Hens staying in run at night - freezing cold, why?!

[DobieLover]

But red poultry mites are not active when its freezing cold.

Yes, they are.

 

[Chicken Heel]

I’m

Yes, they are.

Have to agree as I had to treat one of my coops last week when it didn’t get above freezing for four days.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

I’m

Have to agree as I had to treat one of my coops last week when it didn’t get above freezing for four days.

yes, i read a bit and i see that’s common. i have a headlamp and will check this evening.

 

[Chicken Heel]

yes, i read a bit and i see that’s common. i have a headlamp and will check this evening.

Good luck with your efforts to find a root cause(s). Sometimes chickens just act odd for no apparent reason as well.

 

[BDutch]

Yes, they are.

If they are active with cold where you live, you have another kind of red mite than we have in Europe. Here the red mites is not active when its that cold for sure (not the eggs though). But you are right that they do not necessarily die.

Info from Dutch site on biosecurity:
When the temperature drops below 3 degrees or rises above 40 degrees, the living red mites will die or they will switch to a kind of hibernation.

…..

Maybe it helps if you add more ventilation. The chickens obviously like more fresh air.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

How many chickens are in that 16 sq ft coop?

 

[rosemarythyme]

How many chickens are in that 16 sq ft coop?

Coop is 16sf, not including nest box. Two birds in this set up.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Thanks, guess I missed this.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

Okay well - update! I set the door to close even later after sunset and they went in on their own last night. Maybe they were just having a blip? I checked for mites at night with a light, no signs. So good news! I’ll see if they continue to put themselves away over the next few days. Thanks for all your help.

 

[littlecoopnextdoor]

Maybe it helps if you add more ventilation. The chickens obviously like more fresh air.

oh they’ve got lots of ventilation, far more than the 1sf per bird 24/7 rule. I have some blocked off for snow/winter wind but they still have enough currently. In the summer it’s open all along the roofline and their window is open too