Keeping A Healthy, Warm and Happy Flock Through The Frigid Winter Months?

[Minutiae Manor]

Hello!
I am looking for any tips and ideas on how I can keep my flock healthy, warm and happy this winter! Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[Teila]

Hello!
I am looking for any tips and ideas on how I can keep my flock healthy, warm and happy this winter! Any advice is greatly appreciated!

G'Day

Living in Aus where we do not do winter I am probably the last person who should be replying but I thought you might find this thread helpful / interesting: Topic of the week - Winter chicken keeping

 

[KentuckyRooster]

The main important things are there are no drafts (but that there IS ventilation), they have lots of DRY, clean deep bedding, be sure poops don't build up.

Keep water from freezing. Free choice food. You may opt to throw down a treat in the evening for them as digestion helps them stay warm. They will huddle down together and stay warm by themselves for the most part, as long as they have good dry bedding and food to warm their guts and water that is not froze.

 

[greggooo]

We give ours snacks before bed too. It supposedly raises their body temperature as the digestion is happening. Cracked dry corn is good. I've also been finding fun snakes now that all the green outside is almost gone. The grocery store near us has bags of shredded carrots and beets. Also, when I let them out in the am, I have a smaller waterer from their old brooder that I fill with warm water. they seem to like that.

 

[lazy gardener]

I make them a sun room: put plastic around 3 walls of one bay of their run, with a green house tarp over part of it. It warms up nicely, and they spend all winter digging and scratching and dust bathing in the DL there.

 

[chickens really]

Your location and actual winter temps will help....