Winter Care with Brahmas

[Cecisflock]

We have 4 brahma hens and 3 golden comet hens in a 10x10ish coop. The run is likely 15x20. I fear my coop is too big to keep them toasty in winter. We have a heat plate for those really cold nights but it's a last resort. It is difficult to send electricity to the coop so we are trying to save all the electric "space" we have for the ducks. We just had to put down our asthmatic chicken on tuesday. (rip Daytona) So I don't think (I'm not 100% sure) that dust bedding is an issue anymore. By dusty I mean we couldn't even use hay without Tony needing to see the vet for a nebulizer. Because I've had to take special care of Daytona for the entire time we've had chickens I realized I don't actually know how much bedding to add... It makes me feel quite silly. We had just been using puppy pads over summer and spring. So I guess my real question is, how much bedding?

 

[Mrs. K]

Deep bedding and good ventilation, no added heat is best.

The problem with adding heat, is that we have been taught since childhood, close it up tight to keep the heat in, what happens with chickens is we close the moisture in. In our attempt to treat the girls well and keep them warm, we actually make them in a much worse situation, damp, and damp chickens are cold chickens.

As counter intuitive as it is, OPEN up the ventilation on the lee side, away from the prevailing wind, pile the bedding deeply underneath them, at least a good foot deep or more, and toss scratch on it once a week, so they break up the manure piles and keep the bedding dry.

Don't think warm, think DRY and you will have warm chickens, without adding heat.

 

[3KillerBs]

Brahmas are hardy, cold-tolerant chickens well-capable of handling bitter cold with their thick feathers.

Have you read this article? https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/cold-weather-poultry-housing-and-care.72010/

Here's my article on bedding: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/using-deep-bedding-in-a-small-coop.76343/

Don't think warm, think DRY and you will have warm chickens, without adding heat.

This.

Dry chickens are healthy chickens.

 

[Cecisflock]

Deep bedding and good ventilation

We have great ventilation because of my wonderful momma. Should there be more bedding underneath them or spread equally throughout?

 

[aart]

By dusty I mean we couldn't even use hay without Tony needing to see the vet for a nebulizer

Who is Tony?

 

[aart]

We had just been using puppy pads over summer and spring.

What kind of bedding you use may depend on how you manage the manure.
This is about cleaning, but covers my big picture

-I use poop boards under roosts with thin(<1/2") layer of sand/PDZ mix, sifted daily(takes 5-10mins) into bucket going to friends compost.
-Scrape big or wet poops off roost and ramps as needed.
-Pine shavings on coop floor, add some occasionally, totally changed out once or twice a year, old shavings added to run.
- My runs have semi-deep litter(cold composting), never clean anything out, just add smaller dry materials on occasion, add larger wood chippings as needed.
Aged ramial wood chippings are best IMO.
-Nests are bedded with straw, add some occasionally, change out if needed(broken egg).

There is no odor, unless a fresh cecal has been dropped and when I open the bucket to add more poop.
That's how I keep it 'clean', have not found any reason to clean 'deeper' in 8 years.

 

[NatJ]

We just had to put down our asthmatic chicken on tuesday. (rip Daytona) So I don't think (I'm not 100% sure) that dust bedding is an issue anymore. By dusty I mean we couldn't even use hay without Tony needing to see the vet for a nebulizer. Because I've had to take special care of Daytona for the entire time we've had chickens

Tony is a nickname for Daytona, right?

I realized I don't actually know how much bedding to add... It makes me feel quite silly. We had just been using puppy pads over summer and spring. So I guess my real question is, how much bedding?

There is really no magic amount of bedding.
Just put some on the floor, and add more if needed.

If the bedding has been scratched aside so the floor shows, add more bedding.
If it stinks like poop, add more bedding and more ventilation.
If it is caked with poop on top, remove the poop or add more bedding or mix it up (or any combination.)

Should there be more bedding underneath them or spread equally throughout?

The chickens will rearrange the bedding anyway. You should make sure there always is SOME bedding under the roost so the nighttime droppings don't get stuck to the floor (unless you have a poop board) but the exact depth isn't a big deal.

The chickens will tend to scratch around (foraging) in the places with the best lighting, so the bedding ends up piled along some edges and in the dimmer areas. You can rake the piles back into the middle of the floor if you want them to re-spread it, or just leave them alone, or toss a few treats on the piles to encourage scratching there too.

 

[Cecisflock]

Tony is a nickname for Daytona, right?

Yes. Thank you for the bedding tips too.

 

[Alaskan]

Only things I would add..

1. Bahmas are huge and heavy. Make sure the bedding stays soft and fluffy (moisture + freezing temps = hard icy bedding). If your ambient humidity makes icy bedding at all possible, make sure perches are low or that the Brahmas are using ramps to get down.

2. Brahmas have fluffy feet. If you have wet snow check their feet at night. Wet snow can clump into balls on their toes. If the snow clumps on their toes or feet you need to clean it off before they sleep.