what to do when -20 outside with 45- windchill?

[AllChookUp]

Move to Arizona???

Pass. One great reason to stay up here in the frozen north is that it keeps out at least some of the riff-raff.

Arozona is a great place to visit, but I could never live anywhere that has that kind of heat for such a large percentage of the time. Plus I love winter. Even when it's this cold.​

 

[omelette'smom]

Pass. One great reason to stay up here in the frozen north is that it keeps out at least some of the riff-raff.

We haven't gone ice fishing yet this year! Last time we went it was the last day of a derby. we hauled all the crap out a million yards from shore, set up the collapsable bob house, set up the tip ups, got the potty all squared away, fired up some grub, and my ds decided to start running up a trench for some reason and stuck his leg in a hole!

He's 12! Big dope! What was he thinking! 30 minutes to set up and 2 seconds to ruin the fun!

 

[onecent]

hi, i remember seeing a product on tv some yrs back, call "miracle thaw" it was a flat piece of metal, and if you put anything on it frozen, it would start thawing! no electricity & no batteries! well, call me crazy

, but would this help keep our chickens & pets water from freezing? every time i go in a thrift store or, a "junk shop" as i call them,

i always see these things, so has any one ever tried them? if not , lets try them, cant hurt, & might be the best 1.00 or less we ever spent

 

[EliteTempleton]

I made mine some scrambled eggs right before dark o'clock last night to warm their bellies. Other then that I stacked straw bales around their run & coop in late fall to keep out the draft and insulate some.

I bought a waterer with a thermostatically controlled heater in the bottom, when it gets below 40F it heats the water. The one I bought was made for Chickens/Birds, but many use Dog water bowls with success as well.

Keep them dry and out of drafts(still need venting for the ammonia to escape or they will get lung infections), well feed especially with treats like corn and the like suggested above, and as always make sure they have access to plenty of water. Then realize that they have a thick coat of feathers and don't worry too much, unlike us humans they have evolved for the weather...

 

[rooster0209]

wind chill will not affect a chicken that is inside, out of the wind. We had temps like that this past weekend. I don't have heat in my coop. I added extra straw in the boxes and on the floor. I use a heated dog dish for water.

I have not opened my coop to let the birds out since Saturday. I threw in a shovel of gravel/dirt this morning for grit. The thermometer read 0 and they didnt seem half as worried about the cold as I was. I am feeding corn/layer crumble and they are still laying.

 

[JeninMN]

Update:
They are doing just awesome! What we did was:

Added more straw inside boxes and on the floor...
Added a 250 watt red heat bulb and that is taking the "brrr chill" out of the air
Changing water out 2x daily...we bring them out warm water , not hot by any means but warm, in the morning and in the pm...we figured that would warm their little bellies...vitamins in the water...
We also now have our regular light on a time from 4am to 6pm and we've been leaving that red light on 24 hrs a day while its this chilly....it was still -11 here this morning but once we are closer to staying around 5 above or so I should be able to shut that off?
Eggs have been sporadic...we've had from 9 eggs on Saturday all the way down to 3 eggs on Monday...last night there were 6 again...

I would think that if they made it thru this blizzard and cold that means they will make it thru most anything our winter is going to throw at us?

 

[chickie momma di]

we have a ? watt light, like what you would use in a brooder. it seems to be working out fine. we only put it on when it reaches about 20 outside. I only have 2 buff orphs (one boy one girl) want moore girls but can't find someone to sell just 5....anyway am i doing them harm with this kind of light? or what makes the red ones better?

 

[Catalina]

JeninMN- Glad your girls are doing OK in this chilly weather.

I've noticed that when I leave the red light on in the coop and the outside weather gets in the 5-10 degree area the coop is a balmy 35-40 degrees inside.

It was so nice in there, during the day, today that the ladies wouldn't go outside!
Silly chickens!

Keep warm!

 

[Rustywreck]

I guess I spoil my chickens. We've had some of the -20 temps lately, and I bought them a milk house heater. It keeps the coup plenty warm and the water is never frozen.
I'm curious to see what it does to my electric bill though.

 

[EliteTempleton]

Quote:
Trouble with that is if you loose power they get a cold shock/snap and won't have the needed feathers nor will they be acclimated so then they could freeze to death...