Preparing for winter already... Iowa style :(

[Brookliner]

My geese don't like to be enclosed in the winter. I provide shelter for them under a roofed shelter where they have hay and their food pan (out of the weather) this is more to keep the nest from getting flooded in a bad rain storm. Even during a snow storm they tend to sit outside in the open with their feet tucked up and their heads under their wings. They sometimes get snowed over and all you can see are bumps in the snow. When they here us coming with food all the heads poke out of the snow they shake themselves off and come running. We provide a heated water pan and shovel out a clear area for them. If it doesn't snow too heavily they tend to mash the snow down themselves. I have not had ducks for many years but when I did have them they had a duck house and unless I forced them in they would stay outside. My chicken coop has an open wire front with a plywood flap that covers it. I close it at night and open it completely during the day in the winter (other times it is left open). I do hang a red light at night if it is especially cold. I have bantams and they have always done well in the winter. I live in Southern New Hampshire where our winters have reached -20 deg. although we usually only have a few days like that. I am currently building a new larger coop and will probably insulate the walls and floor. It will have a shed (slanted) roof and I will wire the ceiling and have the area between the rafters open to ventilate. I feel that ventilation is more important to chicken health than warmth. My roosts will be on the short side of the coop the ventilation will vent above their heads by 3 feet.I will be using poop boards beneath the roosts and deep pine chips on the main floor area. I will be feeding and watering them on a wide shelf to keep the food and waterer free of wood chips. The waterer and food will be moved out to the run during the 9 months between March and November. I have raised some form of poultry for more than 30 years. My newest coop will be used for broodys and chicken jail during the 9 months between March and November. Not to be confused with the new coop that is under construction.


Old chicken coop built in 1983 Upper level of new broody coop
4x8 ft 4 x 3.5 ft front is hardware cloth covered with screen
roof is polycarbonate (smoke color)


side view of broody coop with side one of my African hens sitting in the
door open old goose shelter it has a plywood roof
and has boards on 2 sides - they only
go there to lay eggs in the spring.

 

[Haunted55]

My geese don't like to be enclosed in the winter. I provide shelter for them under a roofed shelter where they have hay and their food pan (out of the weather) this is more to keep the nest from getting flooded in a bad rain storm. Even during a snow storm they tend to sit outside in the open with their feet tucked up and their heads under their wings. They sometimes get snowed over and all you can see are bumps in the snow. When they here us coming with food all the heads poke out of the snow they shake themselves off and come running. We provide a heated water pan and shovel out a clear area for them. If it doesn't snow too heavily they tend to mash the snow down themselves. I have not had ducks for many years but when I did have them they had a duck house and unless I forced them in they would stay outside. My chicken coop has an open wire front with a plywood flap that covers it. I close it at night and open it completely during the day in the winter (other times it is left open). I do hang a red light at night if it is especially cold. I have bantams and they have always done well in the winter. I live in Southern New Hampshire where our winters have reached -20 deg. although we usually only have a few days like that. I am currently building a new larger coop and will probably insulate the walls and floor. It will have a shed (slanted) roof and I will wire the ceiling and have the area between the rafters open to ventilate. I feel that ventilation is more important to chicken health than warmth. My roosts will be on the short side of the coop the ventilation will vent above their heads by 3 feet.I will be using poop boards beneath the roosts and deep pine chips on the main floor area. I will be feeding and watering them on a wide shelf to keep the food and waterer free of wood chips. The waterer and food will be moved out to the run during the 9 months between March and November. I have raised some form of poultry for more than 30 years. My newest coop will be used for broodys and chicken jail during the 9 months between March and November. Not to be confused with the new coop that is under construction.


Old chicken coop built in 1983 Upper level of new broody coop
4x8 ft 4 x 3.5 ft front is hardware cloth covered with screen
roof is polycarbonate (smoke color)


side view of broody coop with side one of my African hens sitting in the
door open old goose shelter it has a plywood roof
and has boards on 2 sides - they only
go there to lay eggs in the spring.

