Chickens in the winter
- Thread starter Buttercup1979
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #14
Thanks so much everybody! I haven't found the information in books and appreciate all your answers. The pictures are awesome too. Ohio definitely has temps similar to mine but I do have some serious lake effect snow coming off Lake Michigan. I also live on a river and sometimes it is just a wind tunnel through here! I will add a wind break to my run, but not sure how much I could free range in the winter as we regularly have hawks when it gets cold enough. Also this year we have a new addition, a bald eagle, or as my daughter calls it, a bald headed eagle.
We get sub-zero weather, and make sure we have a nice coop they can go in whenever they want. It's their choice. We've had 20 inches of snow overnight, 120 mph wind gusts, and sub zero weather this winter, we are still below freezing at night here. The chickens decide for themselves. They huddle behind wind breaks in the wind, and the only time they ever choose to NOT come out, is after a big snow dump, they will come out for food, and go back in. But we always give them the option. They don't die from being outside, it's what they have feathers and perches for. My turkeys live outside year round. I can never get those stinkers to go into the wonderful coop I built for them. They sleep in the trees, even during the 20 inch snow dump, none of them died. They can all get up onto a perch so they don't have to be IN the snow, but winter doesn't kill them.
Marie2015
Hatching
- Feb 2, 2015
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I feel that my 8 new England chickens do best when they can free range for half the day. On days of 10 degrees or less I keep them in their run so they have quick access to their coop if wind picks up. Keep food and water inside coop so they are adequately nourished, throw some greens, fresh herbs, scratch so they have something to do while "cooped" up.
Chickens need to be corralled when temps dip. Who wants to deal with a dead chicken in 2 ft of snow.
Chickens need to be corralled when temps dip. Who wants to deal with a dead chicken in 2 ft of snow.
- Sep 29, 2013
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- 84
I guess my three Red Chooks (RI Reds) are wimps. I look at that photo of the tracks in the snow, and read about chickens foraging in the snow, and my girls are just wimpy.
they don't have a traditional coop. They have a palace. In its original incarnation, it was a Finnish sauna shed with three rooms. The back room where the sauna was is where their roosting bars, food, water, and nesting boxes are; they're closed in there at night. They get the run of the front section (wall between the changing room and massage room has been removed) and the fenced-in outdoor area that is about the same size as the front room now is.
We had a blizzard last week, and snow again twice since then. I shovel out a section of their outdoor run (with 2' of snow, no, not doing the whole thing!) and they have yet to step outside.
a bit spoiled, my girls are!
they don't have a traditional coop. They have a palace. In its original incarnation, it was a Finnish sauna shed with three rooms. The back room where the sauna was is where their roosting bars, food, water, and nesting boxes are; they're closed in there at night. They get the run of the front section (wall between the changing room and massage room has been removed) and the fenced-in outdoor area that is about the same size as the front room now is.
We had a blizzard last week, and snow again twice since then. I shovel out a section of their outdoor run (with 2' of snow, no, not doing the whole thing!) and they have yet to step outside.
a bit spoiled, my girls are!
I keep my chickens inside the coop if the temperature is below 28-30 F. If it's really cold I leave a big bottle or two with the hot water inside the coop to increase the temperature inside. The coop is small. It seems to work well.
Hi! I need a bit of advice regarding my chickens here in Northern Michigan.
I have a mixed flock of 18; nine Ameraucanas (two roosters, one got frostbite on his comb-over,) five Light Brahmas, two Production Reds, one Black Star and one Silver-Laced Wyandotte. They have an 8'x10' raised (2') coop with a 30'x30' uncovered run. They have an unlimited supply of clean water, 16% layer pellets and crumbles, oyster shells and grit. They get about half a pound of scratch every day. When the temperature drops below 10 degrees, I turn on their two 250 watt infrared lights to help with the cold, and they get hot mash mixed with scratch. The temperature here gets down to -15.
