How cold is TOO cold for a chicken?

[clarkechick]

I'm in northern Vermont and it is supposed to be -15 degrees tonight. I don't heat my coop. We had a mild early winter and when we got our first cold snap (single digits) my ladies got frostbite and stayed in the coop all day. Since then, they've had a chance to harden up with more seasonable temps, but I'm still worried about fifteen below! I bought a ceramic heat emitter for my brooder lamp since having the red light on all night has caused pecking issues. Now that I have the darn thing, I'm afraid to turn it on because of the fire risk. What do you think... go with no heat? The coop is sturdy and has a nice ridge cap vent. If anything, I worry that the great ventilation is going to let all of their heat (only 4 hens) right out of the roof.
My brown leghorn sustained the worst frostbite last time. She has that big floppy comb. The rest just have little white bits at the tips. Even in 0 degrees today they are out pecking around in their run between cuddle sessions in their enclosed outdoor space.

 

[TalkALittle]

I'm in northern Vermont and it is supposed to be -15 degrees tonight. I don't heat my coop. We had a mild early winter and when we got our first cold snap (single digits) my ladies got frostbite and stayed in the coop all day. Since then, they've had a chance to harden up with more seasonable temps, but I'm still worried about fifteen below! I bought a ceramic heat emitter for my brooder lamp since having the red light on all night has caused pecking issues. Now that I have the darn thing, I'm afraid to turn it on because of the fire risk. What do you think... go with no heat? The coop is sturdy and has a nice ridge cap vent. If anything, I worry that the great ventilation is going to let all of their heat (only 4 hens) right out of the roof. My brown leghorn sustained the worst frostbite last time. She has that big floppy comb. The rest just have little white bits at the tips. Even in 0 degrees today they are out pecking around in their run between cuddle sessions in their enclosed outdoor space.

If that little ridge vent is the only ventilation than you need more. I'm guessing that's the reason your birds got frostbite the first time. Open a window. You need some air coming in low (relative to the ridge vent) to help move the hot moist air out.

 

[Beekissed]

I'm in northern Vermont and it is supposed to be -15 degrees tonight. I don't heat my coop. We had a mild early winter and when we got our first cold snap (single digits) my ladies got frostbite and stayed in the coop all day. Since then, they've had a chance to harden up with more seasonable temps, but I'm still worried about fifteen below! I bought a ceramic heat emitter for my brooder lamp since having the red light on all night has caused pecking issues. Now that I have the darn thing, I'm afraid to turn it on because of the fire risk. What do you think... go with no heat? The coop is sturdy and has a nice ridge cap vent. If anything, I worry that the great ventilation is going to let all of their heat (only 4 hens) right out of the roof.
My brown leghorn sustained the worst frostbite last time. She has that big floppy comb. The rest just have little white bits at the tips. Even in 0 degrees today they are out pecking around in their run between cuddle sessions in their enclosed outdoor space.

I would forego the heater, which will just make them "sweat"~create more humidity~in that small coop, since they are conditioned to the cold. I'd open up a little more ventilation...particularly near the floor so that the fresh air intake moves the stale air up and out of the coop through the vents at the top. My chickens are more likely to show the effects of the cold on combs when it's in the 30s and the snow is melting, creating a lot of humidity in the air that's hard to move out of the coop, than in the negative temps.

The thing is, with chickens, they carry their heaters on their bodies and heat radiates from their body "heaters", helping to heat the other chickens...but that body heat is a moist heat. If you trap it into the coop in really cold temps, it's a recipe for frost bite as the humidity settles on combs and wattles, there to freeze and cause frostbite.

If you read back on this thread we had the same or more severe temps last year at this time and all the same issues were raised, many worries were expressed and the heaters were all brought out to heat coops. I'm sure it all went okay for folks, but it also went okay for the folks who didn't use heaters. Mostly, I think the heaters are for the human's peace of mind, more than the chicken's welfare. If the fear of fire is going to ruin that peace of mind, it's counterproductive to the whole process, I'm thinking.

 

[clarkechick]

TalkALittle-
The opening to get to the run is a 12x12 hole in the floor of the coop. It allows air in from the bottom that heats and raises out the top. Where the walls meet the roof, there are also small gaps - serving as a soffit vent but not allowing wind for a problematic draft. I do feel my ventilation is solid. I no longer put a heated waterer inside and I always shovel the roof in significant snow to be sure the vent can function. These both could have contributed to my early season frostbite. Thanks for your feedback. I'll let those ladies create their own heat!

 

[clarkechick]

BeKissed-
Your last line sums it up. Do what makes you feel better, and if for some reason doing it keeps you from feeling better... DONT! I'll forgo the heater and hope I can still return it for the $41 it cost me! Ridiculous. Amazon has them for half price, but needing it today put me at the mercy of my box store pet supply.

 

[adkhunter1590]

Forecast of -30 and wind chills to neg 50-60. I have plenty of ventalation on my 12x12 coop for 11 birds. I have a light hooked up to the ceiling on the far end of the coop that's aimed towards the opposite corner on the floor. Usually it just has a regular bulb in for some extra light in the coop to help with egg production. But for tonight I'm going to swap it out with a 250watt heat bulb. I know they probably don't need it. But **** it's gonna be real cold and I know we just feel better to leave it on overnight. I also have some that lay real early so I'm hoping to keep it warm enough in there to keep eggs from freezing too.

 

[LindsayRae]

I'm in northern Vermont and it is supposed to be -15 degrees tonight. I don't heat my coop. We had a mild early winter and when we got our first cold snap (single digits) my ladies got frostbite and stayed in the coop all day. Since then, they've had a chance to harden up with more seasonable temps, but I'm still worried about fifteen below! I bought a ceramic heat emitter for my brooder lamp since having the red light on all night has caused pecking issues. Now that I have the darn thing, I'm afraid to turn it on because of the fire risk. What do you think... go with no heat? The coop is sturdy and has a nice ridge cap vent. If anything, I worry that the great ventilation is going to let all of their heat (only 4 hens) right out of the roof.
My brown leghorn sustained the worst frostbite last time. She has that big floppy comb. The rest just have little white bits at the tips. Even in 0 degrees today they are out pecking around in their run between cuddle sessions in their enclosed outdoor space.


I put more bedding in my coop for insulation, and gave them corn before bed. I am in North Carolina and the lowest it got was 10 degrees. I shut them in the upper part of coop so the heat would stay in. They do fine. They love that corn before bed. I read in here that corn keeps them warm in cold temps. I just wake up way earlier than normal to make sure they have water and food that isn't frozen.

 

[cparkerpants]

I'm a worrier and re-reading the advice to just let my birds be tonight in the frigid temps. It definitely makes me feel better knowing that there are others out there in similar situations!

 

[mbetts]

I'm with you on that! It's minus 4 here right now and still going down. Windy too. I went to the list for reassurance. I know my chickens will be fine, but it helps me sleep better!

 

[KrisCVT]

I'm reading these posts trying to ease my mind and convince myself that my birds will be okay tonight. My area of MA is having record breaking lows- going to be -12 F early tomorrow morning. Right now it is -5 F and my coop is 2 F....7 degrees warmer. Not insulated but well made, It has about 6-8" fresh shavings and is draft free. Checked on them about an hour ago and they weren't even huddled close to each other on the roost... So I interpreted that as they feel okay. I probably won't sleep tonight.