Winter heating For Alaskan grown Chickens.

[ji]

I think your coop sounds great. Chickens don't care what it looks like. You are paying attention to the important things like drafts, water and just caring what happens to them. I don't live in that cold of a climate but I remember when I was building my coop that I read that people in very cold climates build their roosts so that the chickens foot is pretty flat. Not too round and skinny of a pole. This is so that when they roost and squat down on their feet that their feathers can cover their feet well and protect them from frost bite.

I was so taken by the idea that I thought my birds would at least be more comfortable if I followed that advice. I built my roosts out of 2x4 lumber layed flatwise. They work really well and I'm just guessing they have toasty toes when it gets below freezing here.

 

[AllAlaskan]

Actually I made my roosts out of some old 2x6s I had lying around. Also The cubbords I was going to use for nesting boxes they roost in are up very high and find that most of them actually like to perch up there alot too so I put some hay up there to act as some insulation. Im hoping they will use the new nesting boxes I made and not lay up on the cubberd where they have been roosting lol. I think part of the reasen they like it up there is because the heat rises up and stays warmer up there, atleast thats what I suspect. Also Since my bird run is fully enclosed I dont clip there wings so they will fly up to the counter tops in there then fly right up to the cubberd so thy dont need any ramps really. I am debating on how to keep there water thawed out. I was going to go with a heated dog bowl but my goose drinks ALOT of water and dont know if it would hold enuph. I think I may have to take a trip over to AFW tomarrow off the Palmer Wasilla and see what they have. To keep there food and stuff In I have 3 short Trash Cans, not to small but about 3/4 a normal size outside trash can that I plan on cleaning out real good and sanitizing and putting there food in one, calcium in another and Grit in the third and keep them all 3 inside the coop with lids ( they know where the food is lol I have one in there atm that I keep the food in but its to tall) so Its all inside when I go to feed them and water them. Now that I know they are pretty hardy Im not as worried about them getting cold. I Just dont want them to get frost bite. LIke I said earlier out of the new 4 I got today one of them has had frostbite and lost toes and I dont want that to happen to any of mine.

 

[LynneP]

Some of the best ideas I have had for chickens are from Alaskans! Some items in the links below, and we're building our second coop and run now

https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=7693-our-second-coop