San Diego Chicken meetup and Chat thread

[SunnyCalifornia]

Welcome New Folks!

I'm new here too. My first 3 hens are 10 months old now, and then I have a trio of almost 4 month old pullets, and a pair of 6-8 week old bantams.....and I'm sure I'll be adding more soon.

Question for some of you who live inland: I had a hard frost last night, and I was really worried about my big girls. I put a l00 watt lamp in there for a couple hours in the early evening, but they were so mad about the light, when it was supposed to be dark, that we just turned it off, and just closed the upstairs hatch where they roost at night, to try to keep the heat in, and let them get their rest. This morning, they seem fine, but I just don't want to anything bad to happen to them.

Since I've lived here, in the past six years, my normal lows for a cold winter night would be 27-30 degrees, but I've seen 19 degrees in that severe cold snap we had about 3 years ago. I have a Buff Orpington, and 2 Australorps outside, big fluffy birds, do I need to be worried about them?

My younger chicks come in at night (because I don't have a coop built for them yet

) and I'm thinking if I do get that coop built, I should definitely put a heat source in for them, since they aren't acclimated to the low temps yet this year.

I've read the thread started by an Alaskan, to NOT heat the coops, but my feed store says yes for cold nights..... What are your opinions?

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

Hi SunnyCalifornia,
My insulated coop got down to 31 last night. When I entered it it was noticeably warmer in the coop than it was outside. I don't think it's a good idea to put heat in their coop for the reasons that have been posted. They develop down to help them prepare for the cold weather. If your coop is heated in any way they won't develop as heavy a down as they would normally. Then if you loose electricity your coop won't be heated AND they won't have the natural down to keep them warm. I don't think our winters are cold enough to warrant additional heat. If you must use a light you can always use a black light.

As for the week old bantams, yes, it would be too cold for them if they're not acclimated. You could put them out in the day and slowly acclimate them by keeping them outside a little longer each day.

 

[LALASD4]

I have one that looks very similiar.

They are getting big.

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[WhiteMountainsRanch]

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X2

 

[SunnyCalifornia]

Thanks for your input! Tonight I"ll close the hatch, and let them snuggle together without worry.

. I heard coyotes close by last night, so closing the hatch will keep them extra safe anyhow.

BTW, since I have a coop building project this month (Jan.) If anyone is willing to post pics of their coops, so I can get some ideas,.....that would be really sweet! I need to build at least a duplex, or a triplex... I have coyotes, opossums, raccoons, skunks, hawks, mice, stray cats and dogs, the whole gammut. I guess thats just life off a dirt road, huh?

The insulation thing intrigues me... I'm sure its great in the cold, but what about the hot weather? I lost a wonderful BO in that REALLY hot spell in September. Broke our hearts. You can see the cross that marks her grave in the background of my pic. I have a small fan and some misters for the hens, do you have any better ideas that I could adapt to my current one, or my new coop project?

Here's a pic of my coop. I designed it myself out of an empty shipping crate. The upstairs floor is just above the coop door, and the rectangular areas open up on three sides for access. The downstairs has three screened sides, and the back is solid. I want them to be comfortable, but I also want them safe. They get to have supervised foraging during the day, so they are not always cooped up.

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

Your coop looks great! Love all the openings. Must be nice in the summer, lots of air moving around.

I have a large coop and having it insulated makes a big difference in the hot months. It's amazing how much cooler it stays inside. Even with all the windows open!! The heat doesn't permeate the building & the windows keep the air circulating. I wet the ground in the covered run in the summer...there's always a breeze here so the wet run helps keep the coop cool too. I have a child's wading pool that I put in the run for them to dip their feet in.

I'd think that if you only had the roof insulated that would help. I'm surprised you lost one to the heat...your coop is so open. Perhaps you can plant a deciduous tree to shade it in the summer. Just a thought.

Here's a pic of mine. Kind of hard to see because of the trees. If you're ever up in Julian stop by and say hi

 

[SunnyCalifornia]

WOW I love it!! I wish I had a yard big enough to accommodate something like that! VERY nice!!! I have coop envy now...

Insulation...I could box in the ceiling under the roof, and add some. You're just talking about the regular rolls of stuff I can get at Lowe's, or Home Depot, right?

I have some avocados planted on the slope behind it, and two tangerines beside it, but they are not growing fast enough!

 

[Knock Kneed Hen]

Quote:
Yes, the fiberglass insulation. That's what I used. Which direction is your solid wall facing? I'm trying to figure out the position of your coop in correlation with
the sun. I'm thinking you could use some shade cloth during the hot months. If you were to make sort of an awning on your hottest sides it would help.
Attach the shade cloth to the side of the building then tent it out away so air still circulates but the building is shaded. It's always 15 degrees cooler in the shade!

Someone on BYC has a great desert set up...I'm going to try to find it for you.

 

[SunnyCalifornia]

Thank you! The front faces west on my current coop, but the area I have for my next one will be south facing, but its western exposure is blocked by a tree and my shed. I'll be researching some coops too, as I start planning. There's so much info out there!


*************HAPPY NEW YEARS EVERYONE!!***************

 

[wwmicasa1]

The majority of my birds are outside year round. I have covered (top) runs but just wire on the sides. Most of the runs are 8 x 8 and each holds a Dogloo for a nest box or brooding. I do have an indoor chicken house where some of my older ladies go for the night but the youngsters prefer to be outside. The entire chicken area is shaded by two huge cottonwoods. Very shady in the summer. All my girls with the exception of my breeders are free range. I let them out about 7am & they roam the property til they put themselves to bed at night & I lock up.

It was 15 degrees night before last & 20 degrees this morning. Everyone weathered the cold weather very well. My main concern is the rain. A wet chicken is generally a "dead" chicken~! With 500 chickens, I would be blow drying for quite awhile

This is a double run-grow-out pen. Each section is 8 x 20 ft.