New England Chickens AFTER the cold snap

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Well, here we are in CT and its a beautiful 24 degree fahrenheit at 8:30am. The 5 hens (19 months), ran out of their run and did that little hop that I love to see them do. They are all peckin' around the yard and chatting a lot about the fact that its so nice out! Not many buggies to find but still lots of green grass to consume. My reflections of the past few days from the cold snap, are so much calmer than my thinking/behavior last year when we had a wicked, windy storm. Last winter was my first with chickens and I was a basket case. This year, i have 3 molting chickens that are certainly not fully feathered and i was not a basketcase even going into negative degrees with serious winds. I did the following:
* Wrapped the run in a tarplike material that is used to cover a greenhouse. I left about 4 inches all along the top.
* got the heated water unit set up (which still couldnt compete with the negative temperatures.
* offered chicken feed mixed with warm water for breakfast and dinner
* installed the automatic door into the henhouse.
* because of molting chickens I offered some extra protein in the form of cooked chicken or eggs or tuna and corn scratch (not too much tho). Yesterday I added a scoop of plain yogurt to the morning mash. Because NO chicken is laying, since September....., i have switched to a 20% chick starter feed and continue the free choice oyster shells/egg shells.
In my opinion, the best thing we can do for our chickens is to check them. Check them in the morning, noon and night. If something is off its best to catch it quickly and trust yourself to help as best you can. If i have a problem, i come right to BYC and look for my trusted chicken people! They are here.....always cluckin' around looking for all of us that need help. I had to giggle reading some of the pros reactions to adjusting to the super cold forecasts. Wrap the run, block direct winds, inspection of ventilation, make water arrangements, anddddd, cluck on! Lol. I understand now as my second New England winter is easing along and my mindset compared to last year is so much more calm. My one hard molting chicken doesnt roost next to any other chicken and sleeps right up against the window. I swore she would suffer, but, so far, so good. I am still nervous of a chicken not making it into the henhouse before the auto door closes, and someone will be left in the run, so, i check them. And, i check them. Having a camera in the hen house helps too. To all the new first winter chicken owners, next year will be different, i promise you! The learning curve can be tough but we learn! We check it out, try our best and learn. Winter has only just begun, but we'll take it one 'check' at a time.

 

[wamtazlady]

I worried about my chickens too this past week. So nice that the temperatures are so much higher now than they were. We're supposed to get into the 40s today. That is amazing after the 35 below 0 last week. Gave the girls more treats when it was really cold. They got cabbage and meal worms as well as some corn. I tend to spoil them when the weather is particularly nasty. My heated waterer worked great. Even at -35 the girls had thawed water.

This is my 8th year of having chickens. However, the weather this past week was the worst since I starting having chickens. Heck, the weather was the most extreme I have ever lived through. I am so grateful for what I have learned about keeping chickens in those 8 years. Also grateful for those on these forums who have shared their knowledge so that I could learn from them.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

I worried about my chickens too this past week. So nice that the temperatures are so much higher now than they were. We're supposed to get into the 40s today. That is amazing after the 35 below 0 last week. Gave the girls more treats when it was really cold. They got cabbage and meal worms as well as some corn. I tend to spoil them when the weather is particularly nasty. My heated waterer worked great. Even at -35 the girls had thawed water.

This is my 8th year of having chickens. However, the weather this past week was the worst since I starting having chickens. Heck, the weather was the most extreme I have ever lived through. I am so grateful for what I have learned about keeping chickens in those 8 years. Also grateful for those on these forums who have shared their knowledge so that I could learn from them.

I lost power for almost 24 hours! I woke up Christmas eve and thought I was in the henhouse it was SO cold! Power was finally restored by 3Pm.

 

[Chickeeaholic]

I love all of your winter advice. Thank you! Glad your flock made through. I was nervous this storm because of two molting hens and 6 eleven week olds. Everyone is okay. Yes, checking and checking the chickens was half my day.

I don’t know much about the automatic doors, but someone I know said a chicken got stuck halfway in when theirs came down and it was fatal. Maybe yours has a sensor that won’t allow that? They scare me.

 

[wamtazlady]

I love all of your winter advice. Thank you! Glad your flock made through. I was nervous this storm because of two molting hens and 6 eleven week olds. Everyone is okay. Yes, checking and checking the chickens was half my day.

I don’t know much about the automatic doors, but someone I know said a chicken got stuck halfway in when theirs came down and it was fatal. Maybe yours has a sensor that won’t allow that? They scare me.

I've never used an automatic door, but then I never close my pop door at all. I just built my run so that no predator (except for a bear) can get into it. It's built with 1/2 inch hardware cloth. There is a 3 foot apron of hardware cloth surrounding the whole thing. It has a solid roof and I cover 3 sides in clear vinyl for winter to prevent the wind blowing on the birds or getting into the coop. I figure if I can keep the predators out of the run, the birds are pretty safe.

 

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

I don’t know much about the automatic doors, but someone I know said a chicken got stuck halfway in when theirs came down and it was fatal. Maybe yours has a sensor that won’t allow that? They scare me.

I have an automatic door made by Chicken Guard. I’ve had it close to 2 years now and love it. i was concerned initially about chickens getting caught. I can’t remember the specifications, but it did indicate on the manual that at a certain “pressure” the door would stop closing. I closed it on my arm to test. It did put some pressure on me, but didn’t hurt me. I have standard size fowl and my conclusion is that it would be uncomfortable, but not harmful, if they got closed on. The door closes really slowly, too, so it wouldn’t be easy for a chicken to get stuck at all. I’m sure they’re not for everyone, and it’s not perfect, but overall I am happy and would recommend one, particularly for when I come home late. I feel better knowing their door is closed at dark (and I always check my camera to make sure no one got left outside which occasionally happens when the weather is stormy and it gets dark prematurely).

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

I've never used an automatic door, but then I never close my pop door at all. I just built my run so that no predator (except for a bear) can get into it. It's built with 1/2 inch hardware cloth. There is a 3 foot apron of hardware cloth surrounding the whole thing. It has a solid roof and I cover 3 sides in clear vinyl for winter to prevent the wind blowing on the birds or getting into the coop. I figure if I can keep the predators out of the run, the birds are pretty safe.

Same! I use the auto door because it helps block the wind and also, it has a sensor so a chicken wont get stuck. I like that it stays closed until the sun comes up. I have a camera in the hen house so i can see them in the wee hours before the door opens. They are all seen patiently waiting for it to open. No issues yet. I remove this auto door when i take the run wrap off. Probably April. But again, gotta check the chooks! And, check em again!

 

[Chickeeaholic]

I’m glad they make them with sensors that won’t shut on them.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

I’m glad they make them with sensors that won’t shut on them.

So they say....Thats why I check the chooks x2

 

[Fluster Cluck Acres]

I’m glad they make them with sensors that won’t shut on them.

I'm editing my original reply because I said I had the Omlet one but I actually have Chicken Guard. I was hesitant about getting an auto door initially, so I orded Chicken Guard through Chewy because their customer service is so great, I figured if I had any doubts I'd be able to return it.