Why are people so convinced that chickens need heat?

[BigBlueHen53]

Okay, thanks.

 

[Justagalwithchicks]

We are getting down to 9 tonight. I don't heat my coop, but my oldest gal is in full molt and is pretty small. I just brought her into my garage. If I question the ability of a hen to be ok in the cold, then I err on the side of caution.

 

[Three Stents]

Ours go through similar for a couple of weeks every fall and they do fine.

that's called "surviving"

 

[NorthwoodsChick]

I’m curious about how you knew she died because of temperature as opposed to something else. By the time you found her, she was just a dead hen and she was frozen because she was dead, not the other way around. Chickens can die suddenly for a million reasons unrelated to the cold, and they all look the same - dead - unless a necropsy is performed by a professional. Did you have her necropsied? Because if not, there is no convincing proof that it’s the cold that killed her, as opposed to something else (cardiac, illness, etc).

I was on vacation and that’s what I was told. she was fine when I left. It was extremely cold, like I said, -30F. Thanks for your curiosity.

 

[N F C]

This thread has been locked for staff review. Thanks for understanding.

 

[N F C]

This thread has now been reopened.

Please remember, everyone is entitled to their opinion and even if it is different from your own, courtesy and respect should be shown.

Thank you!

 

[Ted Brown]

For both sides of this discussion I pose the following challenge.

Please provide definite objective statements of the differences between surviving VS thriving.

Both physical and psychological statements are encouraged but those that are opinions are less useful.

Short, to your points much preferred. Remember the admonition one post above.

 

[EmmaDonovan]

We don't have many nights where it gets down to freezing but we have a Cozy Coop panel in the coop if they want to snuggle up to it. We want to do more than the bare minimum for them. We try to keep them as safe and comfortable as possible.

 

[Mountain Roost]

Choosing a proper breed for one's climate is a great place to start!



We have been below freezing for a while and today's high temp was 15 F.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

Choosing a proper breed for one's climate is a great place to start!

View attachment 4275481

We have been below freezing for a while and today's high temp was 15 F.

View attachment 4275480

Nice coop!