Sudden Cold Front, What should I do?

[FLMotoChick]

Hey there friends!

We live in FL and it's been stupid hot here and the humidity is awful (as usual). However, rain and a sudden cold front is arriving tonight! It's dropping from the high 80s down to the low 60s by tomorrow morning. I went out to the coop tonight and put a heating lamp in, but will that be enough? We have 7 young girls (all under 4 months). 5 are on a perch by the lamp, the other 2 are silkies which are cuddled together in the nesting box. I don't want them to get sick or freeze

Any advice? Will they be okay?

 

[SeramaFly]

Put some Vaseline on combs and waddle to protect from frostbite damage. Since just a day a so cold keep them cooped up with their new friend the heat lamp.
Make sure lamp away from bedding to avoid coop fire. I love in Florida panhandle, formerly from dfw area and for the little we get that is probably enough. Some breeds need nothing...

We live in FL and it's been stupid hot here and the humidity is awful (as usual). However, rain and a sudden cold front is arriving tonight! It's dropping from the high 80s down to the low 60s by tomorrow morning. I went out to the coop tonight and put a heating lamp in, but will that be enough? We have 7 young girls (all under 4 months). 5 are on a perch by the lamp, the other 2 are silkies which are cuddled together in the nesting box. I don't want them to get sick or freeze

Any advice? Will they be okay?[/QUOTE]

 

[Alaskan]

I would not put in the heat lamp. The fire risk is too great.

a 20 degree drop is big, but not horrid.

Of they look cold, I would make them a box or dog crate full of hay or wood shavings to snuggle in. Pick the ones up off of the perch, and see if they also want a box to snuggle in.

 

[Alaskan]

oh, 60 degrees is not cold enough to bother with vaseline.

 

[Latestarter]

They do NOT need a heat lamp. They have down coats on. They have each other and will be fine. I am in NE TX now but moved here from CO and mine were just fine down to 15 below zero overnight. The bigger problem was keeping water liquid so they could drink and submerged heating units took good care of that.

The more important issue is to ensure there is adequate ventilation so they don't have moisture build up inside the coop which can cause potential frostbite issues if the temp drops to near freezing. A light coat of Vaseline or any other OIL based product on combs/wattles/toes will help prevent that as the moisture will not be able to come into contact with their skin. Roosts (not perches) should be wide/thick enough that they can stand basically flat footed with toes curled over the edge so they can settle down with their feathers covering their feet. Finally make sure they will not have direct breezes or wind on them where they roost as that will ruffle their feathers and cause heat loss.

After that, relax... they'll be fine.

 

[Gramma Chick]

60s is not cold for chickens ..
Be careful with a heat lamp ..it is The #1 cause of a fire in chicken coops .
Longs they are fully feathered they should be fine .
I have a Baby who is 3 months and it is roosting with the Adults ..
with a completely open gate ..and it is getting down to 30 degrees here in New york state

 

[ChickenGirl555]

I understand you don't get nearly as cold as Wisconsin in winters, because if it's 60F, we are out in tank tops! I'm currently always below 20F every day and night and my chickens never care. They like to peck at snow since this is their first winter and if they need wind protection they always have the coop. Putting a heat lamp in when it's that warm would be a horrible idea. It could possibly kill them, or make them sick, because of the sudden temperature change. Please do not worry, if you think about it, in the old days before electricity, they didn't have heat lamps and chickens didn't die, and they had below zero too. So chickens are very hardy and please do not change anything. Trust me, 60F is summer weather for chickens.

Edit: Also I have two 2 month old chicks living outside in this 20F weather and they have been living out in this for a few weeks, and don't mind.
Edit 2: Also I remembered chickens can naturally withstand up to -20F with good ventilation.

 

[junebuggena]

60 is no big deal for chickens. They will be fine, and will enjoy the cooler weather. A heat lamp is definitely not needed, and may be harmful.

 

[Arya28]

A 20 degrees temp change might seem like a big deal if you’re in Florida.... but 60 degrees is not too cold for chickens at all!!! I am in north central PA, and right now, it’s 23 degrees... and our chickens are in a non-heated barn. They are ok- they huddle together for warmth. Once on a while you see one shivering but supposedly they are more comfortable in the cold than in the heat. They shouldn’t need heat lamps or anything on their combs, in my opinion.

Because it’s been so cold here (in the 20s and 30s at night), we’ve been putting coconut oil on their combs every other night. Keeps them red and beautiful! If we skip more than 2 nights their combs get black and blue... as long as we keep on it it works beautifully. But again, you shouldn’t need that in 60 degree temps I know you southerners are sensitive to the cold but 60 isn’t even freezing! Lol

Now a really cold cold-front is supposed to come here next week... into the teens. For that, we will probably need to oil them every night!

If I were you I wouldn’t worry. Your babies should be totally fine! Hope this helps

 

[ChickNanny13]

Wow, FL warmer than HI! We're down to 53 - 56 in the mornings It's FREEZING!