Hello from the High Desert

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chickieladies

chickieladies

In the Brooder
5 Years
Sep 30, 2014
10
0
24
High Desert
Hello All!
Very excited to be here and learn all I can about Chickens. I currently have four Barred Rocks and they a very friendly and love to be picked up. I have had many chickens in the past but these are the best so far. Looking for advice on how to winterize my chicken coop for the chilly desert nights this winter, plus it is very windy in my area. Any ideas would be welcomed. I will post a picture of my coop soon!
Have a great day!
 
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chickieladies said:
Hello All!
Very excited to be here and learn all I can about Chickens. I currently have four Barred Rocks and they a very friendly and love to be picked up. I have had many chickens in the past but these are the best so far. Looking for advice on how to winterize my chicken coop for the chilly desert nights this winter, plus it is very windy in my area. Any ideas would be welcomed. I will post a picture of my coop soon!
Have a great day!
Click to expand...
Hey There!!! Welcome!!!

I would love to hear what everyone says about winterizing your coop please keep me in the loop!
 
Welcome to BYC! Please make yourself at home and we are here to help.

Barred rocks are such a great breed! Glad you are enjoying them!

Ventilation is probably one of the most important things to have in winter. Without proper ventilation your birds will get frostbite, respiratory illnesses and other problems.
Chickens can survive brutally cold temps as long as they are dry and out of all drafts. Sealing up all cracks in the coop and putting in about 1 square foot of vent space in the eaves per bird. Wind chills are merciless on chickens sleeping at night so make sure your coop is draft free.

Other things to do to help keep your chickens snug this winter include using straw as a bedding, using the 4" inch side of a 2x4 roosts. I also put a towel that has been in the dryer and put it on the roosts to warm their feet. Make sure that there is no water spillage or moisture collection on the bedding as this can also result in frostbite. On the very cold nights you should rub vaseline on the chickens' combs and wattles to help prevent freezing.
Here's a link on frostbite and ventilation.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/frostbite
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/...-go-out-there-and-cut-more-holes-in-your-coop

You don't need a heat lamp if you have ventilation, proper bedding, proper roosts and proper feed. In the winter you should be feeding your normal layer, grower or chick feed along with scratch as this will keep the birds warm especially if you feed it in the evenings.

Bedding that is warm and absorbent is also necessary. Wet bedding mixed with the cold temps and wind chills equals bad frostbite. So either use straw, shavings or shredded paper. Straw is possibly the best bedding to use in winter. Line the nests with straw to help prevent eggs from freezing. Bales of straw help act as insulation and keep the coop even warmer.

Heated water bowls are also imperative. Chickens drink non-stop in winter and they can't do that if their water is frozen! So either buy a heated bowl or use a heated base on the bottom of their regular waterer. I've also heard of people who place a 40 watt bulb in between bricks and then put the water on top in a bowl. Make sure the waterer isn't plastic.

Good luck and welcome to our flock!
 
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Hello there and welcome to BYC!
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So glad you could join our community! Mountain Peeps has given you some excellent advice! Vent space in your eaves is crucial to keeping your birds warm and dry. 1 square foot per bird in the eaves. On windy nights you can close SOME of them off to slow down the air movement, but never close them all off. All that moisture from the pooping and the breathing needs to go somewhere and not fall back down on the birds as water or frost bite. Frost bite can even occur in temps above freezing. So let them roost low to the floor in quiet air, a nice positive air movement of venting air out your ceiling, tack a towel onto the roost bar as Mountain Peeps has suggested and your birds should do just fine. Dry drier driest. Keep the bedding dry and do not leave water in the coop over night.

Enjoy this new adventure you are on and welcome to our flock!
 
Welcome to BYC. Glad you decided to join our flock. Barred Rocks are an excellent, hardy breed that will give you lots of nice, large, brown eggs. Mountain Peeps and TwoCrows have given you some excellent advice on winterizing your coop. Feathers are an excellent insulator and I have had chickens do fine in temperatures as low as 30 F below zero. Just make sure the coop is draft free with good ventilation and dry. Moisture is a greater danger than cold. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. We are here to help in any way we can. I'm looking forward to the pics of your coop. Good luck with your flock.
 
Welcome to BYC!
frow.gif
We're glad to have you.

Mountain Peeps has given some good advice! I'll add another method that I use to keep my chickens warm, especially in windy conditions.

My coop's run is made of hardware cloth. The cold wind blowing in isn't good. So, I get some clear plastic and wrap it around the run. I don't cover all the sides of the run, to make sure that there is still good ventilation. This keeps my chickens happier, and they don't have wind blowing on them, ruffling their insulating feathers.

Good luck with your birds!
 
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