Preparing Your Flock & Coop for WINTER

[Goronson Chicks]

[/URL]Finally finished with the sheeting. Getting the door on this weekend. Supposed to get some snow next week.

Lookin' Good! Will post mine in a few days. Why is it that so many of us paint our coops this same dark barn red with white trim? Ours is too.

 

[NTBugtraq]

Just a note about chicken feet. The bones are manipulated by tendons and muscles, and as such are susceptible to frostbite. I know, because my Roo lost a toe to frostbite last winter.

 

[mainechicklet]

So how do you manage hens who undergo hard molts during January's zero deg temps?

 

[Beekissed]

So how do you manage hens who undergo hard molts during January's zero deg temps?

You'd be surprised how well they manage and most don't even look cold. That shocked me the first time I saw it too...nearly bald hen walking around in subzero temps and she didn't seem to mind at all...outside in the snow, in the wind, etc. Sort of like Naked Neck chickens, the molting hen's hide sort of toughens up and takes over until the feathers come in.

As for frostbit feet....I've been at this for 40 yrs and never had any, nor have I witnessed that personally. One would have to be seriously mismanaging the flock for winter to get frostbit feet, especially a rooster...they've got more feathers than all the rest. I'd venture to say frostbit feet come from closing up the roosting place too tightly in the winter months(blankets draped over it, plastic, etc), creating an area of extreme humidity. I've had a Leghorn rooster that chose to roost in a pine tree over winter in one of the coldest winters we'd ever had and didn't sustain frost bite on comb, wattles or feet. And Leghorns have HUGE combs and wattles.

Clean dry bedding, good ventilation, good food, fresh water...it's a simple concept but it's effective.

 

[Blooie]

You'd be surprised how well they manage and most don't even look cold. That shocked me the first time I saw it too...nearly bald hen walking around in subzero temps and she didn't seem to mind at all...outside in the snow, in the wind, etc. Sort of like Naked Neck chickens, the molting hen's hide sort of toughens up and takes over until the feathers come in.

As for frostbit feet....I've been at this for 40 yrs and never had any, nor have I witnessed that personally. One would have to be seriously mismanaging the flock for winter to get frostbit feet, especially a rooster...they've got more feathers than all the rest. I'd venture to say frostbit feet come from closing up the roosting place too tightly in the winter months(blankets draped over it, plastic, etc), creating an area of extreme humidity. I've had a Leghorn rooster that chose to roost in a pine tree over winter in one of the coldest winters we'd ever had and didn't sustain frost bite on comb, wattles or feet. And Leghorns have HUGE combs and wattles.

Clean dry bedding, good ventilation, good food, fresh water...it's a simple concept but it's effective.

Um, frostbitten feet can happen when a certain little chick got his feet wet at the waterer and then dashed out into the run with Mama when it was -17. <sigh> But Scout was the only victim of frostbite I've had. None of the others have had frostbitten anything.

 

[Beekissed]

Um, frostbitten feet can happen when a certain little chick got his feet wet at the waterer and then dashed out into the run with Mama when it was -17. <sigh> But Scout was the only victim of frostbite I've had. None of the others have had frostbitten anything.

Yep, as harsh as it sounds, Miss Blooie, having chicks in those kind of temps is ill advised, particularly with an untested broody, and the frost bite was then a result of mismanagement of the flock. No bird in a natural setting is having their young in the dead of winter with subzero temps and, if they did, the genetics of that particular bird would not go far...which is why I cull any hen that tries to go broody at the wrong time of year.

 

[mainechicklet]

Do you think any chickens would migrate to more temperate climates if they could do so?

I have one naked neck hen and she always seems to be perfectly happy. My January molter is a blue andalusian and looks totally miserable.... huddling and shaking until her feathers reemerge. I have not had issues with frostbite and the andalusians have large floppy combs. I noticed last winter that their combs do shrink significantly with sustained cold temps and return to normal with warmer temps.

Four of my bantams would prefer to roost in the run regardless of the temps so every really cold evening I place them in the coop. More for me than them probably.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I'm not sure they would, they seem pretty adapted, and some of the heavier, fluffier breeds may be miserable.

And I feel like every chicken is different, as evidenced by yours and your naked neck being perfectly happy lol

I have heard that some people put a heat lamp in for molting chickens but I've also heard many of those same people say that their birds didn't even use it and/or just huddle between the other, fluffier birds to warm up so I feel like it's kind of hit and miss.

 

[Beekissed]

Do you think any chickens would migrate to more temperate climates if they could do so?

I have one naked neck hen and she always seems to be perfectly happy. My January molter is a blue andalusian and looks totally miserable.... huddling and shaking until her feathers reemerge. I have not had issues with frostbite and the andalusians have large floppy combs. I noticed last winter that their combs do shrink significantly with sustained cold temps and return to normal with warmer temps.

Four of my bantams would prefer to roost in the run regardless of the temps so every really cold evening I place them in the coop. More for me than them probably.

A Mediterranean breed, like the Andalusian, would most likely live where it is hot, whereas the heavier breeds of DP heritage breed birds would most likely stay in climates that can get cold. They don't do so well in extreme heat and humidity.

That's where flock management comes in. If one lives where winters are cold, getting Mediterranean type breeds is ill advised as they are not as suited to living in those climes. Nor are the heavy breeds as comfortable where it's very hot and humid. It's always wise to stick to breeds that thrive where you live so you won't have to expend time, money and worry trying to heat birds in the winter months that have no business living there. That's just common sense.

It's like trying to have a Polar Bear live in Florida...it's not necessary and problematic to try and keep them comfortable. With all the myriad breeds available out there, there's simply no reason to have to resort to chickens that don't suit your individual climate. Just because one CAN do it, it doesn't always follow that they SHOULD do it.

 

[Blooie]

Yep, as harsh as it sounds, Miss Blooie, having chicks in those kind of temps is ill advised, particularly with an untested broody, and the frost bite was then a result of mismanagement of the flock. No bird in a natural setting is having their young in the dead of winter with subzero temps and, if they did, the genetics of that particular bird would not go far...which is why I cull any hen that tries to go broody at the wrong time of year.

Boy, you got that right! When he was hatched, it was in the upper 60s and I stupidly thought there should have been time for him to grow and feather before winter set in. Who could have foreseen going from almost 70 degrees on Halloween night to 17 below zero less than 26 hours later! Never again! As much as we liked Scout and as well as he did, it's MY responsibility to keep the flock in a way that allows every member to have the best shot, and looking back at it now I see that my enthusiasm and inexperience made one of the critters I was responsible for suffer. Never again!