the other chicken exit... much thicker that way...

 

[NovaAman]

Last winter was my first winter with the chickens. I kept their food in the coop and their water also. Even though they had a run, it was not predator proof, and since they are in the coop much longer in the winter, and it was the driest place to have it, that is where it was. I also had electricity to the coop to keep water thawed. This year, the original run I made last year has been updated, now has a door and is predator proof so the feed and water will stay in that area. The run has also been expanded to 12x20 off the coops with 3 other elevated coops inside that as well. It will be covered all around and roofed for the winter so they will have a much larger area to be if the weather is to bad for them to go out. They will have that option though.