Just a thought, have you tried sand for your floors yet? I did a couple of months ago and I love it! So much cleaner and easier than the shavings. I also built a shallow box to go under the roosts and filled it with the PDZ. No smell, quick rake and scoop in the morning and done.

 

[Brookliner]

I do the poop boards in my old coop I use 1/3 each of PDZ, DE & sand. Love it. Just tried it in my new broody coop it is great for the broodies but I had to use my second broody coop for 3 of my cockerels over the last few days and it was a nightmare has thunder storm the last 2 nights and the cockerels knocked over their waterer and I ended up with sand soup. My husband and I just spent this morning cleaning it up. They were much too rowdy, and scared of the storm.

 

[dirt4life]

The bigger ducks pen. Recently lifted off the ground. Half of the bottom has plywood the other half is the welded wire to help with their mess.


The chicken coop, the roof will be eventual covered in tin. Mother nature is helping the delay in all this.

 

[karlamaria]

The bigger ducks pen. Recently lifted off the ground. Half of the bottom has plywood the other half is the welded wire to help with their mess.


The chicken coop, the roof will be eventual covered in tin. Mother nature is helping the delay in all this.

that's a lot of ducks in the top picture, do you live where it's cold? I do not think I have ever seen so many birds in such a small place. How does it get determined who lays on wire and who lays on plywood? Where are your turkeys? Do your chickens free range ? 20 chickens = lots more room also. Good to know your roofing the coop

 

[mickey328]

Part of it depends on the breed of your chickens, too...some are much more cold hardy than others

Mickey

 

[karlamaria]

I started preparing in March LOL, here in Montana we get real cold, snowy and I definitely do not want my girls to be cold. I had a new run build, with a nice roof, this way the snow runs off and not on the tarps I had because it was a pain in the butt going out there to clear snow off each day and then water when everything melted non stop. freeze melt oye what a pain,

When I did the pen, and got rid of the old dog kennel I was thrilled as this is much easier to take care of, during the pen process, I had the coop enlarged to double so my girls had lots of room to enjoy. I have 10 birds, this coop will hold 20 comfortably. this winter I will wrap it in clear plastic ( the pen) and staple it on. much easier then the tarps, the darkness of said tarps and more sun light days. I also


added electricity, a electric door opener and new roosts and nest boxes.





and just last month added a new nest box like the wooden one on the floor, the girls love these and there so roomy !!

food and water is in the pen ..

 

[dirt4life]

that's a lot of ducks in the top picture, do you live where it's cold? I do not think I have ever seen so many birds in such a small place. How does it get determined who lays on wire and who lays on plywood? Where are your turkeys? Do your chickens free range ? 20 chickens = lots more room also. Good to know your roofing the coop

We have about 20 ducks in their at the moment. They are only in there at night so they usually go in there and go to sleep pretty much right away. Actually there is quite a bit of space still around them. Pry not ideal but it works for now. He plans on making a couple more cages to house each different duck as we are going to be moving all of them into a newly purchased chain link fence area to run at all times then be able to go into the coop at night.
We live in Iowa right next to a river so the temp drops rather quickly if the wind is coming from the river side.

The turkeys have a pen right behind the bigger ducks, they were being camera shy but its the same size as the bigger duck pen 8X6X4 i think. they also will be getting a revamped cage here before winter strikes.

Our chickens have a coop that is about 15X20X10 area. which they can either hide in their little boxes or go between areas. we have it sectioned off about halfway through via a door but its always open so they have the choice were to go.

 

[karlamaria]

well its cold here, below zero this morning, time to pull out the clear plastic and staple it around my pen to keep out the wind, snow and drafts,. add the tin water heater, and hang the christmas lights before the snow flies.. I have an electric door opener, and full electricity this year so my girls will not be super cold in 20 below zero temps. my coop is insulated real well and with the added heat lamp im hoping to keep the coop at least a tad warmer for my girls. Looking into getting a camera for my coop, so I can see them at work and see who is laying lol