Winter is Coming! Checklists, tips, advice for a newbie

[hen madame]

BOSS: black oil sunflower seed.
Yeah, that got me the first few times too! I still don't know the diff between normal sunflower seeds, and BOSS ones, but at least we know what the BOSS stands for, right!?

Oh, OK...thanks!

 

[rojororeo]

Oh, OK...thanks!

You're welcome

 

[Chickintheyard]

I stack bales of straw around the house and pen to block the wind. These have been covered with black contractor plastic bags. That keeps them dry (so I can use in the summer) and I think it also allows them to pull in and store more heat from the sun. I also have a roof over the pen made of the clear corrugated fiberglass. It allows the light in and keeps out the snow. The bales do not quite come to the top of the run, so there is still air flow. Inside, I have glass that covers the windows (I pull it in the spring), and use weatherstripping on the door to the nest box access. The light in the ceiling is replaced with a heat lamp bulb, and the girls can get up to two more heat lamps as needed. I use a heated dog bowl in the winter to keep the water from freezing, and place this in the house. There is also a bird bath heater in the outdoor water. The henhouse was insulated with batt in the ceiling, and the foil variety where they can reach. Even the sebright banty did very well. Hope this helps!

 

[ampho]

what a pretty coop!

 

[Barred4Life]

Interesting thread! I insulated my coop because I live in Canada where they close schools some days because it's too cold...where your eyelashes freeze together it's so cold...haha, I'm making it sound worst then it is, but you get the picture. I think insulating a coop helps more during summer months keeping it nice and cool, but it's got to help with the cold too. I haven't lost a chicken to cold yet! And I don't do anything special in the winter. They get cabin fever because they don't go out (who doesn't - heck I get cabin fever in the winter!) - my chicken just won't walk on snow, and I don't have an exterior pen (they are just free range). The birds are fine. Egg production goes down...but doesn't stop, and really it's all in the spirit of winter.
Don't forget that the birds are like little heaters themselves, so when it's really cold they just huddle on the roost.
I don't have electricity in my coop (I've run an extension for my brooder in spring...but that's about it), and I don't want to use electricity...but it's some hard to keep water from freezing! I may have to give in, and try one of the techniques I've read on here.

 

[naadarien]

well said jacke. I haven't got the guts to go completely prep-free, but I limit it to some plastic and a string of Christmas lights.

I totally agree with JackE.

I wouldn't say I wasn't prepped though. I have heat lamps hanging up in the coop. I just don't intend to use them unless some odd reason calls for it. They are there for the brooder under ordinary circumstances. I'll have some mulching hay bales around JIC (for providing cover from snow or to put down on top of the snow) and If I don't need it, it will go into my compost pile. We have vaseline and other first aid items, but they are things we have normally. Nothing bought special for the chickies.

I have two vents in the coop (north and south) but the wind comes from the west so it is likely the vents will be at least partially open. There are also windows on 3 of 4 walls, and they will be open as well (though with camp windows there is less of an issue with drafts).

It was in the low 30's for the last few nights and I spent some time inside the coop helping settle in some new cockerels that I added to my flock. The girls were in the rafters, all puffed up, with their beaks buried in their feathers. They'll be fine. I, OTOH, was f-f-f-f-freezing.

 

[Binababy]

My babies are at most 10 weeks old & 1 about 5 weeks old, I just don't want them to die

 

[LadyCluck77]

Thank you LadyCluck77, so I could feed them the scratch with say when they get old enough to lay laying pellets or mash? Will they lay good without that because I plan on letting them free range during the day and coop them at night. Or let them free range and asking scratch to make sure they get a lot of food, because the way I do it now is I keep food out for them at all times so I don't feel like I'm starving them by measuring out their food

What you are currently doing, offering a crumble feed or pellet all the time, is perfect and also good for winter. Check the levels daily so they don't run out. You can free range, just allow them access back to the coop to eat, drink, or lay an egg if they need. When they are around 20 weeks, switch to a layer feed, like Layena. Most free range birds eat far less of the pellet/crumble rations, so you wont have to purchase it as often. Feel free to use up the rest of the grower ration first, no harm. Scratch is really a treat, like any other, and helps ensure they will come running to you when you call "chick chick!"
Believe me it is useful, like when they are too near the road, or when you need a huge bug in your garden executed.

BOSS: black oil sunflower seed.
Yeah, that got me the first few times too! I still don't know the diff between normal sunflower seeds, and BOSS ones, but at least we know what the BOSS stands for, right!?

When I first saw someone say their birds were crazy for BOSS, I thought they meant Springstein...

 

[Binababy]

Well thank you very much Mrs LadyCluck, glad to hear reassurance that I'm doing good for them : ) I will definitly be doing that at that time, around what age do they start laying?

 

[TulsaChick]

Dang that coop is nicer than some bungalows! With a coop like that - they wouldn't need more