Keeping my birds Warmer.....HOW

[duck&chickencrazy]

In a previous post on here i said how i lost 2 birds because of the weather and so i was wondering if anyone had ideas to keeping birds warmer... like on what to put in the shed for beddings. I have straw in there now but i was wondering if that is the warmest thing....or is there something that is warmer. There is a heat lamp in there now but i guess it wasnt warm enough.

 

[Heidi]

I've actually caved in and started doing the deep litter method that the farms use. It's actually warmer now in the barn (even though it is colder outside) then what it was when I wasn't doing the DLM. I turn it every 4 days and add more once a week. I'm also using wood shavings and straw mixed. So far so good and it's been in the negatives. If you aren't familar w/ the DLM do a search - there's alot of threads on it. Good luck and I hope our spring comes ASAP!

 

[Chicken Woman]

Personally for the little extra cost I think pine shavings works best for me. I have used leaves (breakdown fst and had bugs on hem ).
Straw (got to wet and smelly to fast) so the pine shavings are working for me. I sprinkle a little stall dry granuals and some DE on top when I add more shavings on top.

I have it about 10 inches deep in my coop and rake it and turn it over every couple of days. The girls help stir it for me if I put some scratch sprinkeled on the shavings in the late afternoon, It also gives them some good old body heat during the night while digesting the corn.

 

[cmom]

duck&chickencrazy :

In a previous post on here i said how i lost 2 birds because of the weather and so i was wondering if anyone had ideas to keeping birds warmer... like on what to put in the shed for beddings. I have straw in there now but i was wondering if that is the warmest thing....or is there something that is warmer. There is a heat lamp in there now but i guess it wasnt warm enough.

How did the birds die? Just curious???

I use either a 175 watt or 250 watt Red heat lamps in my coop when the forecast is for below freezing. I use deep litter pine shavings and Food Grade DE. I sprinkle a little scratch for a bedtime treat and they scratch it around and stir up the shavings with the DE. I think it's easier to clean out and stays dry. When I clean out my coop the poop and shavings go into a compost pile.​

 

[duck&chickencrazy]

I dont know how they died, one was a under developed hen(small, thin, no comb or wattles, just a cull chicken) so i guess i kinda expected her to die if any did. But with my rooster it was totally unexpected. He was big and healthy. So i dont know how he died, but i am guessing they froze to death (-15 and -20 degrees here at night)

I have a heat lamp in my shed it is the red one.

 

[swampducks]

The inside of my coop has dropped to 6f one night and no one froze. I've got a 250 watt red heat lamp in there, too, but in an uninulated coop it just isn't enough when the outside temps drop to -20f.

I've got to think there was something else wrong with your roo.

Sorry for your loss.

 

[redhen]

i had heat lamps in there it still was getting below freezing...i had to go and buy a $30 heater at walmart..it mounts to the wall...they cant knock it down...its been in the mid-40's in the coop now...

 

[moduckman]

I have a heat lamp bulb for my October/November hatched birds that do not roost, but wish I did not have to do that. Heat lamps can sometimes cause more harm than good. The birds will gather around the heat lamp, but when they leave that area, they chill quicks and are suat risk for pneumonia (sp). I just have to hope the birds will roost close together for natural warmth and I put vasoline on the combs of the roosters since they are on the look out and won't put their head under their wing. If I should loose some, and I do, I just tell myself it is God's way of telling me I had a weak bird or too many birds.