Winter care

[Denooy4]

I live in Iowa, and gems have been below freezing for a week, my coop has 1/2 x1/2 inch square wire for the floor so that waste falls thru onto a tarp that I can easily clean, however with it being so cold their waste has frozen so hard that I can clean it off the wire. Is this a health concern? Also reading about frozen eggs being bad for human consumption, if they haven’t cracked and you don’t know if they are frozen are they still okay? We his is my first year raising chickens so I’m new to this. If they crack I’ve read that people feed them to their chickens, do I just crack them and put them in a dish for them to eat?

 

[Percheron chick]

Usually when eggs freeze, they crack. In the coop, that cracked egg can pick up a ton of bacteria ect. Not fit for human consumption but I'll smash it on the ground for either the chickens or dogs. Sometimes they freeze but do not crack. You can place them in the fridge and let them thaw. They are fine to eat but they don't cook up that well. Scramble or bake them. The yolk is usually broken.
I would throw some hay or straw on top of the wire. Block some of the cold air, protect their feet from the frozen wire and give the pop something to stick to.

 

[Stayc]

Usually when eggs freeze, they crack. In the coop, that cracked egg can pick up a ton of bacteria ect. Not fit for human consumption but I'll smash it on the ground for either the chickens or dogs. Sometimes they freeze but do not crack. You can place them in the fridge and let them thaw. They are fine to eat but they don't cook up that well. Scramble or bake them. The yolk is usually broken.
I would throw some hay or straw on top of the wire. Block some of the cold air, protect their feet from the frozen wire and give the pop something to stick to.