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Mine are only 7 mo old. Only snow we had was 2" and they trooped right out into it that morning. Have had two nights in teens with highs in 20's and they were out in it all day. They even spend quite a bit of time out in rain too. Never free-ranged, but always had a large run at 2,000 sq ft. My run is not covered but after my grass-mats grow in, they will have access to about 1/3 of the underside of the coop. So that will be an outdoors hang-out for rainy days.
Could be a breed thing? Mine are RIR, BA, BC, BR. All are supposed to cold-hardy and wintertime egg producers too. So far, they have lived up to that.
I wonder if sometimes the chooks do not want to come out if something has scared them and maybe the owners just did not see it happen? Read a post of chooks afraid to go into coop one eve and owner carried them all in and shut them in. Turned out a weasel was in there and killed all 5 of them she says. Wondered if same thing could happen with a sighting or near-miss with a pred and maybe owners just did not see it sometimes?