I think an open air coo is a great idea where it fits the situation. I’ve seen chickens sleep in trees in weather below zero Fahrenheit. One trusted member of this forum tells a story about feral chickens spending the winter outside in northern Michigan. Not only did they sleep in trees but they fed and watered themselves. With that feed and water situation, I won’t say they thrived, but they survived. They can be a lot tougher than we expect, but there are some considerations.
First they need to be chickens that take cold well. A lot of them do but some don’t handle it as well as others.
Chickens are naturally insulated. In cold weather they fluff up to trap air in their feathers and down. Those tiny air bubbles are what provide the insulation, getting warmed by their body heat. If they get hit by a wind strong enough to ruffle their feathers those air bubbles can escape, removing their insulation. When chickens sleep in trees in cold weather they don’t sleep on a bare dead limb overlooking a bluff squawking defiantly into the teeth of a blizzard. They are going to be in some type of protected place, like maybe a thicket in a valley, and they have the ability to move around and get out of a strong wind, maybe hiding behind a tree trunk. They may wake up in the morning covered with snow or maybe even ice and be fine.
Putting the roosts in a cul-de-sac in that coop out of direct wind paths is the idea. It also helps if the open end does not face the prevalent cold wind direction or is somehow shielded. I don’t think you can have too much ventilation even in winter as long as they are protected against a direct breeze.
The easy way to do all this and not have to think is to have all the winter ventilation over their heads while they are on the roosts. It’s about as simple and fool-proof as you can get. Open ended coops can work in really cold climates as long as they are set up right. I’ll continue to recommend to people that they provide ventilation over the chickens’ heads on the roosts since that is the simplest and most fool-proof and since I don’t know enough about their unique situation to feel comfortable recommending anything else. That does not mean I don’t appreciate that open air coops can work in really cold climates. I know they can if they are set up right.
First they need to be chickens that take cold well. A lot of them do but some don’t handle it as well as others.
Chickens are naturally insulated. In cold weather they fluff up to trap air in their feathers and down. Those tiny air bubbles are what provide the insulation, getting warmed by their body heat. If they get hit by a wind strong enough to ruffle their feathers those air bubbles can escape, removing their insulation. When chickens sleep in trees in cold weather they don’t sleep on a bare dead limb overlooking a bluff squawking defiantly into the teeth of a blizzard. They are going to be in some type of protected place, like maybe a thicket in a valley, and they have the ability to move around and get out of a strong wind, maybe hiding behind a tree trunk. They may wake up in the morning covered with snow or maybe even ice and be fine.
Putting the roosts in a cul-de-sac in that coop out of direct wind paths is the idea. It also helps if the open end does not face the prevalent cold wind direction or is somehow shielded. I don’t think you can have too much ventilation even in winter as long as they are protected against a direct breeze.
The easy way to do all this and not have to think is to have all the winter ventilation over their heads while they are on the roosts. It’s about as simple and fool-proof as you can get. Open ended coops can work in really cold climates as long as they are set up right. I’ll continue to recommend to people that they provide ventilation over the chickens’ heads on the roosts since that is the simplest and most fool-proof and since I don’t know enough about their unique situation to feel comfortable recommending anything else. That does not mean I don’t appreciate that open air coops can work in really cold climates. I know they can if they are set up right.
