The temperatures have dropped in the negatives recently and I'm worried my 3 silkie pullets may be too cold. It's usually around -1°C to -7°here. One night it went down to -10°C. That night I brought the 3 pullets into my garage. I already found one pullet dead last week.
My concern is that they don't eat much, are very light, likely underweight and they spend most of the day sitting around not doing much. They had coccidiosis this summer when they were about 2-3 months old and have never really gotten their weight back since. My other silkies are on exactly the same diet as these 3 pullets and they're much heavier.
The pullets are not exactly lethargic. They still peck around and act interested in what's around them, but they just look like they're cold and they spend a lot of time being puffed up.
They are definitely interested in food and water in general, but their crops are always almost empty. I don't remember ever seeing them with full crops, which is concerning in this weather. They get excited about mash or treats but only ever eat a little bit and then leave. Could the cold be making them loose their appetite? Any ideas on how to get them to eat more or bring their weight up?
I used to feed layer feed twice a day before winter and now I make sure they always have some food out. I also bring them a mash of layer feed and chick feed once in the evening.
I put a chick heat panel up for them a few days ago and I occasionally see one or two pullets laying under it.
Any advice? I'm just worried about the girls. I didn't have any issues with my silkies last winter, but these pullets are from different lines than my other birds. They're my best quality breeders yet and I really wouldn't want to loose them.
My concern is that they don't eat much, are very light, likely underweight and they spend most of the day sitting around not doing much. They had coccidiosis this summer when they were about 2-3 months old and have never really gotten their weight back since. My other silkies are on exactly the same diet as these 3 pullets and they're much heavier.
The pullets are not exactly lethargic. They still peck around and act interested in what's around them, but they just look like they're cold and they spend a lot of time being puffed up.
They are definitely interested in food and water in general, but their crops are always almost empty. I don't remember ever seeing them with full crops, which is concerning in this weather. They get excited about mash or treats but only ever eat a little bit and then leave. Could the cold be making them loose their appetite? Any ideas on how to get them to eat more or bring their weight up?
I used to feed layer feed twice a day before winter and now I make sure they always have some food out. I also bring them a mash of layer feed and chick feed once in the evening.
I put a chick heat panel up for them a few days ago and I occasionally see one or two pullets laying under it.
Any advice? I'm just worried about the girls. I didn't have any issues with my silkies last winter, but these pullets are from different lines than my other birds. They're my best quality breeders yet and I really wouldn't want to loose them.