Hi,
OK. So all those times you NorthEastern folks were talking about how your chickens weather the cold I was only listening partially...
We've had a sudden cold snap and it could last through most of next week. The girls water was frozen this afternoon when I checked and it was only 28-degrees. tomorrow is supposed to get as low as -3 with windchill.
So I boarded up the vents on their coop and turned on their light with the intention of it staying on all day. My only question is, will the standard white bulb being on all night mess with their sleep or should I get a red bulb if I can get to the store?
So Lacey wanted nothing to do with the cold and stayed in the coop all day. And in case you were wondering she stayed out of the nesting box which I view as a MAJOR accomplishment for my little broody girl.
Talula was out and about most the afternoon, but she's making a funny noise that is either a cough or a sneeze so I finally locked her in the coop.
Anya came out to play for a bit, but then went back in before Talula.
Their coop is already insulated. The vents are now boarded. So is there anything else I can do?
Cold Snap - How to Prepare
You might consider changing their water twice a day and giving them WARM water. My girls do ok with weather like that, but they are more used to it than yours may be. Deep bedding and plenty of body heat and they should be fine. A red bulb is preferable if you can swing it...
When it is below zero, I dont even let them out. They have plenty of room to play in the house for a day or so.
I have their water inside, I have a 250 watt (like my brooder) bulb hangin' over head that usually keeps it from freezing. I also have a red 250 watt bulb so they get heat but no light at night. It does a good job.
Its tough but I do shovel the run out when it gets snowy. They come out and play anyway. As long as there is hay on the ground to play in. They spend time peckin' at the seeds and all.
We do have crazy weather in NY. It was high 3 degrees yesterday and now they say tomorrow it could reach 50! Crazy!!!!
I forced all my pullets in the coop tonight and they are miserable--but I think roosting out in the cold rain is worse than snow. It is going to rain for days and I am worried about the small Nankins that refuse to come down out of the Wisteria. About to go try to catch them in the dark and put them in a smaller coop. They have just started laying.
Oh, see, mine always come in at night. Mine have a run and do not free range.
So I lock them up at night. It keeps the coop warmer by having all doors shut and locked.
We don’t have a lot of trouble with trespassers but I keep it locked anyway.
Mine used to roost in the coop--until the evil Welsummer, Louisa, discovered she could work her way up to the top of the Wisteria arbor by jumping up first into low apricot branches. Now they all do it and the wisteria looks like an advent calender or find the picture puzzle--the Nankins are all nestled nooks and crannies of the lower vine and the older birds are spread over the top--it is dangerous walking under it at night.
We don't do anything special for our birds. Yesterday morning it was something like 2 degrees in the morning, but as soon as my husband opened their little door, they came popping out like little whack-a-moles. :o) It was sunny and they wanted to be OUTSIDE, thank-you-very-much. And the night of the big storm (we didn't get the bad icing conditions, some ice coating, but not enough to break trees) it sleeted/rained all night and the guineas chose to stay out all night long and roost up in a tree. They were fine. I think they were ticked off in the morning, judging by the amount of noise they were making, but they were fine.
I read right here on DG an article which said that birds (talking of native birds like chickadees and such that winter over) can maintain a temperature of 70 degrees next to their skin if their feathers are in good condition. I imagine the same must be true for other birds like chickens, and also apparently guineas who think they are ducks. As long as they are in good health, they do fine.
I think we worry too much about our livestock sometimes. We extrapolate from what we wimpy humans feel and think they must feel the same. But if they aren't showing signs of cold stress, I wouldn't worry too much.
very well put galles. God gave them feathers for a reason. Not to say that if you want to do more for them you can't, but I do think we sometimes spoil them. I try to remember that the good Lord knew what he was doing when he gave animals feathers/fur and brains and that he intended them to live outside.
But we do have to remember that if we keep them cooped that we then have to take the responsibility of providing them what they cannot find i.e. water and food
Sheila
The other tricky matter is that some of the breeds that some of us have were originally from other countries where it never gets this cold. For example, the Malaysian seramas are quite cold sensitive because their feathers were designed to help them live in Malaysia (sub-tropical country) and not here! I think cross breeding has helped with that, but there are certainly some breeds that are much hardier than others. I have learned this the hard way recently. Many of the chicken breeds native to Europe are quite hardy, but the Asian ones seem much less so. :-(
What've you come up with, Lazy? Anything good?
I cant imagine what my neighbors would say if I had chickens nesting in my trees at night! haha. Well thats the "fun" of living in the burbs. One time I did have an escaped rooster that got into my neighbors backyard andI must have spent a 1/2 hour trying to catch it. They never came out of their house but they were probably watching me silently through the windows. "Kids dont go out there! Its that crazy chicken lady!!"
