Why cover the whole coop in Winter ?

[Poultry4Health]

Winter is approaching (0-4 deg Celcius minimum)and I have to keep my chicken coop warm . Do I really need to cover the whole coop with tarpaulin ? What if I get a 2x2 foot brick enclosure and hag a curtain at opening to acomodate my 5 layers ? That will be more manageable an d economical.Any thoughts.

 

[JackE]

With those temps, you don't have to cover anything. What kind of coop do you have now? Where do you get the idea, of a 2X2' covered brick box? Just keep them in a dry, WELL ventilated proper coop, and they will be fine.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I’ve seen chickens sleep in trees in -18 C () F) temperatures and below. As long as they stay out of a breeze they are find. In trees they have great ventilation.

You might want to read my post, #4, in this thread. (Jack, you got a mention)

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1048597/ventilated-but-free-of-drafts

 

[Mahlzeit]

Chickens(depending on the breed) are generally very cold hardy. It's the cold drafts that do more damage than the actual cold itself. Their feathers are great insulation.

 

[Poultry4Health]

Thanks a lot everybody. I am living in Pakistan and those 2x2 brick houses/enclosures are common here that's why I mentioned. As for my design of coop I made it between two adjacent walls (between house boundary wall and the building.So have two sides closed (wall ) and the other two open (metal wire net) Roof is net+Tarpaulin+metal sheet on top to waterproof. Cold winds do cross the coop in this design. The chicken sleep on top of a wooden crate having a small crate put over the main crate (to one side) to block wind from one side.

I also have 6 chicks (1.5 months old in a separate coop (open on all sides but put under my car shed. I put a plastic bucket sideways for them to get cosy but they prefer to sleep on top on it all cuddled together.

The breeds are both local non-descript as well has locals crossed with White Leg Horn.But my friend always seals his coops from all sides with tarpaulin which I based on your comments feel is unnecessary.

I dont provide them any commercial feed ( I kept chicken to avoid these feeds) put them on wheat, millets, greens , sunflower seed, fruit peals etc.