How cold is too cold??

Thats dang near SUMMER! there

The coldest my coop temp has gone down to is 7.... they're all fine, keep each other cozy!

 

i think thirty five in the coop is fine.

it was blizardy here the other night adn only since then have they stayed in teh coop. well, some of them.

 

well, cold to me, too. but i aint got feathers.

 

I suspended an infrared heat lamp from the ceiling on a timer. The lamp is only plugged in on the 10 degree blustery days, and even then the timer only has it on for a couple of hours in the morning and then again just before sundown. It is just enough to keep the waterer from freezing, and a place for them to come in out of the cold. At night when the coop is closed up, no heat lamp. Even on the coldest nights it's not bad in there, but that's because it is insulated.

 

Having grown up in Phoenix, I can't see it ever getting too cold for chickens in Tucson. Unless you have naked necks, now they might have to have scarves.

 

I dont understand the need for heaters for temps you are talking about. Chickens are farm animals that have been around a lot longer than heaters. They need shelter to keep them out of the weather, some high calorie feed(corn), and a few other birds on the roost so they can share body heat and they should be fine. If you have cold hardy birds I wouldn't even begin to worry until it is below 5 degrees F. I would probably put a red lamp in the coop if it was going to be single digits or lower for an extended time.

 

Humidity also plays a big part in this.

My FIL had 2 chickens freeze to death inside the coop in 21 degree weather. the more humid the area, the more cold it feels.

 

Chicken are built different than humans. We need clothing and supplementary heat to keep warm in the winter but chickens do not. They give off a lot of body heat that gets trapped in their down & feathers. When folks talk about providing their chickens with extra heat I believe they are thinking like a human and because they feel the cold then their chickens must feel it too.

Sometime when you are out there there shivering in the cold, pick up one of your chickens and tuck your hand under their feathers. You might be amazed at how warm it is in there!

Where poultry need help (with ventilation and fans) is with too much heat, not cold. That same body heat and insulation works against them when it is hot.