Florida Winters

[watsonlane]

Hey all! I live in the panhandle of florida so the question is.....are heat lamps necessary for chickens? I have no roosters, just ladies laying eggs....most of the coop is closed in but there is some open area. Florida doesn't really have "cold" winters but it's cold to me so do we need to set an area with a heat lamp?

 

[elmo]

Welcome to the forum!

No, heat lamps are not necessary even in very cold climates, much less Florida. If your chickens have dry, draft free shelter they should do fine (unless you happen to have one of the few cold sensitive breeds of chickens, like the tiny Seramas, for example).

You may want to take a look at this thread, too:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=411825

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Like Elmo said, dry, out of the direct wind, and able to get a belly full of feed and water before they hit the roost. Even last winter wasn't a problem other than having to thaw the waterers every morning!

 

[swimmer]

No needed.

 

[Chicken Rich86]

No live in north east central Florida zone8 my chicken fine at 32for8 hours. 18 to 16 some nights lows last winter.