Vermont

[Noymira]

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Latebloomer, our coop is in the process of being insulated, but we will not be heating it. I think if nothing else, if you have a metal roof, that should be insulated to keep condensation down. Otherwise, from what I've read many keep birds in climates harsher than ours without heat or insulation. It seems proper ventilation is more important than heat. I too was thinking about solar lights, more for me than the chickens, and am interested to see how they work (if at all) in the cold weather.

This is our first winter as well, so I'm sure we'll learn as we go!

 

[Noymira]

Anyone have 4-6 young roos or cockerels (over 14 weeks) they need to give away that they wouldn't mind ending up on the table?

We've decided we'd like to try our hand at harvesting a few birds for our freezer this year, money is real tight right now and the meat would be a huge help to us. My brother is going to help, but I'd want to be able to give him a bird or two for his expertise and still end up with a few in our freezer.

We have a quarantine pen set up and they would, of course, be treated humanely and fed well until the day of harvest. Hopefully I'm not offending anyone

, I just thought this was a better place to start than craigslist. I don't mind traveling up to an hour from Richmond to get them.

 

[LilyD]

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Mine aren't over 14 weeks but I do have a lot of roos lol

 

[latebloomer]

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Mine aren't over 14 weeks but I do have a lot of roos lol

wait a couple weeks and they will be....

 

[LilyD]

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Mine aren't over 14 weeks but I do have a lot of roos lol

wait a couple weeks and they will be....

True enough they are growing with leaps and bounds I don't think they will be ready by 14 weeks though they are not too meaty yet. Unfortunately that means I will be processing in the winter brrrrr.

 

[meepitqueenie]

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i have an unheated shed for my girls- i put on heat lamp above the waterer (far enough up to keep it from getting wet and breaking) but it usually keeps it warm enough above the waterer to keep it from totally freezing over. you will want some airflow in your coop so that the girls won't get upper respiratory diseases. if they want more warmth they can roost near the waterer. also in the winter i put plenty of shavings and straw in there so they can nestle into it and stay warm.

the bantam barn is a different story we tried not heating it but the jap bantams are very susceptible to the cold so we put 2 heat lamps in there and it stayed warm enough where we didn't loose any of them some of the roos comes got a little frost bit at first until we put the lamps in.

I would say it would depend on what type of chickens you got and how cold hearty they are.

 

[LilyD]

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I have not insulated and will not be heating my coops. All the birds I have are supposed to be cold tolerant so unless we get a really cold snap they should be okay. If there is a cold snap I was told to put a large amount of hay on the floor to add warmth to the floor and keep them inside. I do use a light just so they can see in the coop because they lose sun around 2pm but it's not strong enough for heat. I'm pretty much going by the old timers around here who tell me that heating chickens isn't necessary.

 

[Noymira]

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wait a couple weeks and they will be....

True enough they are growing with leaps and bounds I don't think they will be ready by 14 weeks though they are not too meaty yet. Unfortunately that means I will be processing in the winter brrrrr.

Normally I wouldn't mind growing them out a bit, but my quarantine coop is not winterized, and my brother is an avid hunter, so he told me any help I need better be before bow season starts!

He won't be free to help again until after turkey season in the spring.

He's got a moose permit for bow season this year (his first moose permit ever) and he's very excited! I was hoping if I supplied him with some fresh chicken I'd be lucky enough to get some moose in return. I think the idea of taking a moose with a bow is a bit scary, but he's taken two bear that way and is a great shot, if anyone I know could do it, it would be him!

 

[LilyD]

Quote:
True enough they are growing with leaps and bounds I don't think they will be ready by 14 weeks though they are not too meaty yet. Unfortunately that means I will be processing in the winter brrrrr.

Normally I wouldn't mind growing them out a bit, but my quarantine coop is not winterized, and my brother is an avid hunter, so he told me any help I need better be before bow season starts!

He won't be free to help again until after turkey season in the spring.

He's got a moose permit for bow season this year (his first moose permit ever) and he's very excited! I was hoping if I supplied him with some fresh chicken I'd be lucky enough to get some moose in return. I think the idea of taking a moose with a bow is a bit scary, but he's taken two bear that way and is a great shot, if anyone I know could do it, it would be him!

My husband is a hunter too so I can totally understand. All the help dries up come November lol. My birds won't be ready by that time unfortunately but they will hopefully grow out by spring. I am less concerned about the age and would rather they get to a decent weight for eating. Not really interested in eating a 1 pound bird wouldn't even feed one person here let alone my son who has two hollow legs and his dad who has his DNA. I hope your brother is able to get a moose. Moose meat is really good. I've only had it a few times but I really love it almost as much as deer.

 

[crazyeggs]

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I do not heat or use a light in my coop. One is insulated and I use shavings in the bottom of the coop. I let the shavings compost down with their droppings and it heats the coop some. I do stir it up once or twice during the winter. I have a new coop this year that is not insulated at all and will be using the same technique. I have never had trouble with the birds getting cold the water has frozen on the coldest days but other than that it has worked fine for me.