So we've had our first big cold snap here in Juneau, Alaska. We're far south in the state, so it never gets as bad as up north, but it's cold for me which makes me think it's cold for the chickens. It's been in the 10s during the day and dipping down closer to 0 at night. We're also headed for our first snow of the year. Normally Juneau averages in the 20s - 30s, but we do occasionally get these colder snaps.
This is our first winter with chickens and we just built our coop this summer. We've got four gigantic fluffy Golden Nuggets:
We read a lot on here about wintering chickens, but now that we're actually here, we're a little anxious. We read that we shouldn't heat the coop and since we've got a cold-hardy breed, it's better for them to just handle the cold. But we've put a thermometer inside the coop and it's clear that it's no warmer in there than it is outside. The coop is entirely made out of wood, it is not insulated, it has vents under the eaves. We decided to keep the vents open because Juneau is on the water can be a bit of a wet cold. We do have a water heater and a 40w lightbulb on a timer to extend their day in the morning and afternoon. They have a 2x4 for a roosting bar so they cover their feet when they're sleeping, the bar is at the top of the coop. We're trying to do deep litter with straw, so they've got a good 8-10 inches of straw covering the floor of the coop.
So this morning we found three of them piled on top of each other sleeping in one of the nesting boxes. And when I went to add more straw to the coop, I tried to turn the straw already there, but it had mostly frozen solid and couldn't be budged.
Our coop is raised off the ground to provide more of a run. The run is entirely enclosed:
But the fact that the straw was frozen, they weren't sleeping on the nesting bar, and the temperature inside the coop is the same as the outside, all adds up to making me nervous.
Then again, the chickens all seem to be acting just like their silly selves. I don't see any change in their behavior and they're not acting sluggish or strangely.
So the question is, should we just take a deep breath and trust that they're going to be fine? Or should we do some additional prep? Poking through the other winter posts, I actually hadn't thought about snow blowing through the run, so we might go ahead and tack up some plastic, but other than that, if we don't need to add insulation or a heater, I'd rather not. But of course, more than anything I don't want my birds to get sick or die.
This is our first winter with chickens and we just built our coop this summer. We've got four gigantic fluffy Golden Nuggets:
We read a lot on here about wintering chickens, but now that we're actually here, we're a little anxious. We read that we shouldn't heat the coop and since we've got a cold-hardy breed, it's better for them to just handle the cold. But we've put a thermometer inside the coop and it's clear that it's no warmer in there than it is outside. The coop is entirely made out of wood, it is not insulated, it has vents under the eaves. We decided to keep the vents open because Juneau is on the water can be a bit of a wet cold. We do have a water heater and a 40w lightbulb on a timer to extend their day in the morning and afternoon. They have a 2x4 for a roosting bar so they cover their feet when they're sleeping, the bar is at the top of the coop. We're trying to do deep litter with straw, so they've got a good 8-10 inches of straw covering the floor of the coop.
So this morning we found three of them piled on top of each other sleeping in one of the nesting boxes. And when I went to add more straw to the coop, I tried to turn the straw already there, but it had mostly frozen solid and couldn't be budged.
Our coop is raised off the ground to provide more of a run. The run is entirely enclosed:
But the fact that the straw was frozen, they weren't sleeping on the nesting bar, and the temperature inside the coop is the same as the outside, all adds up to making me nervous.
Then again, the chickens all seem to be acting just like their silly selves. I don't see any change in their behavior and they're not acting sluggish or strangely.
So the question is, should we just take a deep breath and trust that they're going to be fine? Or should we do some additional prep? Poking through the other winter posts, I actually hadn't thought about snow blowing through the run, so we might go ahead and tack up some plastic, but other than that, if we don't need to add insulation or a heater, I'd rather not. But of course, more than anything I don't want my birds to get sick or die.
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good luck.
