Topic of the Week - Chicken Keeping in Weather Extremes

[sumi]

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With some US states being hit by hurricanes at the moment, chicken keeping and protecting the flock from weather extremes is much on many of our members' minds right now.

Therefore, this week I would like to hear your thoughts and advice on getting your birds safe through weather extremes. How can you prepare for and protect your flock against storms, high winds, torrential rain, and more?

ETA: To clarify, this is not just for hurricanes and other severe storms, but in general

Pic by @chickenmomma16
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For a complete list of our Topic of the Week threads, see here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/topic-of-the-week-thread-archive

 

[aart]

I can.NOT.imagine ....
....what it would be like to face hurricanes and all that come with them.

There's just no fathoming it unless you have been thru it.
Have had a few close calls with tornadoes but they are unpredictable so no prep.

My heart goes out to all those in weather and fire crisis at this time,
hoping you all find the strength to cope.

 

[newchickfl]

I am in pinellas county Fl where irma is crossing right over. I am bringing my girls in and they will ride out the storm in dog crates with hay. We are looking at winds up to 110 and I don't think they are safe in the coop during that. I have read it will be stressful on them not to be in their coop but it's better than being killed or hurt outside.

 

[Mrs. K]

Really, I think we have to prioritize, and at this point, it is people that need to be kept safe. Some chickens will make it through, but it will be the luck of the draw. There should be no guilt involved if a member's flock is lost. This is a hobby we all enjoy. These are circumstances beyond our control.

 

[lazy gardener]

Most of our severe weather consists of:

Snow. Lots of it, sometimes making it very difficult to even get out the door. There have been times when residents have to climb out a window to get a shovel so they can free up access to their front door. For the chickens, I simply shovel a bit of a path, and keep the snow knocked off their sun room roof. This may require going out every couple of hours, even in the middle of the night in a thick and wet storm. Oh yeah... safety from falling snow: I have to block off 3/4 of my run during the winter due to the metal roof on coop.

Ice. Ice storms that can deposit up to 1/2" of ice at a time and knock out power for days at a time. Our record was 13 days without power. We bought a generator, so are somewhat protected. For the chickens: I keep ice creepers on my boots through most of the winter, and keep a pair of ski poles at front and back door. I use ice to an advantage by transporting their FF in a snow sled.

Cold. A cold snap can keep temps below 0*F 24/7 for weeks at a time. I use a heated dog bowl to keep their water thawed. No heat in the coop UNLESS the birds are showing signs of hypothermia: Birds not moving well, and their appetite will actually be a bit depressed. In the worst of the cold snaps, I will provide a bit of supplemental heat: a heat lamp secured in 3 locations with red bulb at night. NO matter how cold it gets, good ventilation is crucial. My coop has eave and gable vents. 3 windows, and a floor level vent. I block the floor level vent for the winter, but leave one if not 2 windows open a bit, except in the bitter cold and during blizzards. Birds are encouraged to go out and play in their sun room any time day time temps are greater than 10*F.

Wind. A lot of dead trees on neighbor's property directly behind my coop. I've actually taken down a fair number of them, and paid a tree service to take down the 3 worst offenders. Aside from that, I pray! God is gracious and has always felled trees in a direction that is not harmful!

Heat. Yes, believe it or not, it can get hot enough here to cause harm to my flock. 2 summers ago, when checking on my juveniles in their grow out pen (I believe they were about 2 months old) I noticed first one, and then several others stumbling around. My mind started whirring: Mareck's disease? Some sort of poisoning? Then, I realized it was a hot day. I had just recovered from a bit of dizziness related to too much heat, too much outdoor work, and not enough water... so I came inside and did a quick google search, mixed up some home made Pedialyte and gave each flock a qt. of it. They slurped it down. Within 1/2 hour, the juveniles were restored to their perky selves.

 

[ChickNanny13]

Have you all seen this? Thought it was a great idea evacuating many chickens...

