Heating the chicken coop

[jvls1942]

Aside from the danger of fire, or even asphixiation from faulty ventilation for gas heaters,
IMHO, the problem with adding heat to a coop is what happens to the birds when the power goes out, or the heater fails in the middle of the coldest night of the year? Because, yes, that is when problems develop. It is Murphy's Law.
Birds that live in an unheated coop can deal with the cold temps, but birds that are not acclimated to the cold will suffer if they suddenly lose their heat source.

X2

I would like to add that if given supplemental heat, the birds do not fully feather out , so it is a douple whammy if the heat goes out..

wyo .......jiminwisc....

 

[wyoDreamer]

A friend of mine had 2 geese and 4 ducks in northern WI. He made them some "duck houses" out of straw bales. Three sides were stacked bales (2 high) with an open front that faced south. He put a piece of plywood on top, then covered with loose hay about 1' thick and stuffed loose straw inside for the birds to form into nests. The geese used one and the ducks used the other. On a really cold night, he looked into one to see how the birds were doing and saw both geese, the ducks and 2 barn cats all snuggled together, lol.

 

[enrgizerbunny]

Seen any fires with the flat panel heaters @enrgizerbunny?
Read one story here where a flat panel scorched the wall it was hanging on,
probably manufacturer defect, but still.
Any electrical in a coop can be dangerous, dust and connections.

Just heat lamps that I can think of.

 

[wyoDreamer]

Is a flat panel heater a propane heater?
My DH put one of those ventless, propane heaters in the garage shop and I couldn't be in there for more than 15 minutes without getting a headache from the smell. We had it checked out, and it was running fine and hooked up right and everything was good, I am just really sensitive to that smell.
With chickens notorious for having a delicate respiratory system, I would not use one of those.

 

[Hoytman]

It was said in an earlier post that, "Animals don't heat each other, nor do they heat their coop."

I haven't even read this entire thread yet, but the first sentence of the post above needs addressing.

WORD TO THE WISE

If animals don't heat each other, then why do quail circle up in the winter to keep warm? Ever seen that? I have. Was in a tree stand deer hunting one day and had 23 quail directly underneath my stand in a storm producing "BB" size sleet. Those quail were huddled in a circle, all facing outward, with one bird in the middle of the circle. Each outside bird was backed up against the bird in the middle and each outside bird in the circle was doing a little dance. Why? Generating heat by moving. As I watched, these birds were trading places, each taking a turn in the middle to warm up. There ended up being about 2" inches of little sleet balls on the ground and those birds survived the storm by circling up and keeping each other warm...in the wide open woods.

Animals can indeed keep each other warm. Too many animals, of any kind, in too small a space can cause over heating of the animals within the space and animals can indeed die. I've heard of prized waterfowl dogs dyeing from this very thing on many occasions.

MORAL OF THE STORY

Give animals ample room for their needs and they will take care of keeping each other warm. They will huddle if they need to, otherwise they'll be fine. Just like baby chicks move closer and further from a heat source to keep warm.

EDIT:
Some birds do indeed huddle for safety during any season. In winter though, if you see birds huddled together, you can bet some of their body heat is making them even more comfortable.

 

[aart]

If animals don't heat each other, then why do quail circle up in the winter to keep warm? Ever seen that?

Part could well be for warmth....
...but I've seen birds crammed together on the roost of a hot summer nights,
so it's also (maybe mostly) that they feel 'safer' huddled together.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

It was said in an earlier post that, "Animals don't heat each other, nor do they heat their coop."

I haven't even read this entire thread yet, but the first sentence of the post above needs addressing.

WORD TO THE WISE

If animals don't heat each other, then why do quail circle up in the winter to keep warm? Ever seen that? I have. Was in a tree stand deer hunting one day and had 23 quail directly underneath my stand in a storm producing "BB" size sleet. Those quail were huddled in a circle, all facing outward, with one bird in the middle of the circle. Each outside bird was backed up against the bird in the middle and each outside bird in the circle was doing a little dance. Why? Generating heat by moving. As I watched, these birds were trading places, each taking a turn in the middle to warm up. There ended up being about 2" inches of little sleet balls on the ground and those birds survived the storm by circling up and keeping each other warm...in the wide open woods.

Animals can indeed keep each other warm. Too many animals, of any kind, in too small a space can cause over heating of the animals within the space and animals can indeed die. I've heard of prized waterfowl dogs dyeing from this very thing on many occasions.

MORAL OF THE STORY

Give animals ample room for their needs and they will take care of keeping each other warm. Just like baby chicks move closer and further from a heat source to keep warm.

Animals can and do huddle for warm, but it isn't necessary. I have plenty of birds that choose to sleep away from others, and others that sit close.

A healthy bird should be able to keep itself warm. Otherwise chickens would be walking around in a tight packed group all winter. Let your birds acclimate, and their feathers will thicken up. Provide heat and your birds feathers won't go through that process and you leave them vulnerable.