The rooster has since found other accomodations.
I have a flat panel heater in my coop. We have a regular bulb on a timer to extend "daylight". The flat panel heater is plugged into a thermostatic plug that turns on when it gets below 35 degrees and turns off when it gets to 45 degrees. I'm just trying to keep it above freezing in the coop. It eliminates the water freezing completely and if they do get wet for any reason, it's at least not frigid. I like the idea of the on/off thing. We didn't have the heater in the very early cold snap we had and I had to change my water 2-3 times a day to keep it from freezing. This is a nice alternative and is supposed to be very low energy using. We'll see. :) I also have a red heat lamp for my single chicken condo (injured bird who is alone). Also on the thermostatic plug. We also put a night light in there (and in the main coop). I had a problem earlier with birds roosting and then laying - I truly believe it was because they were laying before dawn and couldn't find the nesting boxes. Since the night lights have been put in - no eggs on the floor of the coop!!
I have ordered 2 of the flat panel heaters but they are on back order....grumble....
I didn't come up with anything terribly exciting. The girls seem to be doing fine. The water is freezing, but with the vents blocked, the coop is significantly warmer than it is outside. I don't think I can put a heat lamp in the coop. I have a nice red 250w heat lamp in my bathroom that I'd love to share, but I think it'd turn my little teeny-weeny coop (3'x4'x3') into a oven.
I'd probably be the only one to find a bird that died of heat in this season!
I looked for a red party bulb that was over 25w, but couldn't find one. The white bulb I have in there now is 60w. I don't want to make it even colder by switching out to a bulb with less watts.
The snow let up today and actually all melted or evaporated away, even though the temps were in the teens with the wind chill factor. Its supposed to stay cold like this all week and we're getting more snow Wednesday with the worst to come on Sunday.
CMoxon - you can probably find the flat panel heater at a hardware store- they are made by a company called Indus tools (at least the 100w one I got is made by them!). Search the net.
Lazy - If you go to a pet store, you can get small heat bulbs - the ones typically used for reptiles. I got a 50w one the other day.
Thanks teresa! I don't know why that didn't even cross my mind. I'll go today!
What a great idea, teresa! Thanks(my electric bill thanks you also!)
This is what we are all aiming to avoid....
I swear my Polish are the silliest of the lot. Everyone else is staying in the coop but the Polish just wander around like it's a July day. Then they get covered in ice. I took this one into the barn and it's now in the brooder with the chicks, so that the ice will melt and it won't end up lost in a snowdrift.
Claire he looks like a beautiful feathered boa! Great pic!
I bought an 85 watt red flood light at Lowe's yesterday. It seems to be a new item--they are advertised as using less energy than the usual 100-150 watt ones.
This message was edited Dec 16, 2008 3:33 PM
Lowe's would probably be better priced. Around here the pet stores get top dollar for their products.
So if they use less energy and have a lower wattage, do they still keep the chooks warm?
Polish Inspired Headgear?!
They give off the usual amount of heat for their wattage. I think the chickens just hang around them and keep their feet and combs from freezing. Remember the guy with the terracotta pot coop warmer?
No, I don't know about that pot coop warmer...do I? Remind me?
That had better not be real fur....(grumble...)
It was on YouTube. A happy Wisconsin man showing off his coop inventions. Surely you remember? How many fingers am I holding up?
Ummm....4? I am quite sure I didn't see the youtube clip.
LOL You guyz.. LOL
I caved.. I put the chicks in the GH with a space heater.. I just don't have the heart.. Says it's gonna be 27 tonight.. for us, on top of the rain and wind.. that's COLD. LOL
I can't believe ice on a chicken and it's alive? LOL That's NUTZ!
It's 7 here. It was -12 overnight. It's the wind that is the worst....
There was a thread that had that funny 'invention' on it. And another about warming. Can't remember the names for either one... Cats? You were there?!...
Dear Barnyard Fairy (I am humouring her):
Having been lured into the viral promo clutches of Target and thus having acquired appropriate muck footwear--I find I am in need of recommendations for coop cleaning and chicken catching rainwear. Note--ZZ and I are suffering from Seasonal Affect Disorder-type weather. I come home for lunch and need to work rapidly at shoring up the chickens and feeding the chicks, all done outdoors and frequently in a driving rain. Although my daily clothing is suitable for agriculture, I have already plumbed the depths of sartorial dysfunction and need to cover up quickly and disrobe as rapidly in order to return to work with some degree of costumely rectitude. (Boy, these pain killers are potent...).
