Frost Bite

[Dina45]

I have 6 cold hardy chickens that have minor frost bite on their combs. I am surprised by this because we moved them to the barn for winter and allowed them access to an outdoor run if they want to go outside. I thought they would self modulate their behavior base on if they were cold or not. Am I wrong? Are chickens to stupid to come out of the cold when they should?

 

[ChucktheChick]

No, I think they would go inside when it gets cold. My chickens don' like to be outside in cold weather. If they won't go inside you can close their door at night until noon or so, so that way they will be in most of the time but they still get some outdoor time.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Frost bite at temperatures over 0 are usually caused by excessive moisture build up in the coop, make sure you have adequate air movement, people who close up their coops to keep them warm cause moisture problems, at temperatures below 0 moisture is still a factor, but the colder it gets the more frostbite will occur on the comb points regardless. So it's not about going inside to get warmer it's about creating the proper environment and choosing breeds with smaller combs if you are in a colder climate.