Heating Coop for chicks in the winter...

[BluebirdHomestead]

I haven't read the whole thread yet, but have you thought about using a Wool Hen? I've raised lots of biddies without using any electricity in the winter (20s at night) by using a Wool Momma. If they get cold, they will move further back into the tunnel, if they get warm, they will move towards the front opening. And you don't have to worry about fires, or the electricity going out.
They also don't have the eye and mental problems associated with using heat lamps. They seem to develop more natural circadian rhythms without lights.

You know, I’ve heard about wool hens but forgot about that as an option...I really like this idea. How would you build one big enough for 10 6-8 week old chicks/pullets? How would I keep it from getting gnarly very quickly in the coop. Thoughts?

 

[aart]

You know, I’ve heard about wool hens but forgot about that as an option...I really like this idea. How would you build one big enough for 10 6-8 week old chicks/pullets? How would I keep it from getting gnarly very quickly in the coop. Thoughts?

I don't think they've been used much.
Don't make much sense to me, entanglement risk way outweighs any theoretical function.
6-8wo chicks don't need any heat as long as they are dry and out of the wind.

 

[EggWalrus]

You know, I’ve heard about wool hens but forgot about that as an option...I really like this idea. How would you build one big enough for 10 6-8 week old chicks/pullets? How would I keep it from getting gnarly very quickly in the coop. Thoughts?

If they are 6-8 weeks old they should be outside without heat by now. I'd ween them off the heat over a week or so and let them get busy doing chickens things.

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

If they are 6-8 weeks old they should be outside without heat by now. I'd ween them off the heat over a week or so and let them get busy doing chickens things.

Sorry my brain isn’t functioning properly. They will be 3 weeks on Friday and I don’t want to keep them inside much longer than 3 more weeks hence where I was pulling the 6 weeks from. I’ll focus on slowly cooling the workshop off until then and getting them used to the cold.

 

[EggWalrus]

I don't think they've been used much.
Don't make much sense to me, entanglement risk way outweighs any theoretical function.
6-8wo chicks don't need any heat as long as they are dry and out of the wind.

what entanglement risk?
You don't use wool yarn hanging down. You use 3-4 inch wide strips of a wool blanket or other "microfiber/wool like" blanket.
Is there something else a bird could get entangled in? Is there something I'm missing?

 

[BluebirdHomestead]

Agree!


Uh oh. Sounds like a roo is present. My first flock had a sweet, friendly little pullet that let me hold her, pet her, bathe her when she had poopy butt, and was the first to run and greet me every day. And then she crowed. >sigh<
He's now in a bachelor pad due to being human aggressive.
Good luck, I hope I'm wrong.

Are you seeing a rooster? Are those pointed saddle feathers coming in?

 

[EggWalrus]

View attachment 1974106 View attachment 1974105


Are you seeing a rooster? Are those pointed saddle feathers coming in?

Can't really see if they are pointy in these pics, but the saddle feathers look like they are getting that "hanging roo curve" to them, sorta like sickle feathers. It's comb is quite yellow for a little roo. Comb size doesn't always tell the sex, but comb color is usually a more accurate indicator.

Sometimes there ain't no way to know,
till they lay an egg or crow!

 

[aart]

what entanglement risk?
You don't use wool yarn hanging down. You use 3-4 inch wide strips of a wool blanket or other "microfiber/wool like" blanket.
Is there something else a bird could get entangled in? Is there something I'm missing?

Cut strips of cloth can get threads on edges, toenails can get caught in any cloth.
Have you used one, got pics?

 

[CindyinSD]

I was envisioning a big wad of raw wool with a kind of sculpted cave/tunnel running through it. And I was wondering how on earth that sort of thing could be kept even marginally clean and whether one wouldn’t have to keep sheep if that was going to be at all affordable. Silly me!

 

[Cryss]

These are going to be fun to watch. Those MIGHT be saddle feathers. My roo was a late bloomer with pale comb and waddles until hormones hit with a vengeance. Most pullets have a smooth tail like a fan while a rooster has a jagged line of tail feathers that will eventually flow.