New "almost" Owner with a Question!

[bap40]

Hi, I am to be a new mother to 3 Easter Eggers and 2 Plymouth Rockers in a few weeks and am so excited to be starting this new adventure!

My question to all of you experts, is about the very cold weather we endure in this part of the country in winter. Our temps stay well in the minus degrees for long periods of time. Do I provide heat for them in the winter or not????? I have read many opinions both pro and con about this. Some say no because if the power should go off they would not survive. On the other hand it DOES get very, very cold here. Supposedly the breeds of birds I have ordered are cold weather hardy but still......... These birds will still be young by the time winter temps arrive.

Thanks for any input,
Brooke

 

[lux_interior]

Where do you live? I have birds in the chicago area, and they do fine in the winter, just make sure they have lots of ventilation that's high enough to prevent drafts. Drafts and moisture will make them sick, not the cold.

Also, how old will they be when it starts getting cold? My last ones to move outside were 4 weeks and it was still a bit chilly for them, so I put a heat lamp out there. If you're worried about them, you could give them a heat lamp too, that seemed to help, and the light will keep younger ones from freaking out in the dark too

 

[sonew123]

we just use a heating lamp all winter-even now the temps are in the 30s at night and we turn it on before bed and off in the morning when they go out-makes me feel better for them even if they dont need it!

 

[bap40]

I live in North Dakota and it starts to get cold around here in late Sept. So they would be about 10-12 weeks old by that time.

 

[RAWR]

they're hardy breeds, but i would just keep a heat lamp for them just in case they get too cold

 

[nhchickmom]

Hi. We are in a fairly similar climate of NH. We get a lot of snow and Dec. and Jan are consistently below 0. We did provide our chickens with a heat lamp for the winter months. Their coop is a converted shed and is not very "tight" so I wanted them to have a place to warm up. They all seemed fine even in -20 degree weather, but a few got frostbite on their combs. As far as their age they should be fine to be outside at 10-12 weeks in the fall, but I would still provide a lamp, unless you have a very well insulated coop. Hope this helps.

 

[nhchickmom]

Oh, (I forgot to say that we have the same breeds and they did fine. The Easter eggers (which we just got 2 more of because they are so much fun) are great because their comb is so small so no frostbite. Both very hardy.

 

[Davaroo]

If it were me out in windswept ND, I'd insulate well, ensure adequate ventilation and provide a bit of heat. Nothing extravagant, just enough to keep it around freezing, 32* F. I'd also select breeds known for cold hardiness, but breed selection is already taken care of, in your case.

Something you might try is talking to other chicken owners there in your locale.*

No matter where you live in ND, you can hardly be far from some chicken owners. Find out what they do today and what others have been doing there over the last century or so. Their advice and support is possibly more precious than any other you may get.
Look for the simple and effective ways they can relate.

My mother was born in 1931 and was raised in Harvey, ND. They and everyone else had chickens. So it's been done.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

* That is something we seem to avoid more and more, these days. Instead of just asking the guy down the road, we prefer a din of voices from widely scattered people, or an avalanche of information found on the 'net... either of which may be confusing or conflicting.

 

[mmtillman]

I am a fairly new BYC'er too..but I can tell you

from SOUTH MO!!

You are gonna love BYC!

 

[KattyKillFish]

it gets as cold as 30 below here and my chickens have always done fine. breeds that have large combs may have to be dubbed (comb removed) to avoid or treat frostbite. we've had 'fragile' breeds like silver phoenix and egyptian fayoumi do good during the winter. on REALLY cold nights we had a space heater in the coop. if you use a space heater make a good, strong shelf that the chickens aren't likely to get in trouble on. the shelf should be 3 feet off the ground and sturdy enough to hold the heater on, this is to prevent fires. we would keep it on at night and turn it off in the morning. you don't have to do it but if you're worried about the girls than it is a good idea. a heat lamp is also a really good idea! and a much safer one at that. we've done that as well, that's what we did during this last winter.