Heat for the Girls??

[Wrigley62]

Hi Everyone, It's in in the single digits (F) here in New England, Rhode Island to be exact, I was just wondering,should I consider heating my coops? If I do, then with what?

Terri and I smeared some Vasiline on their combs last night and I put some plastic over the windows to cut down on some of the drafts. It's REALLY COLD outside with the wind, It's cold in the coop too, but atleast there's no wind. They all seem to be taking the cold in stride.

It's supposed to get in the upper 30's to lower 40's (F) starting next week, I'm sure they will be fine till then, this is mostly for Terri's piece of mind.

Thanks and stay warm

Wrigley

 

[tygrysek75]

The cold is't a problem for them,wind howewer-they not like it.As long as the cop is dry and drought proof there is no reason to worry about them.

 

[Marigold]

So long as they have a dry, wind proof coop, they are better off without artificial heat. If you heat the coop, you will get condensation problems, and when they emerge into the open air in the morning, they will feel a temperature shock, far more than if they had not been heated. Keep the coop well ventilated, though you can close the ventilators on the side where the cold wind is coming from ,if you like. Chickens have fantastic insulation and are acclimatised to living out of doors, even in very cold conditions. In fact, its harder to keep them comfortable in hot conditions than cold. Many people feel bad about not heating them because they are imagining what it would be like if they were out in those conditions themselves. But birds have evolved for millions of year to sleep outside in a tree, so having a nice wind proof, dry coop is a big step forward for them! In fact, on another forum I watch, there's a thread running at the moment where people are posting about how their birds insist on roosting in trees outside, despite the really cold and snowy conditions here at present.
If you can provide a wind shelter for them during the day, somewhere where they can be out of snow and rain as well, but open- fronted, they will be grateful, as they hate wind, rain and snow.