When it was warmer, I was giving them 14 hours of light to boost egg production. Now that it's continuously below freezing, they have no artificial light. I didn't want to push them in the cold weather.
They all look like they've lost weight, and I notice blood on the perches, nest boxes, in the nest boxes and on the floor. It's not a lot of blood, but there's always fresh blood. I've checked every chicken over half a dozen times, and can't seem to find any wounds. However, this fall I found blood on the perch. After checking every chicken, one of the Brahmas had a busted toenail.
Any ideas? I'm at a loss for the weight loss and the random blood spatter. Also, is there something I should be putting on my Roo's comb-over to help prevent further frostbite? I feel really bad about that.
I have a mixed flock of 18; nine Ameraucanas (two roosters, one got frostbite on his comb-over,) five Light Brahmas, two Production Reds, one Black Star and one Silver-Laced Wyandotte. They have an 8'x10' raised (2') coop with a 30'x30' uncovered run. They have an unlimited supply of clean water, 16% layer pellets and crumbles, oyster shells and grit. They get about half a pound of scratch every day. When the temperature drops below 10 degrees, I turn on their two 250 watt infrared lights to help with the cold, and they get hot mash mixed with scratch. The temperature here gets down to -15.
When it was warmer, I was giving them 14 hours of light to boost egg production. Now that it's continuously below freezing, they have no artificial light. I didn't want to push them in the cold weather.
They all look like they've lost weight, and I notice blood on the perches, nest boxes, in the nest boxes and on the floor. It's not a lot of blood, but there's always fresh blood. I've checked every chicken over half a dozen times, and can't seem to find any wounds. However, this fall I found blood on the perch. After checking every chicken, one of the Brahmas had a busted toenail.
Any ideas? I'm at a loss for the weight loss and the random blood spatter. Also, is there something I should be putting on my Roo's comb-over to help prevent further frostbite? I feel really bad about that.
Hi Juliag,
to start with, when you are bringing up a new problem you will get more answers and typically more quickly if you make a new thread, rather than adding on to a thread.
I think your questions are more about your flock's health than about winter, even though you are having these problems in the winter.
Weight loss can be a symptom of many things - a common one is worms. You can take fresh droppings into a vet for a fecal float test, or you can worm just in case that is the issue. There are chemical wormers and natural wormers, and worm preventative techniques - you might want to do a byc search on worming and you will read enough to get totally confused, but you will learn.
Some swear by frequent worming (once a year, once every six months, once at a change of season), some swear by more natural methods, but almost everyone agrees once you get a certain level of worm overload, you will need to go to a chemical wormer. There are some wormers that are no longer useful because the worms are resistant, and there are some wormers that don't address all kinds of worms. So if you can afford it, having the droppings tested will tell you if it is worms, and if it is, what kind of worms!
Blood I am going to assume that you are not talking about blood in the droppings, but are talking about blood spatters. When there is an injury to the comb, the chicken may shake the head and the blood goes everywhere. It is surprising, though, that you are finding the blood in so many different places. I guess it could be from the broken toe nail - is it still bleeding? You might want to try a bit of duct tape on the nail so it can clot up and protect it from further injury - and monitor to see if that ends the fresh blood splatters.
Another source of blood splatter is an injured comb - pecking can cause that. Combs tend to bleed freely, and usually there will be a black spot or scab on the comb. Look at the combs - if you decide that the bleeding is from combs, you might have some quarreling going on. Check to see if the roosts are overcrowded, or if the roosts are on different levels - usually there will be some scuffling because everyone wants the highest roost. You might want to bundle up and go into the coop at roost time and sit quietly and watch what happens.
If it isn't the roosts, is there enough space for them to hang out without getting in each other's way?
If you are observing a lot of scuffling (pecking each other, fighting) you may want to do something to ease that. Provide more pecking targets - in the winter a great idea is to add pecking blocks (they look like a giant cube and are full of seed - about the size of a deer lick, sold in feed stores). One for y our coop will do fine. Also consider adding hanging cabbage, halved apples, etc to give them something to do, and also see if you can provide areas where they can get away from each other - block sightlines with bales of hays, cardboard boxes, etc.
