Michigan

[chicken grandma]

I used a heat lamp as needed suspended with multiple ties from the ceiling. There is something called a thermo cube at Lowes that will turn your heat lamp on and off just to keep things above freezing. Make sure you have some ventilation at the top of your coop so things don't get smelly with ammonia or steamy - not good for chickens lungs.

Welcome to BYC Egg Lover!

 

[Hillbilly Hen]

New one from SW Michigan here, Allegan Co. Just finishing our coop, looking for what people do in the Winter to keep the coop warm. It's amazing how many people share their experiences here.

& welcome! Check out the link in my siggy [or RaZ'z or Opa's] for info on the upcoming Chickenstock. We would love to have you join us.

I don't heat my coops at all in the winter. I do use the "cookie tin water heaters" though.

 

[NovaAman]

I didn't use anything to keep them warm this year. It was my first winter too, and nice to have a very mild one. I did however use those small shop clamp lamps with 75-100 watt black light/red light bulbs over the water-ers to keep them thawed out enough for constant fresh water. Worked out well. I had 2 hens also go broody, and I did use 100 watt bulbs then to give them an extra hand. As Chicken Grandma said, MAKE SURE THEY ARE TIED MULTIPLE TIMES. Don't just trust the clamps. Chickens fly around and do silly crap when we are not looking, knock things over... A lot of people do not provide heat. Just be prepared, that if you decided to provide heat, you best be ready for a power outage that will take that heat away. Have a back up plan really. SO, If you want to go that route, get some RED heat bulbs, Use them at night, and use white light during the day if you want to get winter eggs if you don't have a natural light source on your coop. I actually use an old aquarium hood light wrapped many times with wire to the rafters, timed to go on at 6 am-9am then again from 5:30pm-8:00 in the winter. Try to keep their hours regular like spring summer hours. (NOTE: YOU WILL WHERE YOUR HENS OUT FASTER WITH OUT GIVING THEM A WINTER BREAK) Timers are great. They are pretty much screwed at the end of a winter though... all that feed dust ruins them pretty quick. I averaged 3-4 eggs a day from 8 laying hens through the winter. I did not use a broad spectrum light, or a very bright light. Just enough to keep them laying a few a week a piece.

Welcome to BYC, I am just up the way from you in Holland.

Got the meaties moved. I used the ducks fencing to make them a pen right around their coop. It was real fun catching them little fat balls and moving them. Some of the were climbing the plastic poultry net that I was using for them... MAN did they not want me to get them. LOL. Well anyway, got them over in the tree area now too, so they will get a bit of morning sun, but not the hot part of the day sun, and mostly shady most the day. AND a nice new patch of grass. They are in the are where the ducks were when I first got them. I am guessing they have about 50 square feet of space to run around in. I have more fence to open it more as needed. I can't believe how much they've grown in 2 weeks. WOW.

The pekins, Pekin and Orange, they are getting huge also. WOW. They are starting feather out good. I gave them watermelon on the rind today to gnaw... nibble... dibble? What ever it is that ducks do. They will get a bigger pen tomorrow with another section of the old duck fencing. I am hesitant to build them a coop cuz I still have not decided if they will be pets or dinner. I am thinking dinner. Jace says pet. He better get a job.

 

[1muttsfan]

HI everyone! I just recently moved to Indiana but I was born in MI and lived there for 37 years! I was born in Benton Harbor but lived most of my life in niles. About 6 years ago I moved to Edwardsburg (migrating south i guess) and now today Im living across the border in northwest IN. My son is currently a student at the University of Michigan.Go blue! He'll be a sophomore this coming year. I'm a proud mama! Anyway Il always be a MI girl at heart! Wondering who is in the area and cant really read over 4000 pages to find out! LOL
Dawn



hi and welcome to BYC and the Michigan Thread

You may be interested in the Michigan chickenstock, I think you are closer to Lansing than I am

Never heard of Belles on M-40 or an auction to get chickens. Yes, I am new at the chicken raising thing. Wouldn't mind more information on them for future purchases.

Hi and welcome to you too

- ditto about Chickenstock

New one from SW Michigan here, Allegan Co. Just finishing our coop, looking for what people do in the Winter to keep the coop warm. It's amazing how many people share their experiences here.

