NY chicken lover!!!!

[stonykill]

Agree with all of the above. My chickens have lived through three winters in uninsulated coops, no plastic, no heat lamps. I do use heated water bowls because it saves ME from having to break ice and lug out fresh water several times a day. I've had skinny chickens like leghorns and d'uccles in plywood coops with the windows wide open - I only close them in a 'storm' to avoid snow getting in, but there are vents everywhere in the coops as well.

Down with heat lamps for adult chickens! Oh, and if the chicks are fully feathered, they will be fine. If you got chicks now, they'd be ready for pretty much anything in 5 or 6 weeks. My broodies take chicks out into the snow!

There's another thread that will get busy soon started by peeps in Alaska. They don't use heat lamps either. I think one mentioned a lamp when it got under 60 below (-60F!!), just to take the edge off, but it's unlikely to get that cold here.

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

Okay--came home after an appointment to find the little chick stuck under the bottom fence of the coop. Looked like it had tried to escape from one or all the boys. Sigh. Rescued said chick (no damage) and have placed it back in the box downstairs. Guess I will be waiting till it gets much bigger.

Oh--dh didnt close up his entry spot very well and I had the self proclaimed lead roo out with 4 girls. Chased them around in this heat and finally got them all back in. Battened down the hatches for the storm. Gave the cabbages to the cheeps so we are all good.

Oh goody--just notified we are under a tornado watch. Heres hoping it never materializes. Stay safe everyone.

 

[Lapeerian]

We are just getting rain for now and hear lots of rumbling. Main storm skirting to the south of us. Watched a bolt of lightning touch down and pulse on the other side of the valley. Made sure last night to refill the feeder in the coop, even though it wasn't empty because it would have needed refilling today in the downpour no doubt. And of course the Amish go past on a nice leisurly drive as I'm out in my pjs and muck boots.

On the agenda this weekend - MUST get nest boxes done and installed. The two NH are going from darker pink to reddish, and so is the GLW girl. And the blue Orp is finally showing some color other than grey in her face. Get my first million dollar egg soon!

 

[featherz]

We are just getting rain for now and hear lots of rumbling. Main storm skirting to the south of us. Watched a bolt of lightning touch down and pulse on the other side of the valley. Made sure last night to refill the feeder in the coop, even though it wasn't empty because it would have needed refilling today in the downpour no doubt. And of course the Amish go past on a nice leisurly drive as I'm out in my pjs and muck boots.

On the agenda this weekend - MUST get nest boxes done and installed. The two NH are going from darker pink to reddish, and so is the GLW girl. And the blue Orp is finally showing some color other than grey in her face. Get my first million dollar egg soon!

if ya look at glens falls on the radar, I've been missing all the storms all day - you can see the big hunk o rain above and below me. I would like some rain, although I'll pass on the lightning and tornado.

 

[Lapeerian]

We had a couple little sprinkles today, but now a nice steady light rain. Supposedly in Elmira, the Arnot Mall had part of the roof ripped off by a tornado!

 

[kamir]

Welcome armorfirelady

Regarding your questions, etc., what everyone else said (I'm still a noob).

Storm passed directly over me but I only got small hail, moderate wind and rain. Thank the Lord for His protection!

I pray everyone else fared well also.

kamir

 

[vmdanielsen]

Hello everyone,
I am a newbie. Just got my coop and I will be putting it together this evening. I am looking to get some Plymouth Rock pullets in a month or so. I am waiting for the town to pass the law its ok for us to have chickens which should be in a week or so.

In the reading I have done it says that the Plymouth Rocks are very friendly, good layers & tolerate the cold well. Since I live in an area where we get a lot of snow & wind I want to make sure that I get some girls that are very hardy & good layers.

I have insulated my coop to protect them from the cold winter winds. I dont want to use a heat lamp if I dont have to. I plan on covering the run with heavy duty plastic for the winter months to keep the snow from the run & protect them while they are out in the runs.

I think with winter so close and having 4 indoor cats trying to raise chicks would be hard esp since they would have to be in the house to stay warm and keep them safe.

Does anyone know where I can get pullets in my area? I was thinking of going to Springville auction since they always have hens for auction except I dont know how old they are, the breed, etc since I am a newbie.

