With Winter Coming I'm Worried About the Temperature

[top of the hill]

Quote:
chickchicks,
just curious... why the floor, do they have a roost and choose to sleep on the floor? Those 6 week olds will fill up that space in no time, lol! Not sure about addtional bedding.

I'm glad I came across this thread, I definetly need to do some winterizing. we have a couple windows in the coop that are roost height, definetly need to close those up and create some new ventilation at the roofline.

 

[Rare Feathers Farm]

I agree...as long as you have a DRY place for them to get out of the wet/cold AND it's draft-free...they should be okay....if you've got cold-hardy breeds. The thing that killed my birds in the beginning was the 60mph winds with blowing (wet) snow--and being very delicate, rare breeds. Now, I shut all of the pop doors and end up locking them inside for a week or two during the worst of the winter....my coop is fully insulated and does have a few heat lamps plugged into thermocubes.

We get as cold as -30 in the worst part of winter (with the wind-chill) and well below zero without the wind. The coldest my coop got last winter was 16 degrees when it was -10 (without the wind) outside.

I have had losses of toes & combs even with this set up....

 

[JackE]

Check out the link below. I'm in MD, north of you. Your chickens will be OK. They can handle the cold here easily, Summer heat can be more of a problem. Donot make the mistake of shutting them in a tight unventilated house. They NEED the fresh air. The only heater I have is a cookie tin heater for the water fount.
Jack

 

[WalkerH]

Yeah I was thinking if the water really does freeze more then me changing it, a couple times a day, I might just get heavy duty extension cords to run out there. My dad's workshop is about fifty feet from the coop and has electricity, so I might just wrap electric tape around the plugs to keep water out. And mine sleep on the floor also, they don't get the whole roosting thing I guess, although they have them.

 

[chickchicks]

Quote:
thats made me feel a bit better ! about my lot .

 

[Beekissed]

Using deep litter goes a long way towards generating extra heat and insulation...haven't had a single frostbit comb since starting this method. Same coop, same breeds, same weather....difference in bedding methods.

 

[elmo]

Quote:
Chicken wire isn't strong enough to keep out predators. It would be much safer to replace the chicken wire with welded wire.

I would also suggest you consider quarantining any new birds (housing them separately with no contact with your own flock) for at least a month to make sure you aren't bringing disease into your flock.

 

[Bamagirl0502]

I'm getting baby chicks next week and new at this. I plan on keeping them in a brood box I made for them, in my garage. My question is, once they are old enough to go outside in the hen house should I still keep some type heat lamp in there with them. By the way the hen house is attatched to my barn which is pretty old and will be drafty but I can fix that if I need to.

I live in Alabama and I'm sure it won't be getting too cold by that time but didn't know about some type heat since they will still be so young when they come out of the brood box. Any advice would be great!!

 

[WalkerH]

Quote:
Chicken wire isn't strong enough to keep out predators. It would be much safer to replace the chicken wire with welded wire.

I would also suggest you consider quarantining any new birds (housing them separately with no contact with your own flock) for at least a month to make sure you aren't bringing disease into your flock.

Yes I have a place set up for them on the other side of the property, down wind from my healthy chickens. They will be kept there for at least a month, then interactions begins before even moving them in together. The rafters leave an opening about three inches, and that would be after they go through the wiring covering the run.