Sponsored Post Tips From Nutrena: The Heat is On, But is heating the coop really necessary in winter?

[theoldguy]

Good info, thank you

 

[mrballance]

I guess you could say we spoil our girls, yet they are not strangers to the cold. We had one of the coldest springs that Kansas has had in decades. We had snow in May, when we had already moved them outside. They had a little cedar doghouse that we covered with an old sleeping bag to help keep out the howling wind. When we built their coop, we planned ahead and provided a couple of fixtures for infrared heat lamps, just in case. The coop is 6 X 7' and the ceiling is high enough above them that they won't get overheated from them. One is over the roosting area and one is over the metal nesting boxes. I also use a deep layer of pine wood shavings. I keep water in the coop so they have access to it all night. With a low temperature of six degrees, last night, their water was a bit on the slushy side this morning. The wall thermometer, over their roosting bar, was at 42 degrees. We have six hens and we are still getting six eggs per day. They also free range in the yard. Every morning, they are waiting at the door of their pen, to get out and "play".

Hens don't eat or drink at night

 

[sarahr0612]

This thread really helped me! I was determined my girls were cold and I wanted to get them a heat lamp. Now I know differently!

 

[Utard]

My biggest struggle is the water thing....I have to bust up ice each morning.

I have one of these









With one of these













And it seems to work great so far.

I have had the last week with temp from 4 to 8 degrees every night and a few of the days did not get above 15.

And it is out side of the coop.

 

[MaPa26]

We are having a week-long "Arctic Freeze", as most of the country is. I am glad we heated. One of the girls got a bit of frostbite on one ear lobe. She may have splashed water on it (water freezes almost instantly when poured or sloshed out of the bowl), When the temperatures get back to 20s and 30s at night, I am sure they won't need the heat. If I heated their coop when it is thirty degrees, it would be at least sixty degrees inside it. They don't need it that warm, for sure! The wind chill tonight is supposed to be in the negative figures. I do like getting eggs every day. That's the biggest benefit for us.

 

[MaPa26]

Mine do, lol! I go out to make sure they are all in for the night before I shut the pen. Mine do eat and drink. They often go to the coop before it is completely dark. So when I say "night", I don't mean 2am. We work second shift and don't let them out of the pen until 8 or 9. They've been up quite a while by then, and I am glad they have water that isn't frozen. With the cold spell we are having, water freezes very quickly. If sloshed or spilled, that freezes instantly. When they are drinking outside, I think that is how one got frostbite on an earlobe. She probably got water on it. When the temps get back to the 20s, they won't need the heat lamps.

 

[peartreehens]

I wasn't planning to heat my coop at all, but several of my girls started sporting pale, frostbite-y looking tips to their combs after 3 days with lows around 0 and highs in the teens . . . I have 8 pullets (well, all laying but not yet 1). My coop is 4x4 + a row of next boxes. It's in a fairly sheltered area, and as ventilated as I can make it without opening the window to blow right on them. I've wrapped potential drafts with plastic. Because they're showing frostbite, I've added a 60w ceramic heat bulb. The water still froze solid in the coop, with the bulb running. I don't want to heat the coop, but I don't want to lose combs/wattles/toes etc. I'm going to cover a portion of the run later this week, once it warms up to the 30s and some of the snow melts. Other suggestions? After 3 or 4 days with the lamp (and the water still freezing) can I remove the lamp once lows are back in the 20s? Help!

 

[blondiebee181]

Quote: Oh, I would live a heated waterer, but I don't have anywhere to plug it in....and I'm not big on running an extension cord.

 

[Utard]

Oh, I would live a heated waterer, but I don't have anywhere to plug it in....and I'm not big on running an extension cord.

As long as you use a heavy gauge one you will be fine. Plus this only comes on if it gets below 35 degrees. I have this and a LED light on a 50' cord with no problems.

You should at least try to get a light out to your coop. If you give them 14 hours a light a day you will get more eggs. I have the light come on before sunrise and goes off after sunset.

 

[MizzouLawyer]

Great info for all of us newbies experiencing our first super cold spell! I'll admit that it is hard to resist the temptation to fire up a heat lamp for my girls with the past 5 straight nights in single digits, but I know I am doing what's best for them long-term. Don't overthink it, folks.... Nature > Nurture.