Frostbit comb: Unless it is swollen and infected, I would leave it alone. Eventually it will heal up - I think it will do best if you just leave it alone. Some parts may turn black and fall off as spring comes. I live in Northern Minnesota, and this year I have had more frostbite than ever, even on hens. As far as prevention, good ventilation in the coop will help - in that poor ventilation lets the moisture from breathing and droppings build up. When the moisture level is high, the rate of frostbite increases dramatically. If your ventilation is good, less chance of frostbite, but it can still happen.
Feed: I don't see any problem with what you are feeding - am assuming your hot mash is made out of the chicken feed. You might try increasing the amount of feed to see if that helps with the weight problem - or increase the protein level.
It is good you recognize something isn't right - you will probably have to try different things to see what might be causing the weight loss and what you can do to fix that!
good luck!
to start with, when you are bringing up a new problem you will get more answers and typically more quickly if you make a new thread, rather than adding on to a thread.
I think your questions are more about your flock's health than about winter, even though you are having these problems in the winter.
Weight loss can be a symptom of many things - a common one is worms. You can take fresh droppings into a vet for a fecal float test, or you can worm just in case that is the issue. There are chemical wormers and natural wormers, and worm preventative techniques - you might want to do a byc search on worming and you will read enough to get totally confused, but you will learn.
Some swear by frequent worming (once a year, once every six months, once at a change of season), some swear by more natural methods, but almost everyone agrees once you get a certain level of worm overload, you will need to go to a chemical wormer. There are some wormers that are no longer useful because the worms are resistant, and there are some wormers that don't address all kinds of worms. So if you can afford it, having the droppings tested will tell you if it is worms, and if it is, what kind of worms!
Blood I am going to assume that you are not talking about blood in the droppings, but are talking about blood spatters. When there is an injury to the comb, the chicken may shake the head and the blood goes everywhere. It is surprising, though, that you are finding the blood in so many different places. I guess it could be from the broken toe nail - is it still bleeding? You might want to try a bit of duct tape on the nail so it can clot up and protect it from further injury - and monitor to see if that ends the fresh blood splatters.
Another source of blood splatter is an injured comb - pecking can cause that. Combs tend to bleed freely, and usually there will be a black spot or scab on the comb. Look at the combs - if you decide that the bleeding is from combs, you might have some quarreling going on. Check to see if the roosts are overcrowded, or if the roosts are on different levels - usually there will be some scuffling because everyone wants the highest roost. You might want to bundle up and go into the coop at roost time and sit quietly and watch what happens.
If it isn't the roosts, is there enough space for them to hang out without getting in each other's way?
If you are observing a lot of scuffling (pecking each other, fighting) you may want to do something to ease that. Provide more pecking targets - in the winter a great idea is to add pecking blocks (they look like a giant cube and are full of seed - about the size of a deer lick, sold in feed stores). One for y our coop will do fine. Also consider adding hanging cabbage, halved apples, etc to give them something to do, and also see if you can provide areas where they can get away from each other - block sightlines with bales of hays, cardboard boxes, etc.
Frostbit comb: Unless it is swollen and infected, I would leave it alone. Eventually it will heal up - I think it will do best if you just leave it alone. Some parts may turn black and fall off as spring comes. I live in Northern Minnesota, and this year I have had more frostbite than ever, even on hens. As far as prevention, good ventilation in the coop will help - in that poor ventilation lets the moisture from breathing and droppings build up. When the moisture level is high, the rate of frostbite increases dramatically. If your ventilation is good, less chance of frostbite, but it can still happen.
Feed: I don't see any problem with what you are feeding - am assuming your hot mash is made out of the chicken feed. You might try increasing the amount of feed to see if that helps with the weight problem - or increase the protein level.
It is good you recognize something isn't right - you will probably have to try different things to see what might be causing the weight loss and what you can do to fix that!
good luck!
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