In this thread **I** would like to whine about the cold lol

[neohiobiker]

Hey I feel for you here in NE OHIO went down to 0 (F) with a wind chill of -10 As a concern dad and my Pekins (7) first winter I was worried as some here where. They (DUCKS) could have used their duck (dog) houses but didn't they just sat on the ground as I watched hour after hours. They I just had to know if the old wife's tail was true and they froze to the ground.. well when I went outside they moved and i was relieved they were ******. lol. They must give off a lot of heat cause where they were sitting sat all the snow and ice was melted to the dirt and as i left they returned to their melted spot. Some tough but dumb birds

 

[Going Quackers]

Oh come on GQ. It can't be that bad. You could have been in my shoes this morning. I got up put on hat, sweatshirt with hood, jacket, gloves. Went outside and realized it was 36F. Had to take some stuff off.

I enjoy having seasons now, having lived in FL for 13 years but I don't think I'd want your temp extremes. Stay warm.

LOL! I'll list my wardrobe.

1. t-shirt

2. hoodie

3. thermal pants

4. jeans

5. a pair of heavy duty waterproof/insulated snowmobile pants w/bib

6. Quilted coat

7. Carhartt coat

8. Alpaca socks

9. Insulated boots

10. 40gram insulated gloves(2 pairs, one i keep in my pocket because they are thinner for times i need my hands, the other pair is massively thick and leaves me more like a mitten)

11. a wool toque.

Whew....

 

[vtfarmer]

Hey GQ we are right next door in Alburgh Vt just a couple miles from the border. I sure know what your going through, minus 27 F with the windchill this morning and dropping lower tonight. We have ducks, turkeys, chickens and goats so I been hauling alot of water and breaking ice out of their tubs 2 to 3 times a day. I ended up buying several rubber tubs at the supply store so i can slam them and jump on them to break the ice out (These things are rugged) But the critters all look forward to me going down there all the time and I think they like the show. Soon we will be through this and will be as happy as our critters.

 

[Going Quackers]

That is precisely why I do not live in Iowa...which is where I am from and all of my family is still there. I can not deal with cold weather and the grey dreary sky for months on end, it really gets me in a funk! I am much more happy with the weather in the south! Sometimes I feel guilty because it seems I have chosen weather and lifestyle over being with my parents, siblings, and grandparents.

Very hard decision to live with some days.....

aw, that's too bad, weather extremes are hard to cope with though, i am naturally a cold person so i hate when it's bitter, i don't retain heat well.

GQ, I am impressed that you have enough spunk to rail against the cold

It is frustrating and painful. We are at a balmy -15C here, ducks and I are still inside. Supposed to reach -7C today, and it is sunny. No way we will have swimmy water today - again - but Lord willing, we will start climbing out of the cold air trough in a day or two.

I may fill a swim pan with some stored water some time this week so the ducks can wash off.

Hoses are drained and in the garage, where they will remain till the spigots work again. I am filling the ducks' water pots from the kitchen sink.

Our setup is so tiny, and retrofitted from the 1970's "ideal" U.S. suburban scheme. It's been like outfitting a sailboat, in a way. Those who have barns and sheds and at least a few acres have a little elbow room, but I need to think about every square meter. Still a long way to go, gonna get rid of some of the suburban dream stuff and switch out to the agrarian reality stuff more and more.

The upside to this is that since we are compact, there is less space to heat. The walkout basement (we now call the barn) is half covered under ground, and the top of it is the heated house (as in, mid teens C).

So, with your place being so much colder, and so much bigger, I feel you have every right to express your dissatisfaction. I offer prayers for your strength and safety, and a moderation of the weather.

Your set-up sounds lovely though, i have just learned to plod on, the animals rely on me so off i trek. I am fortunate, i can cheat a touch since my laundry room is a closet in my front hall i can attach a hose to it so warm water and it runs out close enough to not have to pail too far... that said today is much to cold to even dare. I hope the weather improves for all of us, the ducks look so unhappy.

Hey GQ, hang in there! My Khakis and I are doing okay at -3 with a slight breeze but I sympathize with your -15 as I still remember -30F weather for days on end during winters back in the 1960s. I am not sure how my Khakis would stand up with -15 and our wind chill is supposed to dip below that during the next few nights so I will definitely keep my eye on their condition.

As Amiga says, warmer weather is a few days away so hang in there and best of luck.

Yeah, the lower upper temps lol are ok... i find till about -8C things are alright after that they start to tremble, they are not spoiled i just don't think Muscovy tolerate the intense cold because they are warmer climate birds.. the breed is tolerant of the cold but i am hesitant to say a true cold hardy breed, my chickens are fairing better??

When I woke this morning, we were at -3F (-24F with wind chill). I filled the water bucket and carried it around back as fast as my frozen @$$ could carry it. (We repurposed a plastic 40 pound cat litter bucket for water transport.) Their previous water bucket, from last night, even though it had a heater in it, was frozen several inches down. You should have seen me, slamming my booted foot down upon it, time and again, to break the ice.

And were the ducks inside, nestled in the deep straw we filled their house with? NooOo! They were all laying OUTSIDE on the ICE! Dummies. *chuckle*

It's now a whopping 2F (-18F with wind chill) and I am NOT looking forward to going back out for dinner time feeding.

We'll get through it! Until then, I second a notion for the right to gripe about the cold once in a while...