So has anyone found rainwear that will fit a woman (hips do count) and cover sufficiently to allow one to rush out, shovel the coop, splash around in chicken besmirched rain puddles and return to work in a dignified and comely fashion?
Oh, yes...for Moxon. One of the Great Man's videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_a05MZp7W4A
Dear Barnyard Resident,
As the Barnyard Fairy, your comfort and costumely rectitude are of critical importance to me. I, too, can suffer from these problems in inclement weather. After all, I am only the Barnyard Fairy, not the Weather Fairy. She is not very friendly and I must warn you not to vex her unduly.
With regard to your needs, I suggest the following types of items (admittedly the first one is a mens model but you get my drift):
http://www.carefreecasuals.com/Products.asp?ID=33545&Path=T166,0035,0014,0180&Source=NEXTAG
http://www.denimexpress.com/carhartt-womens-132.html
You probably have a local "work wear" type of establishment that carries such items so that you can go try them on and survey your loveliness in the mirror. Remember, this is about practicality, not style.
As a Barnyard Fairy in a cold climate, I use the padded variety of the above overalls. In summer rains, I use the non padded variety. I can do this in my work clothes, run out, check for eggs, get chicken poo on my butt, run back in, take them off, and still have pristine work clothes. Ah, it is indeed a delight. By the way, deliberately splashing in rain puddles is not recommended in any case.
Best of luck with your search for such items.
Barnyard Fairy. (yes, I really do exist)
I got a 75w red heat lamp from the petstore tonight. My chooks thank you teresa!!!!
Thank you, thank you! They should be nice and cozy tonight!
Has anyone seen the article in Hobby Farms on using a barrel for a brooder or to keep lambs warm?
YES!! We just read that and decided to make some. We'll be doing it in the new year, but they would be great for our baby goats, lambs, and as brooders. I thought it was a good idea! Are you going to make some too?
I'm glad you found one Lazy - my husband joked, however, that when the light is on it looks a bit like a "red light district" near the coop :)
He went to the pet store the other day and picked up a ceramic heater element. It looks like a flat light bulb and only emits heat. They are very expensive, however - $30.00. But, if it only goes on when it is below 35 and off when it reaches 45, it should last a long time. The thermostatic plug thing is great - they can be bought at hardware stores, but I got mine online (amazon I think) for like 10.95. That way you don't have to worry about overheating.
Depending one what kind of setup you have, you could also use a substrate heater (for lizards - I used to have iguanas in my classroom, so I know a bit about this stuff) that you can actually stick to the side/bottom of your coop (DEPENDS WHAT YOUR COOP IS MADE OF!!) that will heat up and keep them warm.
Have a nice day. We have a 2 hour delay here - ice and snow last night.
T.
Got up this morning, typical NW news forecast. There is nothing on the ground to speak of... maybe some ice.
They are predicting the storm will roll in while we are at work, its supposed to snow a bit while its really cold, warm up, melt it, then cool down and start freezing rain on top. Should make for a messy ride home - ha!
All you NorEasterner are probably used to these conditions. -Not us- They drop school at a hat and everyone gets really dumb behind the steering wheel. I've got good tires, all-wheel drive, and good common sense, but its the OTHER people I worry about. ha!
Have a nice day, all!
Ya, we had a two hour delay again today. (school) My kids love it...sleepy time! now they will be up late! I have a small 4 cyl. car that I drive, front wheel drive. It gets me everywhere. I just leave early and take my time. I drive 50 min. to Oswego University Mon. Wed. Fri.. Its always worse up there. They get lake snow all the time and the wind is incredible. But the other drivers, as you said, are what worry me. Often on the back roads they do not pay attention. Many drift lanes and speed while talking on the phone. (even though it is illegal in NY state to talk on cell w/o hands free headset while driving) They do. Well, enough of my rant. Have a great day and be careful out there!
Already in the planning process! I already have 4 or 5 blue barrels-my DH gets them from work. They look really easy to make. We have used cut in half barrels from large planters(great for patio tomatoes with basil), a place for ducks to take a dip, and feeders for pigs! We also use them to store grain in-keeps the mice out.
Already in the planning process! I already have 4 or 5 blue barrels-my DH gets them from work. They look really easy to make. We have used cut in half barrels from large planters(great for patio tomatoes with basil), a place for ducks to take a dip, and feeders for pigs! We also use them to store grain in-keeps the mice out.
I can see some from my office window. The one in the chicken yard is upside down because the duck may like it but I'm not hauling that much water every day!!