Any help/suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thank you !!

Welcome armorfirelady! tried to paste link to "think it's too cold for your chicken's" thread from Alaska but I still can not copy and paste....No heat for adult birds!!!

 

[armorfirelady]

Thank you everyone for your replies. I am from Hamburg,Ny. I have been doing a lot of research on chickens the last few months via the library & the internet. I def don't want a heat lamp. I thought the the insulation would help keep the bitter winds from penetrating the coop. My coop is made from cedar. I made sure not to block any ventilation holes. I just stuck it on the inside walls with thin piece of sub flooring over it so the hens won't peck at the insulation. I had a few pieces I put insulation on wrong side of coop and after reading your post I won't worry about fixing it so insulation is on that wall.

As for the plastic on the run I had read several different articles stating the the hens didn't / wouldn't go in the run during the winter if there was deep snow in it. Sometimes we can get 2-3 ft a day when it snows lol I just want to make sure I can let them out in the run when its snowing without worrying about them getting wet/frostbitten.

I planned on putting flat land scape bricks in the run area so that no critters can dig up under the run. Then put sand over it to make it easier to clean out. But then i thought they wouldn't be able to scratch and eat the grass thats planted there. Am i better just putting the bricks around the outside of the pen to keep critters from digging in?

Can anyone recommend a place to get young birds that are close to my area? I am guessing that they won't ship anything bigger than chicks? I was thinking of seeing if anyone was selling hens at our local county fair in a couple of weeks but I wanted to make sure I got hens that were hardy for the winter. I was thinking about barred rocks? They seem to not mind the cold and are suppose to be friendly.

Also I have a heated water bowl that is made for dogs. I have never used it for the dogs tho lol Can I just leave the heated bowl of water in the run fom them during the winter?

This is a pic of my newly put together coop. Tperson who I purchased it from says it will hold 3-4 large birds or 6 bantams. I am thinking if I start with 2 birds that would be plenty for a newbie. I am thinking I will need to make the run bigger tho since they will have the ground in that small area cleared in no time

 

[rancher hicks]

Hello everyone,
I am a newbie. Just got my coop and I will be putting it together this evening. I am looking to get some Plymouth Rock pullets in a month or so. I am waiting for the town to pass the law its ok for us to have chickens which should be in a week or so.

In the reading I have done it says that the Plymouth Rocks are very friendly, good layers & tolerate the cold well. Since I live in an area where we get a lot of snow & wind I want to make sure that I get some girls that are very hardy & good layers.

I have insulated my coop to protect them from the cold winter winds. I dont want to use a heat lamp if I dont have to. I plan on covering the run with heavy duty plastic for the winter months to keep the snow from the run & protect them while they are out in the runs.

I think with winter so close and having 4 indoor cats trying to raise chicks would be hard esp since they would have to be in the house to stay warm and keep them safe.

Does anyone know where I can get pullets in my area? I was thinking of going to Springville auction since they always have hens for auction except I dont know how old they are, the breed, etc since I am a newbie.

Any help/suggestions are greatly appreciated. Thank you !!

Yeah, I guess you can start with those. The key word is "start". Welcome to BYC. It's all down hill from here.

 

[Henicillin]

Ooh, more newbies! Love it!

The walls of my coop's "roosting room" are insulated with sheets of foam insulation (10' x 10' room - half of a 10' x 20' shed, all of which the birds have at their disposal), but that's primarily to dampen noise. There is plenty of ventilation at the top of the coop, and we had no problems with moisture buildup at all last year. Given that the rooster occasionally doodles from the highest roosts at 2 or 3 AM - right below the roof vents - it only blocks noise to some extent (you can hear him, but it's muffled). Everyone around is used to him now, and he doesn't sound off very often or for very long, so it's fine. We don't heat, though - that would be a recipe for disaster with all the dust generated by the feather dander and the bedding.

Like Rancher said, it's all downhill from here. Two will turn into four which will turn into six... I wanted half a dozen chickens. I currently have 32 chickens and eight ducks. Morehens and Morefowl Diseases are lifelong and contagious (the primary symptom of both is a burning desire to expand your flock).