Feeling worried for winter

[Erin80]

I have 9 hens/pullets....5 barred rocks, 1 Ameraucana (from a breeder, she is not an EE), 1 Icelandic and 2 sweet silkies. Our coop is not heated or insulated but it is draft free and dry. We live in Ontario Canada, I'm just nervous about the cold snaps we have a few times a winter. Is there anything I can do to help them stay warm? I can run the heat lamp for them....not sure what else? This is my first winter with chickens!

 

[aart]

Good ventilation...heat for the waterer.
The first winter is hardest, until you see just how well they do with their down coats.
Do you need heat lamps? This is my favorite answer:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/posts/18890463/

 

[kesrchicky16]

My chickens snuggle better in the winter. I read once that a 5 pound chicken produced the same body heat as a 10 watt bulb. So your birds will be making about as much warmth for their friends as an 80 watt bulb. They will be fine.

 

[BantyChooks]

Howdy. What part of ON?
Your chickens will be just fine. You don't have little bantams so even the -40+ snaps shouldn't phase them.
One tip---empty the waterer at night unless you find a heater that works (and if you do, let me know, because I haven't found one yet) to prevent the arduous task of water thawing from taking up even more of your day than it already will.
During the day time a water heater might suffice, long as you don't have -28C temps.

I found heat lamps to actually not help much at all and just increase the fire risk. Birds still got the same amount of frostbite whether I had the lamp going or not.

 

[Kate E]

@aart when you say good ventilation... i have one entry and exit point in my coop which would be the only place that allows air in and out. Should I create another opening at the top of my coop so there is air flow?

 

[TwoCrows]

Chickens adapt to their environment over time, in all ways. So as the temps dip and drop, their bodies will learn to adjust their internal thermostats and keep themselves warm.

Ventilation is everything. A bunch of chickens breathing and pooping in a closed up coop will produce a LOT of moisture. This moisture will have the tendency to rise to the ceiling of the coop and if it has no place to go, it will drip right back down on your birds, making them wet and in cold climates, give them frost bite. Imagine yourself outside on a winters day, if you were wet, you would would be much colder than if you were dry. The cold temps aren't the issue with birds as nature provided them with downy feathers just as all other wild birds have. But they must be able to stay dry at night. Temp swings aren't a problem for birds, we regularly see 40, even 50 degree temp swings from day to night all year long up here at 7,000 feet, my birds along with all wild birds do just fine.

So, what this means is...about 3/4 to 1 square foot of vent space PER bird in the eaves of your coop. If you have a slanted roof, even better as vents on the high side and low side create a natural movement of air. The outside air will enter in the low side of the roof and travel inside the coop roof up toward the high side, picking up all the moist air the birds are producing. Birds roosting low to the floor are warm in their bubble of air, undisturbed by this air flow above them keeping them dry. Do not let them roost in the rafters with all this moist air. (We have seen -30 Fahrenheit here and my birds all lived through it. There may be an occasional morning you might want to turn on a heat lamp for an old bird, a bird that is heavily molting or one that is feeling a bit tired that day, but generally heat lamps are reserved for very young or sick birds. And this goes for all climates)

All this being said, Silkies can have weak traits and need a bit more attention paid to them, especially in cold climates. Keep the hair trimmed out of their eyes, a bird that can't see well does not get enough sustenance. Make sure the others do not bully the Silkies away from food or water, Silkies can be targets because they are different. Weigh them occasionally so you know if they are holding their weight. A thin bird can't deal with or even survive cold nights. And I do suggest getting extra vitamins into Silkies. DO stop by some of our Silkie threads for more help with them).

Good luck with your birds this winter and stay warm up there!

 

[Asaburks]

You should get a heat lamp to put in the cage; they will go to the lamp if they get cold. Also, it depends, how old are your hens?

 

[Ridgerunner]

A lot of what you can do for ventilation depends on what your coop looks like, especially height. What you are trying to accomplish in your coop for winter is to provide enough air movement to remove moisture without exposing them to a breeze. Often the word "draft" is used on here but to me it's not a good word. The tiny bit of air movement if you have a window or door that's not sealed in your house is what people often think of as a draft. That kind of air movement is good, it helps get moisture out. If a breeze hits them, well wind chill is real. Plus if it ruffles their feathers it releases the air trapped in there which does make them colder.

If you have enough height in the coop you can put openings above their heads when they are sleeping. Any cross breeze will be above them and won't bother them, while it will work great to remove moisture. Even if there is not a breeze, warmer air tends to rise. Their breath and moisture that evaporates from their poop and heated waterers is warm enough to rise. Openings above their heads are good.

Again depending on what your coop looks like, openings down low in winter may be OK or they may be bad. If they create a breeze where the chickens are it is not good. But if the openings are located where the chickens are in a sort of cul de sac and out of any breeze they don't cause any problems.

 

[aart]

@aart when you say good ventilation... i have one entry and exit point in my coop which would be the only place that allows air in and out. Should I create another opening at the top of my coop so there is air flow?

TC and RR explained it well.
Pics of your coop, inside and out, would help for more specific suggestions.

 

[TwoCrows]

Also, stop by the Canadian thread in our Where am I Where are You forums here on BYC. Lots of members from your territory and climate that can help you.