Heat

[Rick589]

Good Morning. I know that you don’t need to heat the chicken coop BUT every time I go out to check on the chickens with temperatures being cold I feel guilty. So, I’m curious if anyone supplies heat to their coops so they don’t feel as though they’re abusing the chickens. Silly notion I suppose but I’m just maybe too soft hearted.

 

[Apis mellifera]

It's up to you. I have a breed that doesn't need heat even in single digit temps in a well built coop. Chickens with giant combs or with a thinner layer of feathers, it won't hurt to keep a drafty, damp coop above freezing.

 

[Rick589]

It's up to you. I have a breed that doesn't need heat even in single digit temps in a well built coop. Chickens with giant combs or with a thinner layer of feathers, it won't hurt to keep a drafty, damp coop above freezing.

Yeah, We have BO’s. I suppose I’m a victim of what I need as opposed to what the chickens need.

 

[lagrange chicks]

I feel the guilt also. When the chickens were young I ran 2 100' extension cords to add a little heat to the coop with a ceramic reptile heater for maybe 2 weeks and that added over $30 to the electric bill. I got that stink eye look from my wife when the bill showed up.

 

[Rick589]

I feel the guilt also. When the chickens were young I ran 2 100' extension cords to add a little heat to the coop with a ceramic reptile heater for maybe 2 weeks and that added over $30 to the electric bill. I got that stink eye look from my wife when the bill showed up.

I have a hard time seeing them as egg laying machines only, I see the more like pets with benefits. I wouldn’t have guessed the additional cost would be that high but then again you are up north. So, the wife and the electric bill won?

 

[Apis mellifera]

Yeah, We have BO’s. I suppose I’m a victim of what I need as opposed to what the chickens need.

Great breed. As long as they are high and dry and can get out of the wind, they're good.

 

[Rick589]

Great breed. As long as they are high and dry and can get out of the wind, they're good.

That is my understanding. They are high,dry, and out of the wind( run can get breezy though). Sooo, that brings me back to what I need versus what they need. When we started this venture we never expected a relationship with chickens to be so complicated……for us not the chickens.

 

[TooCheep]

That is my understanding. They are high,dry, and out of the wind( run can get breezy though). Sooo, that brings me back to what I need versus what they need. When we started this venture we never expected a relationship with chickens to be so complicated……for us not the chickens.

Your BOs have a nice warm down coat. They'll be fine. Breezy in the run isn't a major problem if they have a place to get out of it when they want. That said, I put up plastic sheeting around 3 sides in the winter and leave only one side away from the wind open for plenty of ventilation.

 

[Mrs. K]

Heat in the summer is going to be a bigger problem with BO's, than cold. They are good cold weather birds.

The real problem with heat, is that since childhood, we have been taught to "close the@#$% door, are we heating the whole outside?"

So when people add heat, a lot of the time they close up the coop tight to keep the heat in is what they are thinking. But that is not what happens. What they keep in is the moisture. The poop stays thawed, the birds are in the coop longer because of shorter days, and they breath out a lot of moisture. All of that gets trapped in the coop.

The ammonia fumes are hard on birds, damp chickens are cold chickens.

Instead of thinking warm, think DRY!!!! Dry and out of the wind, and BO's will come through negative 30 degrees without a problem. Instead of adding heat, add wind breaks in your run. Add a large tote on its side, facing the sun, the front facing away from the prevailing wind. You don't have to wind proof the whole run, but giving them options to get out of wind on their choice is a good idea.

Chickens need more fresh air and sunshine. Give them choices, and follow their lead, they know more about being a chicken than we do.

Mrs K

 

[BigBlueHen53]

That is my understanding. They are high,dry, and out of the wind( run can get breezy though). Sooo, that brings me back to what I need versus what they need. When we started this venture we never expected a relationship with chickens to be so complicated……for us not the chickens.

You are very tender-hearted, thoughtful and caring and those are good things. But with chickens one must also be practical. Maybe it will help to remember that chickens are BIRDS. And birds of all kinds, from sparrows to eagles, are designed to live outdoors and to survive in all kinds of weather. Except for a few breeds that humans have foolishly bred to have no feathers, most will do fine in practically all conditions, just with the equipment Nature gave them. They have a thick dense undercoat of soft downy feathers that serve as insulation by locking their body heat in close to their bodies. They also have an outer layer of feathers that covers the down and further locks that body heat in. Finally, they will instinctively huddle together if they get cold, generating another layer of warmth. And we generously provide them with dry, draft-free coops or houses, which is way more than wild birds have, and you see that chickens are just about the most pampered birds on the planet. So in short, your chickens are probably fine without added heat of any kind. In fact, if they get accustomed to added heat, they will be at a severe and possibly deadly disadvantage if for any reason that heat is unexpectedly lost, say to a power failure. They won't have adapted to natural conditions and could succumb to the cold.