My chickens won’t go in if they are cold

[Chicklover96]

the chickens (27 weeks) won’t go to roots when they are cold. They stay in the coop all day roosting if I keep the door shut but as soon as I let them out they refuse to go back until night. And now that temps are lower (Ontario fall/winter temps) they just huddle on our porch steps with feathers puffed and refuse to go back to the coop. We just put wrap all around the run to block it from the wind so even the run is warmer now. But they just refuse to go. Should we keep them in if they won’t go back to get warm?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Chickens are good at keeping themselves warm by doing exactly what you are seeing. Huddling and fluffing. Sitting in the coop all day is probably not very exciting. Make sure you don't wrap your coop and run too tightly. Moisture is worse than cold temperatures generally.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Even if you are cold your chickens are not. If they need to go in because of the weather they will.

I open the pop door and let mine decide what they want to do. If it is raining they generally go outside and see if it is driving worms or such to the surface where they can eat them unless it is bad downpour. Then they might seek shelter. The coldest mine have seen was -4 F (-20 C). The wind was not blowing so they were out enjoying the weather. In a cold wind strong enough to ruffle their feathers they will probably be in a sheltered area but not if the wind is not a problem.

 

[Penpal]

If your porch is in the sun and especially if it is concrete, they may be taking advantage of the radiant heat.

 

[Chicklover96]

Chickens are good at keeping themselves warm by doing exactly what you are seeing. Huddling and fluffing. Sitting in the coop all day is probably not very exciting. Make sure you don't wrap your coop and run too tightly. Moisture is worse than cold temperatures generally.

I was under the impression that meant they were too cold! Good to know, thanks!
And we didn’t wrap the coop just the run & both still have ventilation slots!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I was under the impression that meant they were too cold! Good to know, thanks!
And we didn’t wrap the coop just the run & both still have ventilation slots!

Often when the temperature starts to drop I will sometimes see birds that look cold. They eventually acclimate to the new temperatures. We humans do the same thing. 30 degrees in fall seems cold, but 30 degrees in spring seems warm. All because we acclimated to cooler temperatures.