Heater or heat panel -10

[Dabiys]

Hello all. First winter with chickens. I know they are are built for cold. We get the very cold weather in Iowa here. It was -15 last night. My friend borrowed me his TURBRO heater. I had it on in the 4x6x4 henhouse. I think it was 8 delegrees. Now here's my question. I don't think/want to heat the hen house. My wife thinks would be good just for the extreme cold days to keep it not so fridgide. I was looking at heat panels possibly? Maybe that might be a better option than an actual heat. Anyone have any thoughts on either?

We personally use Cozy Coop heat panels. It might be overkill, but we have 6-panels in our coop. Each panel is plugged into its own Wyze cube, so we can turn them on or off individually using the Wyze app on our phone. We also have Govee thermometers we use as well and have two of those in our coop and a couple in the chicken run. Govee also has it's own app so you can monitor the temp from your phone. We only use a panel or two when its gets cold. The only time we have used all 6-panels is on those very extreme days/nights. When are girls transition from their coop to their run, we can have it slightly warmed as well, so there is not a great influx of temperature on them. Kind of a fine line of not giving too much heat in the cold as that could lead to colds. We are in Colorado and I know Iowa is much colder for sure. I know I might catch comments not likely the method we use, but it has worked for us and have a few girls that are now over 7-years old. I think the older hens can use the help. Yes chickens can handle cold weather, no doubt, and of course its key to have draft free coops and well ventilated as well as being dry, but frostbite is real. I think each chicken owner handles their flock in the best way they can, as everyone has their own unique situations for sure
Sorry for such a long winded answer, but just was giving you some ideas that we use. I wish you all the best with your chickens. They are such a joy to have.

 

[Dabiys]

If I knew when I started with chickens what I do now, I'd have done a lot of things differently.

Sounds like one of my favorite Kenny Chesney songs, "A lot of Things Different". I totally know and agree with what you said

 

[GardenDmpls]

Found a study (which has citations to other studies for a deeper dive): https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10741227/#B7-animals-13-03824

And an extension service article:

https://extension.umn.edu/small-scale-poultry/caring-chickens-cold-weather

So the study listed had the following conclusions, which I will translate for the non-science people:
"In conclusion, low vs. normal ambient temperature stimulated feed intake and in-creased body weight and FCR. Eggshell color was intensified in laying hens exposed to low temperature. Low temperature elevated skin surface temperature without affecting rectal temperature. Finally, low temperature did not influence stress responses, as manifested by constant yolk CORT concentrations, but altered MDA, total cholesterol, and triglyceride levels. Taken together, our study indicates that the exposure of laying hens to low temperature disrupted the antioxidant system, especially at an early stage of exposure, and altered lipid metabolism (i.e., total cholesterol and triglyceride) without inducing stress responses. The low-temperature-mediated increase in eggshell color seen in this study warrants further study."
Translation:
Low temps caused chickens to eat more and put on more fat. Their body temps stayed normal, but skin temps were a little lower as their bodies way of preventing heat loss. The low temp chickens laid more intensely colored eggs. There was no indication of stress responses, but their eggs had higher cholesterol levels (no mention if the difference was significant to those who ate eggs).

 

[Sydney65]

Hello all. First winter with chickens. I know they are are built for cold. We get the very cold weather in Iowa here. It was -15 last night. My friend borrowed me his TURBRO heater. I had it on in the 4x6x4 henhouse. I think it was 8 delegrees. Now here's my question. I don't think/want to heat the hen house. My wife thinks would be good just for the extreme cold days to keep it not so fridgide. I was looking at heat panels possibly? Maybe that might be a better option than an actual heat. Anyone have any thoughts on either?

I have 2 cozy coop panels hanging in the coop. They've knocked them off a few times when I didn't have the screw set in it's hanging holes properly. From that, I can tell you they will automatically shut off in they fall. It's radiant heat, which heats objects rather than the air. They're safer & use less energy. It's just enough to keep them comfortable during those times. I only turn mine on when the cold is to be as you described.
Some breeds are hardier to cold than others, some more suited to heat than others, so-without knowing what breed YOU have, to protect you from heartache, just a gentle nudge to not assume all chickens are built for cold.

 

[dlastra]

Oh, I’m gonna hear about it, but chickens are not “built for the cold”. As soon as the temp drops below 50F, they start to show cold stress. Cold stress means their bodies start to show physiologic changes in response to the colder temps. These changes mean the chicken is now using energy it would normally use for body repair, keeping hormones balanced, egg production, etc., to keep warm. There’s a lot involved but I won’t get into it here. What you need to understand is that yes, chickens should have access to heat when the temps drop below 50F.

I recommend radiant heat such as the Sweeter Heater. It doesn’t heat the air in the coop, just what is under it. If anyone is confused about how radiant heat works, I’ve got a post here on FB: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GCrcTU4P2/?mibextid=wwXIfr

And you don’t need to heat the whole coop, you just need a spot where the birds can warm up if they need to or want to.

And yes, chickens have survived without heat for hundreds of years yadda yadda yadda. The reason that they had to do that was because we didn’t have the ability to safely heat the coops. We do now and we should. We also used to cut open and bleed people because we didn’t know any better but now that we know better we don’t do that anymore. So a lot of people are stuck back in the dark ages when it comes to chicken care and dig in and insist that it should be done that way because it’s been done that way for hundreds of years. We need to move into modern times. We all should want our chickens to thrive during the winter, not just survive.

