Chicken Coop for the Winter-hardy Soul
BRRR ... 35°F HERE AS I TYPE AT 4:15 ON A SEPTEMBER MORNING. Actually I look forward to this time of year; fall has always been my favorite season, and I love writing here in the living room next to the wood stove. I wonder what kind of winter we’ll have? Although there was plenty of cold weather, last winter we had very little snow. I don’t worry any more about how the birds will handle the cold; as David says, that’s why they wear those nice little down jackets.
The birds are nearing the end of the moulting season, showing off their perfect new feathers as they sunbathe on a warm late-September afternoon. Meanwhile, the trees around the farm are already starting to shed their fashionable summer looks. The leaves of the vine maples are rapidly turning shades of gold, and in the slightest breeze, the black cottonwood leaves flash their silver undersides like Victorian debutantes flirting at a ball. October rains are just around the corner, and I’m thankful that this year’s early moult has supplied the birds with their new down coats before the winter chill takes hold.
I remember feeling confused, though, when first researching chicken breeds, trying to choose types that would do well up here in the mountains. All the charts said “cold-hardy,” or “not very cold-hardy,” but they didn’t explain exactly what that meant. Would we need to heat the coop somehow when the temperature dropped below, say, 20°F? Surprisingly, I couldn’t find any information or suggestions that were any more specific.
Nankin rooster in snow.
So how do we keep the birds warm through the dark cold winter months? I was surprised to learn that, for most breeds of chicken, you don’t need to be too concerned until the temperatures get down below 0°F. Cold-hardiness, as mentioned earlier, was one of the criteria I used for choosing what breeds of poultry might work well in our climate.
The only exception we’ve made in breed choices as far as cold-hardiness goes is the tiny Nankin bantam. They are not known to be exceptionally cold-tolerant. However, they have done remarkably well here, sleeping in unheated, uninsulated coops like all of our poultry. Some Nankins have a rose comb, but ours are the single-comb variety. The cold doesn’t ever seem to bother them a bit.
One of the main cold-weather issues for birds is frostbite, which most commonly affects the combs of roosters, especially single-comb types. Roosters’ combs are usually larger than those of hens. Also — another surprise to me — roosters don’t tuck their heads under their wings when they sleep, like the apparently smarter hens do, so their combs are exposed to the air and more vulnerable to frostbite. Fortunately, we’ve had no problems with that, although the past two winters we’ve had our share of single-digit temperatures.
I’ve heard that rubbing petroleum jelly (Vaseline) into the combs of roosters will help prevent frostbite. Our wintertime temperatures are often in the teens, sometimes in single digits. To the best of my recollection, they have not gone below 0°F since we’ve had poultry. We’ve never seen the slightest hint of frostbitten combs, so we haven’t tried the Vaseline method. If your temperatures regularly go below 0°F, though, talk to other poultry growers in your area, or perhaps your county extension agent, and ask for recommendations.
There’s a Chill in the Air
OK, so it’s not surprising that October chill is in the air, considering that it is, in fact, October. Yesterday morning, we had our first frost: 31°F. Around October 10 has been average for this event, although we were surprised two years ago when it came three weeks early (to the extreme detriment of my later bush bean crop). With a low of 34°F this morning, it was frosty down in the lower pasture where the pigs currently reside. It’s gorgeous and sunny now, though. I’m going to finish up some new nest boxes and put a roost in one of the coops for the young Nankins; they’re almost five weeks old now and more than ready to start roosting like the big kids.
As you know, we live off the grid. This does make some difference when it comes to caring for the animals over the winter, but not as much as we had anticipated. The main issue is to keep the water in the drinkers from freezing. Lots of people use heated (electric) waterers. Frankly, even if we had that option, it would be problematic just because of the area that the birds range on; the feeding stations are quite spread out. We simply add warm water to the drinkers first thing in the morning if they’re icy; we check them frequently through the day, positioning them in the sun whenever possible. Yes, it’s a little extra work, but we’re out there checking on the birds regularly anyway, which is always a good thing to do.
The Importance of Roost Size
Probably the most important fact I learned (eventually) is how chickens roost; surprisingly, the width or diameter of the roost itself makes a difference. It needs to be large enough that the birds’ feet don’t wrap all the way around. It’s hard to imagine a roost being too big, but it can certainly be too small. When chickens settle down on the roost, their feathers cover their feet, and if their little toes go all the way under the roost, they won’t be under that toasty down blanket. If it’s cold enough, this can cause frostbite. So, for chickens, we use nothing smaller than two-by-twos for roosts; for turkeys, a two-by-four with the wide side up seems to work well.
Make sure that there is also plenty of roost space for your birds. Take into consideration not just the number of birds you have, but also their breed and size. You’d be amazed how common it is to assume that turkeys don’t need more sleeping room than chickens, but believe me, they do.
Another Tip for Keeping Birds Warm at Night
One trick to help keep your birds warm at night is to feed some cracked corn about an hour before they head into the coops for the night. The extra carbohydrate will give their metabolism a boost, generating more body heat during the long winter night.
A strange thing happened yesterday afternoon. One of the Cochin banties was sitting on the old split-rail fence, wheezing, sneezing and generally sounding pretty terrible. After chasing her around for a while, David caught her and brought her inside. She was gasping and didn’t seem interested in eating or drinking anything. We decided to keep her warm and dry and see what happened. Just a few hours later, she was quiet, not wheezing or making that painful-sounding noise. We kept her inside overnight, and she was quiet all night, then seemed pretty perky this morning. David let her out the back door, and she seems to be OK so far. We’re guessing she either ate something that slightly poisoned her or possibly had some kind of allergic reaction. Very strange.
This is a good example of why you should regularly walk among your birds, looking for little signs of trouble like coughing, sneezing, odd behavior, abnormal-looking poop, that kind of thing. With the number of birds we have, it would be pretty easy for something to spread around the flock if we didn’t catch it early enough. It’s also a good reminder that you can easily help to ensure your flock’s health by making sure their feeders and drinkers are kept clean.
It has occurred to me that living off the grid has probably motivated us to be a bit more creative in some ways; for example, not using heated drinkers that require electricity. Of course there’s nothing wrong with heated drinkers; we’ve simply found that there are easy and cheap alternatives to many things that we might take for granted if we had full-time electricity. And hey, I actually enjoy cutting firewood to heat the house! Ours, I mean.