How cold is too cold to let my girls into the run?

[kschicks2013]

My chickens have a covered enclosure so I open the gate and they come and go. If it's raining or snowing they usually know to stay inside. When it's nice they are out free ranging until they go inside to roost at night.

 

[phinux]

Buy a cheap tarp. Once they're about 5 or 6 months old they'll probably be fine as long as there's good ventilation. Mine don't mind running around in the rain, and aren't bothered running around in the snow either.

 

[a2michickens]

I live in Michigan, and my girls go out whenever they want. They don't like the snow, but if I shovel a path for them, they even go out in the cold. I just open the door and let them decide when and if they want to go out.

 

[Blooie]

This is what I woke up to a day or so after kicking my little moochers out of the house - they were 5.5 weeks old. We hadn't finished the coop completely yet, nor had we started the run, but we'd open the people door and they could run into a dog's x-pen that we would set up temporarily. They were in and out of their coop the rest of the day of their own free will. We had snow several other days and the story was the same. They're sturdy little critters....mine are now almost 14 weeks old and they are doing great - didn't lose a single one and no sniffles either. My personal belief is that if they're strong and healthy when the coop/run transition occurs and you've acclimated them, they not only survive, they thrive.

 

[City-Chick]

as long as they have all their feathers, let them choose. as for the gimp leg check the feet to see if they have any injury.
[ bumble foot comes to mind] you can also use a ramp for them to get into the coop.
when it snows I toss some straw on the ground for them to walk on. I have been raising chicken since 2011, & have had up to 28 birds. I'm down to 14 right now as I divided the flock with my daughter. we let them out of their run when I am at home, & then then have free range of a fenced 1/2 acre/pasture.

 

[Shalva]

I am in nh and if my girls want to go out they go out chickens give off lots of heat and I don't worry about them I should say they go out all winter as well

 

[Junibutt]

It also depends on the age of the chicks. I have 4 x 7 week olds and 3 x5 weeks old chicks which I moved into the coop from the brooder 10 days ago because the weather was nice. However it got chilly yesterday and today (down to 48 degrees) in Chicago and 2 of the 5 week old chicks have been walking around with their necks pulled in to their bodies. I felt like bringing them in for a day or two but I decided to wait it out. One of them is better already and I think 2nd one will be fine as well by tomorrow when it gets a little warmer. I think it will make them more hardy.

 

[pmpkinchick]

as long as they have all their feathers, let them choose. as for the gimp leg check the feet to see if they have any injury.
[ bumble foot comes to mind]     you can also use a ramp for them to get into the coop.
when it snows I toss some straw on the ground for them to walk on. I have been raising chicken since 2011, & have had up to 28 birds. I'm down to 14 right now as I divided the flock with my daughter. we let them out of their run when I am at home, & then then have free range of a fenced 1/2 acre/pasture. 

The leg issue is tricky. Its not bumble foot,or a tendon. It seems like the hip area. She/he had had a limp since we got it. But doesn't appear to be in pain. Of course these are my first chicks (from TSC) and this will be the 3rd one that won't make it, and 1 has really crooked toes. I will buy my chicks from breeders or people I know in the future.

 

[MargaretYakoda]

I borrowed @Kassaundra 's idea of using strips of fleece to keep the chicks warm. I've had fourteen chicks outside since they were one week old. They had a heat lamp outside when the weather was at it's worst, but at night there was no heat lamp at all. The first week and a half they stayed inside a broody box attached to the big coop, and inside the broody box I had a contraption I made from hardware cloth and a couple old sweaters. I made a three sided box with a roof out of the hardware cloth, put 1 inch wide strips of wool hanging down from the top, and covered the entire thing in the rest of the sweaters. The babies could go in and out to the rest of the brooder, and spent most of their days outside with the heat lamp. But they outgrew that one pretty fast, so I made a larger one from an old cooler. They get themselves in and out whenever they feel cold, and spend the nights in it. They are doing VERY well so far.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/g/i/6379686/a/6740220/-/sort/display_order/

So, it IS possible to keep young chicks outside with no lamp and no broody hen, in weather that's variably sunny, or rainy, and anywhere from 45 to 60 degrees.

I think a part of the reason this works is that there are 14 of them. I'd be leery of trying this with few than six chicks. I'd also be careful to be sure the temps were at LEAST 50 when you're starting out, and that your chicks have a sheltered place to be out of any winds that may crop up. Oh, and either have a netting or some other way to keep them from turning into quick snacks for any hawks you may have hanging around.

 

[rdilbarova]

Just for reference...my seven week olds are officially full time in the run and have been out for two weeks. They sustained pretty heavy rain and down to 60 degree temps (at the same time) at six weeks old. As long as you leave the coop open/ have somewhere for them to get out of the rain I think youll be fine.

It also depends on how you raised them. Im sure if you had 1 year olds that were used to warm, dry, heat lamps at 90 degrees every day of their lives, you'd run into problems putting them in cold rain within a day.