Chickenbubble22
In the Brooder
- Sep 23, 2022
- 9
- 11
- 39
Hello all!
I have owned chickens for a few years and currently have 22 chickens. It's been a fun adventure with a few bumps along the way (props to the chickens who have dealt with me and my undertakings for 5 years now). I have a large coop right now that was built about 2 years ago. It is big and has a loft area above it for storage. My chickens live on one half of it and I store their food, bedding, supplies, etc. on the other half. I really like this coop, but the way we built it has one major flaw: there are lots of cracks that allow the coop to get very cold in the winter, and I live in central MN, so temps often drop well below 0 during the coldest months. Admittedly, some of my chickens (particularly my roosters) have suffered from frostbite in years past, but my big goal for this winter is to keep the coop very warm. What has really spurred this on is that this year I have added 4 Leghorn hens to my flock as well as a Welsummer rooster, and they all have absolutely giant combs, and I'm afraid their combs will suffer badly from frostbite. I'm planning to insulate the coop and use the deep-litter method for bedding. However, I'm wondering if there's anything else I can do to help keep the coop warm and especially what I can do to protect my Leghorns/Welsummer's combs. I would like to have a heat lamp but I worry about potentially starting a fire. What do all y'all chicken owners do for your big-combed chickens in winter?
Thanks in advance for the help!!
I have owned chickens for a few years and currently have 22 chickens. It's been a fun adventure with a few bumps along the way (props to the chickens who have dealt with me and my undertakings for 5 years now). I have a large coop right now that was built about 2 years ago. It is big and has a loft area above it for storage. My chickens live on one half of it and I store their food, bedding, supplies, etc. on the other half. I really like this coop, but the way we built it has one major flaw: there are lots of cracks that allow the coop to get very cold in the winter, and I live in central MN, so temps often drop well below 0 during the coldest months. Admittedly, some of my chickens (particularly my roosters) have suffered from frostbite in years past, but my big goal for this winter is to keep the coop very warm. What has really spurred this on is that this year I have added 4 Leghorn hens to my flock as well as a Welsummer rooster, and they all have absolutely giant combs, and I'm afraid their combs will suffer badly from frostbite. I'm planning to insulate the coop and use the deep-litter method for bedding. However, I'm wondering if there's anything else I can do to help keep the coop warm and especially what I can do to protect my Leghorns/Welsummer's combs. I would like to have a heat lamp but I worry about potentially starting a fire. What do all y'all chicken owners do for your big-combed chickens in winter?
Thanks in advance for the help!!
