To heat the Coop or Not is the question

[stjemmes]

I have one americana hen because we lost the chicks to respiratory infection and the hen is currently on meds for it. Anyway we live in the northwest panhandle of FL and the temps are dropping into the 30-50's at night. Her coop is closed on all sides and the floor is mesh. The rood is ribbed plastic. My question is if I should heat the coop at night? The coop is 4ft by 3ft and 4ft off the ground.

 

[goldies99]

your in florida?????............ im ny...its 24º and freezing...and my chickens dont have heat..........NO............... you dont need heat!
but if your down to one chicken....you need to get her a friend!!!

 

[SagebrushMama]

No, heating isn't necessary. I'm in Nevada and so far it's been in the 20's which is nice cause it could be a lot worse. ('

', '');

 

[chickensgalore]

i wouldnt worry about heat but i would get her a friend soon

 

[frostbite]

Here in Alaska the temps range from 20 above to 50 below in the wintertime, I don't have heat for my coop. Again, I reference the ravens, chickadees, red poll finches, great horned owls, ptarmigans, grey jays, and a few mallards on the open parts of the Chena River, none of whom have shelter except for which side of a tree they perch on, none of whom have plenty of water and food provided for them, and all of whom seem to do just fine. Those poor chickens with their down coats are more likely to need AIR CONDITIONING in Florida!!!!!

Which makes me wonder, anyone down south where it gets unbearably hot provide air conditioning for your coops?

 

[teach1rusl]

I am a huge softie with all of my animals, and I do add a little heat to my coops (an act that's often frowned upon by many BYC members). However, I can't see doing so in Florida, unless you ever encountered a situation of a HUGE, sudden temperature swing (like some kind of front blows through and temps drop 40 or 50 degrees in a day). However, with a mesh floor, I would wind break the bottom of your run (assuming that's what's below???) so that cold air blasts can't blow up from beneath when it drops into the 30s. With a mesh floor, do you do bedding? Because dry, fluffy bedding is a nice insulator. And I agree that a buddy would be a very good thing.
If you choose to add something, be very careful. With such a small coop, safety becomes trickier. A regular light bulb (not a heat bulb) would be plenty (they sell red ones) in a coop that small...

 

[MamiPollo]

I live near Teach2rusl

and not only do I not heat my coop, I have a fresh air coop you can see here. I have recently winterized it by putting plastic up over the hardware cloth except for 5 square feet that remains open for ventilation. This morning at 6:30 am our windchill was 18 degrees, but my hens were fine.

I would avoid a heat lamp due to safety concerns. Get her friend or two and your hen will be happy and plenty warm!

 

[ejb3810]

Chickens have feathers and down. Most breeds do very well in the cold, as long as they are not wet and can get out of the wind. A few bantam breeds are in danger when the temps are extremely cold. Extremely cold as in below zero.
Believe it or not the birds are in better health at 30 degrees than at 75. My birds are allowed freedom all winter. So they can come and go to their coops as they choose. They do not hesitate to go out in the cold, although they like to find a place that is dry and not snow covered.
The cold environment is a natural eliminator of many adverse pathogens.

 

[BarredBuff]

Your in Florida? I think not, its supposed to be 19 degrees tonight and I m not having heat. Im in Kentucky.

 

[JenniferNgo]

No heat! If you start supplementing with heat the warm down feathers won't come in properly...