I hate this polar vortex!

[DucksOhio]

I’m really having a hard time getting any rest here in northeast Ohio. This bitter cold has me worried 24/7 in regards to my ducks. We’ve had temperatures in the teens/single digits for well over a week. Now I see that we’re facing a further week of single and minus digits for a 3-4 day stretch in the next few days.

My duckies are in a 6’ x 20’ x 8’ house. 6’ x6’ of it enclosed. Tons of clean straw everyday, a only fairly efficient safe heater panel (helps a tiny bit, I think)

I’m spending 3 hours a day cleaning, changing up food and water, cleaning poop and and replacing straw. The pelleted food freezes!

My ducks seem to be okay, but I am so afraid of the long stretch of this ridiculous cold, and the added insult of future even lower temps in the next few days. This has got to be stressing the ducks as much as it is me.

We’re looking at -3 to -7 in the next few days. Will my ducks survive this?

Seriously I’m really stressing.

 

[sourland]

Your ducks will survive better than you and my old cold hands. Here in NJ we are looking at roughly ten more days of this.

 

[sylviethecochin]

It's -3 degrees here. Take the quiz:
Are my ducks in the provided (draft-free, hay-bedded, easy-access) coop where I drove them two hours ago?
OR
Are they huddled in the middle of the chicken pen, all in a big pile with no shelter?

Take a wild guess.

For some reason, my ducks are still alive. I checked their feet this morning. They didn't even have the decency to validate my worry by getting frostbite.

 

[DucksOhio]

It's -3 degrees here. Take the quiz:
Are my ducks in the provided (draft-free, hay-bedded, easy-access) coop where I drove them two hours ago?
OR
Are they huddled in the middle of the chicken pen, all in a big pile with no shelter?

Take a wild guess.

For some reason, my ducks are still alive. I checked their feet this morning. They didn't even have the decency to validate my worry by getting frostbite.

Haha!
Thank you for the feedback. This is my second winter with ducks, and I can’t help but imagine that they are as cold as I am.

I suppose I’ll continue to worry until this cold spell passes.

It’s great to hear about other people’s experiences. Thank you!

 

[Miss Lydia]

I have been concerned about all my birds chickens ducks and geese and have taken every precaution I can to keep them safe and healthy we're going to be extreme till next Sat. Extreme for us is singles and below for long periods.

Sounds like everyone is doing all we can to make sure they all will be okay.

 

[FishMtFarm]

They will do just fine. Here in the Adirondacks of NY, we are having -20 and colder at night and I have Silkie chickens, about 60 of them and so far so good.

 

[onaharley]

Lower Michigan here, and facing the same challenges! Twice a day I am cleaning the pen and refreshing water. They are currently locked up because the windchill is just so cold. They seem to being doing fine but I feel the same as everyone else.... this polar vortex can go back from where it came from!!

 

[chickens really]

Hello from Alberta, Canada...Brrrrrrr
Totally cold..Straw if not any heat provided ?...Deep to burrow into...

 

[GC-Raptor]

Yeah I worry about my girls too. They survived -13 Fahrenheit two nights last winter.
Tonight is gonna be the coldest so far this winter. It's already -1 at 7:21 pm. GC

 

[Samannemm]

No sleep here either in the nw Chicago suburbs of IL. We’re forecasted for -10 tonight without the windchill. I finally caved and bought a 200w flat heating panel, mostly for my sanity. I also have a polish who likes to dunk her entire head in the waterer so I bought a new heated waterer with nipples and spent a good amount of time trying to teach them how to use it and they all go and eat the snow instead I also have a hen that’s molting right now. First winter with chickens and I’m not loving this weather.