As long as you build a draft-free, well-ventilated coop you do not need supplemental heat. There are some that think that heat sources may increase the risk of frostbite, and definately increase the risk of fire. It gets very cold up here, and I left a window cracked open all winter, and had no frostbite or other cold-related issues. I do use a metal waterer heater, it is perfect for ensuring a constant supply of water for the hens - very important for health and egg-laying.

 

[Bianca67]

Today has been a most awful day. One of my two bottle baby goats died. I have been pretty unglued for most of the day because of it.

So sorry about your loss.

New one from SW Michigan here, Allegan Co. Just finishing our coop, looking for what people do in the Winter to keep the coop warm. It's amazing how many people share their experiences here.

WELCOME!

DH finished the run today, and we got all the girls out of the coop. They are too funny to watch!

 

[chicken grandma]

Just a note on heat.

If we get a really cold night or two, it is nice to have that lamp hanging in the coop to take the edge off a cold night.

You don't have to use it in the day. You don't have to use it every night.


Nice run Bianca! You could put some branches in there and they would perch up high in that run!

 

[Bianca67]

Thanks! I am hoping to gather some up tomorrow.

 

[uchytil]

Stacy, I am so sorry about your baby goat

I am sure you did what you could for her.

RaZ, fox squirrels are my favorites. I never saw any in GA. The other day my FIL saw a little red squirrel kill a bird.

Not a nice thing but last year I watched a red squirrel drag a dove up to her nest kicking and screaming. On a good note I watched a whitetail doe wean her fawn in my field yesterday. HH we have black, grey, red, and fox squirrels here - bet you have the same. Did you head over to the Burley Park flea market today? We got some nice stuff after the haggle!

 

[Opa]

Egg Lover, welcome to the Michigan thread. You will find this to be a very friendly group of helpful people. Be sure to check out the link in my signature line for our upcoming Chickenstock. It's a gathering of like minded folks who gather once a year to share a meal, get to place faces to the names you've come to know. Many birds are brought for sale or trade so it is a good place to find the particular breed you have been looking for.

You asked about keeping your flock in winter so I will offer my advice. Be forewarned that I don't own lap chickens, I don't name birds, I refuse to spend a hundred dollars to save a five dollar bird. I've had chickens off and on for 60+ years and know that I have some nice well cared for birds but I don't worry when one gets sick. I merely handle the problem to the best of my ability.

The best advice I can give new flock owners is get used to having birds die. It happens sometimes in spite of our best efforts. When some post about a particular problem I try to help If I can. When there are several posts about how sad they feel about a bird being sick or having died I make every attempt to be sympathic but I can't help but think "Good Lord people, it's just a chicken".

Heat for your birds in winter is totally unnecessary . The biggest concern is to insure they are housed in a draft free building with adequate ventilation. Birds exhaling create a surprising amount of moisture. This needs to be able to vent to the outside. High humidity and cold are the necesary ingredients for frost bite. Additionally, if they are given a flat roost they can lower the bodies down over their legs and feet, expand their feathers creating better insulating properties. Even when temperatures drop to what we consider brutal does not require heat. Chickens are kept in Alaska without heat and the owners don't have problems with their flocks.

 

[Olive Hill]

A few reasons to NOT heat in the winter:

1) Risk of temperature shock if the power goes out. If you lose power and you've been heating your chickens the quick change in temperature can cause shock to your birds, making it harder for them to adjust. There is a reason Mother Nature gives us spring and fall, the relatively gradual temperature change allows the birds to acclimate over the course of weeks, not minutes. If you're going to heat you need to have not just one back up, but a back up for your back up.

2) Frostbite is most likely during wet and cold conditions, not just cold. When you heat your coop you increase the likelihood of those conditions.

3) Heat sources are always a fire risk.

4) Heating can increase likelihood of pests and parasites. The winter is nature's way of killing off many of the pests, parasites and pathogens that are naturally found in the environment. Mild winters result in more of these things during the warm season and heating your coop basically mimics this, creating a miniature safe-haven in an otherwise hostile environment.

5) It's bad for the environment. Finite resources are required to produce heat.

6) They don't need it. A dry, draft-free environment is plenty to keep them happy and healthy. Chickens' feathers are tremendous insulators.