Cold hen not eating + all chickens are freezing. URGENT

[Themellowyellows]

Hi everyone!!

I have so many questions... To start off, I have a hen that molted early fall. As a molting chicken would, she lost a lot of weight and did not eat. Now, she is done with her molt, as light as a feather, and is not eating still! Im super concerned because she has no fat to keep her warm. It is lower than 15° degrees F here and gets down super low during the night. This chicken is a Buff Orpington, and is 1 year old and 9 months. She was egging before her molt but I assume she will continue after winter? Is this correct? How do I get her to eat and gain weight? As well as keeping her from freezing because when she starts ahaking and I pick her up, her feet feel like snow.


What foods can I give them to help keep them warm?

Any heater recommendations? I have 2, but they are not that good.


Thank you all so much, Merry Christmas!

 

[lagrange chicks]

I give some scratch feed just before they go to roost on nights it going to be really cold. A guess a full crop will keep them warmer.

 

[Dynamissa]

I would like to know this too. The last few days were sub zero here adn I was advised by a vet to bring my one girl who stopped laying and stopped filing up her crop, inside. I'm seeing feathers in her cage.

All her sisters are filling up their crops and seem to be fine in this frigid cold, but they also aren't losing feathers and have continued to lay...

 

[aart]

Bringing a bird inside for a 'cold break' can be good, but only for an hour or so.
Electrolytes can help immensely with temp stress:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

 

[Dynamissa]

Bringing a bird inside for a 'cold break' can be good, but only for an hour or so.
Electrolytes can help immensely with temp stress:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

Aah noted, was advised by a farm vet. She went into the garage which is only heated to about 46, for about 36 hours and we’re
Supposed to be In The 20s and 30s tomorrow. My run is wrapped and can get up to 45 in the sun when the ambient temp is in the low twenties. Putting her back while they’re roosting so she’ll still be warm.

 

[Flywildbranch]

I have 2 cozy coop heaters in my coop (link below), I am in Canada, they are radiant heat (heats bird beside it not coop), very low wattage, and no risk of coop fires). I put them on low when we are minus 10 C or so (14 Fahrenheit) and on high when we hit -25 or lower (-13 Fahrenheit). They still allow your birds to regulate their temp so that if you have a power outage, your birds will be ok. Here is link from amazon

https://www.amazon.ca/Cozy-Products...sprefix=crazy+coop+heater,aps,107&sr=8-7&th=1

 

[Atchurch]

It's dangerous, but last winter, I had chickens for the very first time and worried about the cold. So I hung a red brooder lamp SUPER SECURELY inside their coop. I didn't sleep all night long when it was on, though. I constantly went out and checked on them. But it isn't just a hazard because of dust and catching fire. The coop had good ventilation but still caused a bunch of humidity so my roo got frostbite on his comb. So then I had to put hen healer on it all the time.

So, it really did cause more problems than it fixed. I would recommend that you either put her in a pet carrier and bring her inside or just let her snuggle with other birds.

Bringing her in will also cause her to not be acclimated to the outside temps.

I love the idea of giving some high protein treats like BSF Larvae or something similar. It raises their body temps and that, alone, helps warm the coop.

Hope you find a solution that let's you get rest and keeps her safe.

 

[Themellowyellows]

Bringing a bird inside for a 'cold break' can be good, but only for an hour or so.
Electrolytes can help immensely with temp stress:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

Wont that shock them?

 

[Themellowyellows]

I have 2 cozy coop heaters in my coop (link below), I am in Canada, they are radiant heat (heats bird beside it not coop), very low wattage, and no risk of coop fires). I put them on low when we are minus 10 C or so (14 Fahrenheit) and on high when we hit -25 or lower (-13 Fahrenheit). They still allow your birds to regulate their temp so that if you have a power outage, your birds will be ok. Here is link from amazon

https://www.amazon.ca/Cozy-Products-Chicken-Heater-Technology/dp/B01LX9K1JI/ref=sr_1_7?crid=1G0VEDW1QZ6NV&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.xBe8gW5HGn3C9z4PqHDuzfMP0zOOvw29xJiXil97xIPiAHwo6zCEh64pzTfOFn0OcDXLJF2rtGV3PmyhyK9LhqnfjxqpgQMedWAX5yWiSRzIS_HMtqK6CVq03iKIN4PUWJ1W-uRDQdDMRXdT_TNwNmwLTaKIRYupnZjftcdL71QiouxH0myMvga6W1TbftMRbPPzINaEVuH3uH7uA35fEd1cr1KP_XXX5gRfM_kygU-euBUR7pr_18a6jfNZUUQhl44VxV5q8syW3gN8KlykwSWuRLuZP9GZQPI1fkfiGB9Q92ZxWWBBdDKOxyu4ynGvCNkIAc2gt0vRtpwYt_DBn_i2W3DhZLo2Ah8LWT5-oyAvTWjhcX8ndXL8gY3te4gJhuk3xppMCclbJNK5TTI83HOHiMHKp3b6KFKV0rDOud-Z_WhcBZVFucZpRtc2vOJF.WUpai2mcq7Z8hnbUJT8tQOfmXUMgqnADd1snFyt1Tz4&dib_tag=se&keywords=Crazy+coop+heater&qid=1734994940&sprefix=crazy+coop+heater,aps,107&sr=8-7&th=1

Thanks! Although I do have two also, one goes above them at night, and one was put in there coop, it just does not keep them warm and my hens are scared of it.

 

[Themellowyellows]

It's dangerous, but last winter, I had chickens for the very first time and worried about the cold. So I hung a red brooder lamp SUPER SECURELY inside their coop. I didn't sleep all night long when it was on, though. I constantly went out and checked on them. But it isn't just a hazard because of dust and catching fire. The coop had good ventilation but still caused a bunch of humidity so my roo got frostbite on his comb. So then I had to put hen healer on it all the time.

So, it really did cause more problems than it fixed. I would recommend that you either put her in a pet carrier and bring her inside or just let her snuggle with other birds.

Bringing her in will also cause her to not be acclimated to the outside temps.

I love the idea of giving some high protein treats like BSF Larvae or something similar. It raises their body temps and that, alone, helps warm the coop.

Hope you find a solution that let's you get rest and keeps her safe.

Thank you! Just one question, will that shock them? Bringing them inside when it is cold, inside is like 70+°, then putting them out in the negitives just seems like a big problem.