 

[JurassicBawk]

http://www.chron.com/national/article/Key-West-chickens-Hurricane-Irma-12180831.php

http://www.floridarambler.com/funky-florida/key-west-chickens-key-west-roosters/

They are the Key West gypsy chickens. They're wild, mostly from chickens that have been turned loose and bred. Yes, some are fighting stock, but the person in that photo was not transporting fighting chickens. They rounded up wild Key West gypsy chickens and were trying to get some to safety before the hurricane(s) hit, as the chickens really have no safe place to go.

 

[Pater est Pullis]

I know y'all are getting hammered in Florida, prayers out to you. I just prepped my coop for Irma, best I could, here in SC. To prepare, I added slide bolts to side shutters, temporarily covered back windows with plexiglass, and covered chicken doors with sheet metal. Going to eventually frame plexiglass, add hinges and lock, for storm shutters. internally, needs hurricane brackets, externally, ground anchorage.

 

[black_dove2]

Most of our severe weather consists of:

Snow. Lots of it, sometimes making it very difficult to even get out the door. There have been times when residents have to climb out a window to get a shovel so they can free up access to their front door. For the chickens, I simply shovel a bit of a path, and keep the snow knocked off their sun room roof. This may require going out every couple of hours, even in the middle of the night in a thick and wet storm. Oh yeah... safety from falling snow: I have to block off 3/4 of my run during the winter due to the metal roof on coop.

Ice. Ice storms that can deposit up to 1/2" of ice at a time and knock out power for days at a time. Our record was 13 days without power. We bought a generator, so are somewhat protected. For the chickens: I keep ice creepers on my boots through most of the winter, and keep a pair of ski poles at front and back door. I use ice to an advantage by transporting their FF in a snow sled.

Cold. A cold snap can keep temps below 0*F 24/7 for weeks at a time. I use a heated dog bowl to keep their water thawed. No heat in the coop UNLESS the birds are showing signs of hypothermia: Birds not moving well, and their appetite will actually be a bit depressed. In the worst of the cold snaps, I will provide a bit of supplemental heat: a heat lamp secured in 3 locations with red bulb at night. NO matter how cold it gets, good ventilation is crucial. My coop has eave and gable vents. 3 windows, and a floor level vent. I block the floor level vent for the winter, but leave one if not 2 windows open a bit, except in the bitter cold and during blizzards. Birds are encouraged to go out and play in their sun room any time day time temps are greater than 10*F.

Wind. A lot of dead trees on neighbor's property directly behind my coop. I've actually taken down a fair number of them, and paid a tree service to take down the 3 worst offenders. Aside from that, I pray! God is gracious and has always felled trees in a direction that is not harmful!

Heat. Yes, believe it or not, it can get hot enough here to cause harm to my flock. 2 summers ago, when checking on my juveniles in their grow out pen (I believe they were about 2 months old) I noticed first one, and then several others stumbling around. My mind started whirring: Mareck's disease? Some sort of poisoning? Then, I realized it was a hot day. I had just recovered from a bit of dizziness related to too much heat, too much outdoor work, and not enough water... so I came inside and did a quick google search, mixed up some home made Pedialyte and gave each flock a qt. of it. They slurped it down. Within 1/2 hour, the juveniles were restored to their perky selves.

Thank you!!! You should consider expanding to an article! If I could rate you now it'd be 5 star. Consise, clear, understanding and covers all types of weather

 

[jeria]

AART, I've been through a few hurricanes but CAT 1 or barely into 2. I cannot imagine either the challenges those in the path of Irma are facing, covering the entire state. Have also had close calls with tornados, one hit less than 50 yards from my home years ago and barely missed my neighbors home but destroyed their dairy barn.

I am still working on my coop and have considered our often strong winds and when storms hit torrential rain and hopefully built my coop to withstand those. Against a tornado no way to secure completely. I already know my coop doors will need to be strengthened in the future to tolerate 80 mph winds but needed to get the chicks moved. I had a prefab shed ripped apart by winds a couple years ago and never found all the pieces.