what to do with livestock during hurricane????

[BettyR]

When we build a chicken coop we put the roof on with hurricane clips. If you know the roof is good then the barn is the best place for them. I have seen cattle in a pasture during a hurricane and they will lay down with their backs to the wind and ride out the storm that way.

We have 8 ducks that road out Hurricane Rita all on their own....most animals know how to protect themselves in bad weather.

 

[Sunny Side Up]

A lot depends on how bad the storm is predicted to be, and how many animals you need to protect. You'll learn a lot from Fay as to what to expect from your animals & your shelters in a storm. However, each storm is different, in that some are wetter, some are windier, some pass faster than others.

I know a lot of folks leave their large livestock loose, with some sort of ID, unless they have really sturdy structures for them. During past hurricanes I've brought my chickens indoors, packed in boxes or cages, or in the bathroom. In seriously high winds I think it would be easy for them to get blown away. For Fay I left the adult birds in their coops and they are all right this morning, but I'm keeping all the chicks up on the patio.

With my animals during hurricanes, I'd rather err on the side of caution, and provide the best protection I'm able to give under the circumstances. I wish you & your animals all the best through this & future storms!

 

[lovemychicks9]

You and your animals safety are in my thought and prayers. I do hope all of you in Florida make it through undamaged and with no losses. Please let us know how you all fare when Fay is over. Good luck and God Bless!

 

[ZykloniaDark-GothikRanchr]

so far all is well, we are getting some major rain from the outer bands, and the wind is getting nasty. the ducks are running around the yard like it's a carnival, the goats are huddling in the barn like the end is near lol. I have already been out to check on everyone, and make sure they are all safe. the cows come in and then go out to eat...goats look at them like they are completely insane!!! the chicken coop is latched, and they are good to go! I am glad this one seems to be holding at tropical storm level so far, and that I don't have to have to deal with a full blown hurricane my first time dealing with animals!! thanx for all your good thoughts

we won't get the eye coming our way til around midnight, so we still have a long way to go!!

 

[holliewould]

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Fay wasn't that bad here. I just left my chickens in their coop. The coop is about 1500lbs. though. I bet they'll be fine in your barn for this one. Good luck!

 

[BettyR]

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Best wishes...I know you will do fine. It can get a bit nerve wracking your first time with a bunch of animals but they are really better at dealing with this type of thing than we are.

Our first big storm we went through with animals was Alecia it was a category 3...My son was an infant we had just bought our first house only a few months earlier and had planned to redo the barn because it was about 100 years old and there were more holes than there was barn. We had 3 horses and around 30 chickens...we didn't know what to do and the old timers told us to tag our horses and turn them loose that they would be safer on their own than in that rickety old barn so that's what we did and we put the chickens in the garage.

The eye of the storm passed right over our house and it blew all night long. The next morning the horses were out in the back pasture grazing like nothing had happened and believe it or not that old barn was still standing.

 

[ZykloniaDark-GothikRanchr]

I hear you about the barn, mine looks rickety, but it was standing through all the other hurricanes, before I moved there.
holliewould -- I am glad you came through it safe!! it is windy and rainy still, tornado watches--the usual...just watching and waiting!!

 

[Sunny Side Up]

Did you hear that in Wellington, FL, (Palm Beach County) about 20 minutes from my place, a tornado touched down Mon night at an equestrian clinic? It's off season so there weren't as many horses there, but the tornado picked up & blew away a whole section of the stable -- and left the one horse that was inside COMPLETELY UNHARMED!!!

I'd like to get that horse to be the next guest speaker at my church!

 

[ZykloniaDark-GothikRanchr]

WOW!! that is amazing!! The owner should play the lottery or something! I am glad the horses weren't hurt!! So far some of my herd is a bit wet, but doing well otherwise...still have a few hours til the storm is all the way out of my area!