I agree completely. I have a small flock but my older girls are almost 7 years old. They no longer lay but are sweet, friendly pets. Friends & family say I spoil them and that they are hardy enough to withstand the cold. I see no reason to do that when I have the ability to provide a nice insulated shed. I also turn on a suspended heater when it gets really cold.

 

[FurryHerbalist]

Chickens are known for their capability to adjust to a climate and other environment conditions within a several of chicken generations (if they are not pampered). This is why we have different chickens from different origins/ regions with different looks.

Exactly! Buff Orpingtons are heavy bodied, heavily feathered birds who do very well in cold temps. The heavy body gives them a mass to surface area ratio that lessens heat loss. Sumatras on the other hand are not likely to be happy in the cold.

So my chickens (old Dutch and European breeds) are doing well without extra heat in our winters. But sure they lay less eggs in winter. The days are much shorter. The cold in autumn makes them go into a moult after their 1+ year. And the older chickens take a long winter break in laying because they need a lot of energy to keep warm, and its not the right time of the year to brood and raise baby chicks anyway. Having a winter break is part of the natural circle of life.

This well written comment illustrates what I call ‘the opposable thumb complex’. We often seek to override natural rhythms to suit our needs. We keep chickens because we want eggs, so how do we keep our hens laying at peak production? We add heat and supplemental light to the coop creating an artificial environment that tricks their circadian rhythms into thinking it’s not winter. And there’s nothing wrong with that. In my *opinion* you are wearing out your hens more quickly because chickens have a finite number of eggs. But mitigating cold stress has as much to do with egg production as it does with avoiding possible frost bite. I provide heat lamps for my girls, but the coop is still cold enough sometimes that their water freezes overnight. I accept that they will lay fewer eggs in winter because that’s how they are designed live.

In general the researches for commercial chickens are not usable for backyard chicken keepers/hobbyists.
Information on facebook, youtube is often not reliable. Sometimes it’s commerce (paid influencers) that makes the info unreliable.

That first sentence is possibly the most important point that has not been brought up. I recently added geese and what I found is most information is *extrapolated* from wild geese studies. Very little research (and I’m a biologist) has been published on backyard geese. What is available most often still centers on meat and egg production or exhibition. Commercial production of chickens, while mildly informative, has different concerns than small backyard flocks. Commercial operations only concerns are cost v. production and keeping labor to a minimum.

So by all means, give your chickens choices, as others have advocated. But understand that these animals have some pretty amazing skills (like tucking their head under a wing to keep their comb warm) and you don’t have to do too much to keep them in good stead.

 

[Sydney65]

So the study listed had the following conclusions, which I will translate for the non-science people:
"In conclusion, low vs. normal ambient temperature stimulated feed intake and in-creased body weight and FCR. Eggshell color was intensified in laying hens exposed to low temperature. Low temperature elevated skin surface temperature without affecting rectal temperature. Finally, low temperature did not influence stress responses, as manifested by constant yolk CORT concentrations, but altered MDA, total cholesterol, and triglyceride levels. Taken together, our study indicates that the exposure of laying hens to low temperature disrupted the antioxidant system, especially at an early stage of exposure, and altered lipid metabolism (i.e., total cholesterol and triglyceride) without inducing stress responses. The low-temperature-mediated increase in eggshell color seen in this study warrants further study."
Translation:
Low temps caused chickens to eat more and put on more fat. Their body temps stayed normal, but skin temps were a little lower as their bodies way of preventing heat loss. The low temp chickens laid more intensely colored eggs. There was no indication of stress responses, but their eggs had higher cholesterol levels (no mention if the difference was significant to those who ate eggs).

Note that the experiment was using Hyline browns, avg size 4.4 lbs and hardy, although I did read they don't do well with rain. In contrast, chickens with lighter weights, or less feathering are noted to struggle more with cold weather, and those with larger combs tend to lose body heat faster.

 

[Dabiys]

I agree completely. I have a small flock but my older girls are almost 7 years old. They no longer lay but are sweet, friendly pets. Friends & family say I spoil them and that they are hardy enough to withstand the cold. I see no reason to do that when I have the ability to provide a nice insulated shed. I also turn on a suspended heater when it gets really cold.

I have two girls over 7-years as well and one more 6-1/2. Mine too are beyond friendly and are pets along with our Maltese. We spoil our as well. We have Cozy Coops

 

[Sydney65]

I have two girls over 7-years as well and one more 6-1/2. Mine too are beyond friendly and are pets along with our Maltese. We spoil our as well. We have Cozy Coops

Likewise, mine are guinea. They don't have breed specifications, just by color. But they range anywhere from 5 lbs to 2lbs. The big guys are less affected by the weather/temp and even refuse to come in sometimes. But my daintier gals look positively miserable when it's super cold, refusing to come out to forage. I think the bottom line is that like anyone else we care for, we know their individual tolerances.

 

[Dabiys]

Likewise, mine are guinea. They don't have breed specifications, just by color. But they range anywhere from 5 lbs to 2lbs. The big guys are less affected by the weather/temp and even refuse to come in sometimes. But my daintier gals look positively miserable when it's super cold, refusing to come out to forage. I think the bottom line is that like anyone else we care for, we know their individual tolerances.

I totally agree. We all know our pets and their limits, whatever animal they are, and act accordingly.