Have you ever had a chicken die from the cold?

[NicInNC]

Just curious. We're supposed to get our biggest snowfall so far (haven't had one for several years) and I'm so nervous about leaving my two banties out in the coop. So, I have them in the garage in a dog crate.

Tomorrow it's supposed to get down to 11 degrees and the next night, 14. So it looks like they'll be living in the garage for a few days. I was just wondering if anyone has ever lost a chicken to the cold and if so, how cold did it get?

 

[HorseFeathers]

I've heard of it, but we're up in Maine with nights in the negatives and as long as we lock them in the coop at night they're fine.

 

[ladybug4ut1]

ilost a Serama Roo this year when we were down in the high teens....but that has been it

 

[Skip]

I haven't lost chickens to the cold, but they have been in temps of down to -27. Provided your banties aren't forced to sit on some heat-conductive source, like concrete or metal, and the garage isn't humid, your babies should be just fine!

 

[waynesgarden]

I lost one this winter but can't attribute it only to the - 30 F. temps at the time. It wasn't doing well leading up to those temps. Her sisters seemed to all be doing well and laying eggs in their unheated, uninsulated coop.

Wayne

 

[NicInNC]

Quote:
Their coop is well insulated and full of shavings. When it gets cold, I also wrap plastic all around the coop and the door.

The dog crate they're in is in a partially heated garage (part of the garage was a bedroomroom at one time when previous owners lived here...that's why it's heated). We just close off the air ducts, but it is still about 65 degrees in there.

I'm just such a weenie when it comes to them being out in the cold. I feel better with them inside. lol

 

[joanc]

65 degress?? That's a heat wave to my girls!!

They won't see that high a temp until April or May, or whenever it decides to stop snowing in Minnesota.

 

[KyleD.]

one of friends bought a pair of jap bantams and on the way home they died in the back of the truck from the cold.

 

[dangerouschicken]

I had one that died from the cold in Texas. It got down into the teens and the corregated metal coop was not insulated. It was my first year with chickens, so I just didn't know how to prepare the coop properly for winter.

Many years later, I know to use plastic sheeting over the windows, etc to keep it warmer. They also have a nicer coop now we are living in Oregon. They survived 2 and 3 degrees nights, with no extra heat source. Some still layed eggs, even!

 

[finallychickens]

Just make sure you don't wrap them up too tight. I lost my favorite roo during our two-day cold snap (single digits) this year. It was completely my own fault. They were in an insulated coop and I put more insulation over the door trying to ward off drafts. After two days of being sealed up the damp got him and the poor thing died. I think I killed him with kindness. I still feel so bad, but I learned my lesson.