In the long dark days of winter, we spend most of our time in our warm cozy homes and bundle up to protect ourselves from the cold when we go outside. Our feather babies can’t come inside and there are no coats or boots for them. Before I start to sound like a full-fledged chicken nut I’ll get straight to reality… chickens are animals that are equipped to live outside during winter.
The coop-
Keep the coop clean with fresh straw or hay which will help insulate the coop. Some people stop cleaning the coop and instead add fresh bedding to create extra insulation. The chickens will huddle together at night when they are cold to keep warm. Allow for some ventilation but close off any large openings. Having hot summers here, we have a summer window that we cover during the winter months.
A coop light-
Hens, especially older ones, will pretty much stop laying when there is less than 12 hours of daylight. We have an LED light in our coop that is on a timer for around 5 hours beginning at sunset. Chickens won’t sleep well or at all with a light on. By adding a few extra hours of light we get a few eggs a day but don’t create sleep deprivation.
A heat lamp-
Where a heat lamp may seem like an obvious choice to keep them warm, it is also a serious potential fire hazard. Just last winter a coop burned down in our area so quickly it was gone before the fire department could respond.
The yard-
Chickens spend most of their days hunting and pecking in the soil for bugs and greens. When the soil becomes frozen they can get bored. We toss in a small pile of straw or grass clippings saved up during the end of summer for them to dig into. They will spend all day at it and spread the straw around which is also a great benefit when there is snow or mud.
Frozen combs and feet-
Chickens can and do get frostbite, primarily on their combs and feet. If the coop is warm, insulated and without drafts they should be fine. Outside however is a different story. In this era of extreme polar vortexes, we usually have one or two spells of below freezing temperatures during the day. When we are concerned about our chickens getting frostbite we feed and water them in the coop not letting them out until it warms up.
Water-
There are two options to ensuring chickens have liquid water during cold snaps. One is to keep a water bowl in the house and one in the coop or yard, switching them out throughout the day. The other is to get a heated water bowl. If you have to provide their water in their coop when it is too cold for them to go outside either use an extremely heavy pan or put a brick in the bottom. If they have limited space they will spill a light bowl. We use thrifted or yard sale crocks (crock inserts from old slow cookers are perfect) for our dog and chickens’ water, however in the winter a crock with frozen water will crack it in two.
Eggs-
During extreme cold we try to check for eggs several times a day. If they freeze, they will break. Often you won’t know you have a cracked egg until it is inside and thaws. These become a special treat for our dog.
Audrey L Elder
Fourteen Acre Wood
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