Oh can i ever relate! there is this rim of frozen ice around the tops of all the heated water containers... i couldn't keep water open today outside if i tried. It's always a fair bit of work but weather extremes makes it harder for us two legged folks lol

OK, now I feel bad!

The last few weeks it's been below freezing at night, dipping into the upper 20's. Again,

nothing compared to what some of you are dealing with! And yet I complained because the high temps were only getting up to the upper 40's. Yes, I complained about that!

I am sorry!

I will never complain about central CA's weather again! At least not until next winter!

Don't just depends on what your used too. If it shot up to warm i'd be going nuts i recall one thanksgiving(we celebrate in Oct in this country) it shot up to 100F that was NUTS cooking a turkey in that heat.. heck, we can have snow in Oct here ... temperature is all relative.

It's about the same here this morning. Windchill advisories in place. -41.8F this morning.

Had 6 eggs by 8:30 am, and a broody has started hatching her chicks.

The cold sure is an inconvenience though.

Shudder... a broody with chicks? she has lost her mind, your knitting sweaters for them i assume lol

Well I was going to complain, but after reading this thread I better not. Lol
My birds are fine in the only slight cold and I will buck up and be fine too.

Any temp extreme is hard to adjust too. no worries.

Oh, wow. I feel for you guys in the negative temps. I can't imagine dealing with anything below zero.

We've had a very nice break from the rain here in Western WA. It's been in the upper 20's and low 30's and it was SO NICE...until today when it starting raining again. Can I complain here about the rain?

Sure can, excessive rain turns the world to mud, sure the ducks love it i don't who wants to slip and slide carrying feed/water??

 

[Going Quackers]

Hey I feel for you here in NE OHIO went down to 0 (F) with a wind chill of -10 As a concern dad and my Pekins (7) first winter I was worried as some here where. They (DUCKS) could have used their duck (dog) houses but didn't they just sat on the ground as I watched hour after hours. They I just had to know if the old wife's tail was true and they froze to the ground.. well when I went outside they moved and i was relieved they were ******. lol. They must give off a lot of heat cause where they were sitting sat all the snow and ice was melted to the dirt and as i left they returned to their melted spot. Some tough but dumb birds

It's hard to find balance, you don't want to er.. baby the birds but you don't want them suffering either. I have had to keep mine in as they do nothing but shake, that is just not worth it plus the fleshy faces pose an issue too. I think Pekin are more winter hardy birds than Muscovy, but mine get by i just have to make allowances for this.

 

[Going Quackers]

Hey GQ we are right next door in Alburgh Vt just a couple miles from the border. I sure know what your going through, minus 27 F with the windchill this morning and dropping lower tonight. We have ducks, turkeys, chickens and goats so I been hauling alot of water and breaking ice out of their tubs 2 to 3 times a day. I ended up buying several rubber tubs at the supply store so i can slam them and jump on them to break the ice out (These things are rugged) But the critters all look forward to me going down there all the time and I think they like the show. Soon we will be through this and will be as happy as our critters.

Hi! yeah i heard things are supposed to be worse.. I know of the rubber tubs you mean, mine are so frozen i could stand on them, they;d make great fairy iceskating rinks lol

Fortunately, i can rely on heated buckets/troughs/bowls... right down to the farm cat BUT the water still has to get into them, i can run a hose from my front hall laundry tub to about the back gate(dog area) BUT i have to bucket the rest of the way... my horses trough is low.. but i cannot run the hose today it'll freeze even with warm water going through it.

 

[aoxa]

LOL! I'll list my wardrobe.

1. t-shirt

2. hoodie

3. thermal pants

4. jeans

5. a pair of heavy duty waterproof/insulated snowmobile pants w/bib

6. Quilted coat

7. Carhartt coat

8. Alpaca socks

9. Insulated boots

10. 40gram insulated gloves(2 pairs, one i keep in my pocket because they are thinner for times i need my hands, the other pair is massively thick and leaves me more like a mitten)

11. a wool toque.

Whew....

Sounds a lot like mine!!

I wear pants + thermal snow pants. That's it.
2 pairs of socks + 1 pair of boots
1 under shirt, 1 over shirt and 2 jackets
1 pair of really expensive gloves (water proof)
1 full face mask. Yeah. It keeps me VERY toasty. Love that thing.
Oh and a nice fluffy scarf.

My toes and fingers are the only parts that get cold when I'm dressed like this. I need better boots and hand warmers.

One chick hatched. Nice and toasty warm under mama. Hope this weather gets warmer.

 

[Going Quackers]

Sounds a lot like mine!!

I wear pants + thermal snow pants. That's it.
2 pairs of socks + 1 pair of boots
1 under shirt, 1 over shirt and 2 jackets
1 pair of really expensive gloves (water proof)
1 full face mask. Yeah. It keeps me VERY toasty. Love that thing.
Oh and a nice fluffy scarf.

My toes and fingers are the only parts that get cold when I'm dressed like this. I need better boots and hand warmers.

One chick hatched. Nice and toasty warm under mama. Hope this weather gets warmer.

My face gets cold but the horses would have a cow if i wore a full mask, it took them awhile to adjust to the whoosh of the snowpants lol a scarf? HA i'd be hung, do you know the pook toque? i wear one of those and have a hard enough time keeping them from yanking on it lol

A chick hatched? my goodness, those chickens sure are determined.