what do you all do to keep your birds from being too bored all winter?what do you feed for treats?

[Ladydane]

Lots of great suggestions and ideas! Being still new and learning, I still have heat lamps in each coop, pointed towards one side. In the morning, they get their ration of feed and cracked corn; the water containers are inside the coops and get refilled every morning. I've realized that so far this winter (and it's not winter yet) the heat lamps don't make much difference; the water containers are partially frozen of a morning. In the afternoon, they get whatever I've got available; lettuce, grains, cabbage, cooked warm rice, more cracked corn, radishes, dried mealworms, live worms I dig up, bugs and beetles; not much interested in fruit.

They do dirty up the coops more now. I have two large coops w/downstairs runs; the big outdoor run is in the works. I don't like them being cooped (pun intended) up like they are and hopefully within a couple of weeks can get them more space to run around in. Right now they stay in the coops quite a bit until they see me coming out the back door and talk about motivated! So far, they'll eat just about anything I give 'em.

 

[chicknmania]

Sounds like they have lots of love.

Not a bad idea to turn the heat lights off at night. I've noticed that ours don't really seem to care much.
they will get used to the cold. and it doesn't seem to be any big deal to them. Frostbite is a concern, but we have found there's not a whole lot we can do about that besides what we are doing (trying to provide sufficient shelter). They do seem to know where to go to take most advantage of warmth..I've noticed they roost in different places when it is really cold. And they generally put aside their personal likes and dislikes, and roost together in groups.

 

[TTracy]

Entertaining chickens in the winter ? Good grief, I've heard it all. I have enough trouble keeping ME from being bored in the winter. My chickens have bugs and seeds to find in the bale of straw I use for their winter bedding and if that's not enough then there are 7 acres of leaves to search under ... that's why they are free range. The day I have to "Entertain" my animals out in nature is the day I need therapy. I wish I could be outside in the winter .. I guarantee I would never be bored.

You must be in a nicer climate. We have a foot of snow and below zero windchills...so yeah, my girls dont have any leaves or bugs to scratch at, considering the ground is covered and frozen.
When chickens are cooped up in the winter because of the weather, its best to find them something to do, or they could develop bad habits. Yesterday it quit snowing and the sun came out, I opened the coop door for them to free range...they were back in the covered run within an hour.

 

[beckzmaru]

this is our first winter with our 4 hens...We are on east coast Canada.. so it gets COLD. we tried a red light bulb for a little bit at night, but since we only have access to one plug out there, we opted to plug in a heated water bowl instead. so i think they're happier with non frozen water then a silly little bulb!

they've come out with light snow on the ground a couple of times, but not for long. we have lots of hay/straw in the coop for insulation and they put it where they want. i never thought of throwing some corn or other treats just into the straw to encourage some digging/scratching... great tip! we always just put it in their 'treat bowl'... but i will start doing that.

we give them whatever leftover scraps we've saved up, red peppers, spinach, cucumbers, bread, etc... and they get strawberry tops almost every morning and love them. haven't tried yogurt or rasins yet but will definitely see how they like that. my husband makes a warm mash/stew out of pretty much anything and lets it simmer, we give that to them warmed, in small amounts and they love it... especially if you add a little water.

our coop seems like a really decent size to me, especially since there are only 4 of them, so they have their space if they want it with ladders and shelves to move around to, or they can cuddle when need be (and they do). i have noticed they sleep in different spots now that it's cold.. and find their eggs in a new spot too.

if the ground isn't frozen and it's nice enough they'll spend hours digging through our leaf piles still.

I can't wait to try the cabbage tetherball ! haha

 

[deacons]

It's like a jungle gym playground. Maybe use live discarded trees if I can make sure there are no hazards with leftover hooks. I like to try to think chicken . . . .smile.

Interesting- are you meaning that after Christmas, you will put your old Christmas tree out in the run for them to play around on? Never thought about that, but I like that idea. Is anything in the pine harmful to them?

 

[donrae]

Interesting- are you meaning that after Christmas, you will put your old Christmas tree out in the run for them to play around on? Never thought about that, but I like that idea. Is anything in the pine harmful to them?

Nope, I've done this for several years--last year's tree is still out there, matter of fact!

It will freak them out when you first put it in the run, and they'll spend a day or so talking to each other about it--then they'll get brave and start exploring it.

 

[NotableNancy]

I put a suet feeder in the run today but I put zucchini in it rather than suet and they pecked at it for hours! I'm going to try some other healthy veggies in there as the winter wears on.

 

[Chickencame1st]

Deacons--

Yes you are correct. As long as the tree is natural--as in no preservatives or flame retardant has been added/applied. No different than free range--absolutely no control over what may be eaten then, We have done that for years with wild birds--but add spoons with peanut butter and seeds and tie them on the tree, I guess we could always put treats in there somehow too! Have fun! You know evergreens could also be used as a wind break if needed,

Thanks for the feedback and question--this is such a helpful site and a wonderful group of folks. My grandmother used to always say--"Nobody here but us chickens" when you would call and ask how she was doing. So--glad to be a part of the chickens so many years later. Ha. Merry Christmas to all!

 

[spontine]

Hello,
I live in Wisconsin and this year so far has been cold, freezing rain and snowy, so the fallowing is what I do. For my chickens I made my own Flock Block. They spend hours pecking at it and seem to enjoy the block. I found a basic recipe on line then changed it up because I know what my chickens like best. Several try's and I have a great recipe.  I also have a fenced in yard facing east and I use 4 mil plastic on the roof and sides. Inside I have straw so there feet won't freeze. So when the sun comes up it heats it to 40 degrees and my chickens are able to get out for 5 hours. On days that the sun doesn't come out the yard gets around 32 degrees so they aren't out very long as it dips to around zero in a short order. I also give them romaine lettuce, I sprout sunflower seeds in dirt and give the greens to them. I also have a large rubber pan full of sand so they can dust bathe, which helps. I am always wanting more things I can do. Love my chickens.

 

[Tomtommom]

Chickens are such an odd bunch. I threw out leftovers for them yesterday, including some baked corn-on-the-cob. They ate everything, didn't touch the corn. I just left it, figured if it was still there later, it would go to the dogs instead. Needless to say, a few hours later they had cleaned them off.

Strange girls... always waiting for one bird to try and then they're all at it.