With the temperatures starting to fall, the question always comes up as to how to keep your chickens warm. Here in Texas the weather really does not get that cold, and if it does, it does not stay that way for long. That said, there are always people on the chicken groups worried about keeping their chickens warm through these times. So how does one winterize for Southern winters?
Shelter
A bit of internet searching on how those further north prepare their birds for winter gives good advice for us Southerners as well. The first thing one should do is make sure the coop is dry and draft free. That does not mean air tight as you will build up moisture that can cause respiratory issues with your birds. A build up of ammonia fumes from chicken droppings can damage the birds' lungs and cause illness. Good airflow is still vital, but close off any extra vents or enclose our open air coops we tend to have here.
For me, I have two coops with a lot of open area covered by hardware cloth. the first photo shows where I used feed bags and stapled them over the openings. The top of the A-Frame is covered also in hardware cloth and it will stay open to provide fresh air. The above photo shows the coop I finished this year and it has even more open area of wire that will need covered. I made do with feed bags when the hurricane rolled through, but for winter I will get tarps and staple them in place over the open areas. I have plans to have removable wood pieces that will cover this area, but I still have pens to finish so that will be next years project.
Nutrition
The next thing you want to do is make sure your birds are getting proper nutrition to stay warm. Keeping warm takes a lot of energy, so it is important to keep everybody well fed before and during cold weather. As with the rest of the year, chickens should have access to a good quality chicken feed. Many add a little corn to the winter diet as it provides energy to the chickens body. It is a carbohydrate source providing energy to the chicken's body. There is an increased energy need during the winter and adding cracked corn (or scratch grains) to the diet in winter provides the extra energy the chicken's body needs to keep warm.
During winter months people up north also add additional greens to make up for the lack of greens in the winter. Many add things like alfalfa, wheat grass and lettuce until there is good forage for the birds again. Since I have my birds penned for their safety, they do not have access to greens like chickens that free range do at any time of the year. Although they get Comfrey leaves and the weeds I pull, I also feed alfalfa all year round. I buy the horse alfalfa pellets that are pure alfalfa. Then I put a handful in a cup and add water to cover. In a few minutes the water is absorbed and the mushed alfalfa is added to the mash I make with fermented feed. I find this easy and economical to do for adding a quality green and protein to my chickens diet.
Staying Warm
Many people assume if they are cold, then so are their chickens. Being kind-hearted and wanting to provide the best for their birds, they add heat, often in the form of a heat lamp. What people fail to realize is the birds are walking around in little down coats. If you watch the birds in colder weather you will see they tend to puff up the feathers to trap warm air next to their bodies. You will also find them roosting a lot closer together at night for shared body heat. I have a temperature gauge with a remote sensor that I keep in one of my chicken coops and it regularly reads many degrees warmer that it is outside. The chickens are keeping each other warm and also warming up their enclosed space. Their droppings are also releasing heat so I find they are staying quite comfortable.
I also have several open air breeding and bachelor pens. We had some pretty cold temps last winter, for Texas anyway, and I was worried about some young cockerels. They stayed close together and came through that cold snap just fine. I was worried about the combs betting frost bit, but it seems we did not get cold enough to do that kind of damage. So even with just a shelter and not a coop, I have found the birds to do just fine here in southern Texas.
No matter what our temps have dropped to, chickens here in the south seem comfortable and do just fine. Even on days I find to be bitter cold, they are out and about going about their business while I prefer a cup of hot chocolate and a movie.
What about heat lamps? I find the risk entirely to high to even consider them. There is just too much flammable material where they will be used and you cannot count on something not happening that will cause a fire. Every year I see several posts on social media of people that lost everything because they did not think it would happen to them. Down here in the south it just does not get cold enough to be necessary to keep birds alive. And, unless it is a life or death situation, the risk is not worth the possible loss. I am in the claims industry and see all day long people that gambled and lost. I am sure chickens can handle the cold much better than being fried alive.. so just don't do it.
Keeping water from freezing is something, even us southerners, have to worry about at times. I use chicken nipples on PVC and larger water storage containers for auto waterers on most of my pens. I plan on getting some insulation for the PVC as shown above to keep the water from freezing in the PVC. I will also be wrapping the buckets with insulation and adding salt water bottles to hopefully keep water from freezing. For salt water bottles, take a small bottle like small soda or Gatorade bottle) and fill it 1/3 of the way with salt. Fill the rest of the way with warm water, close tightly, and shake to dissolve the salt. Place the saltwater bottle (make sure it's sealed tight!) in your waterer and fill as normal though I think I will keep lower levels in the cold. The saltwater bottle will act as an insulator to the water and will slow the freezing process. I got the idea for the salt water bottles from HERE.
If the temps are going to be below freezing for an extended period of time, I will probably drain these auto waterers down and put out pans of warmed water with the salt water bottles in them rather than risk a freeze cracking the PVC.
Another trick from that web site are using hand warmers or heat packs. When I raised and shipped fish in the cold of winter I used heat packs to keep the fish warm. You can get the heat packs for anything from a few hours to 72 hours. Simply putting them under a pan of water will keep water from freezing. It would be a simple matter to put them alongside my buckets to also keep them from freezing. Something to look into and keep on hand.
Fresh Eggs Daily has tips to keep water from freezing as well. Many use ping pong balls in their water as well as adding apple cider to lower the freezing point. We should not have too many days that will freeze and keep frozen water here in the south. You will probably have to experiment as I am going to have to, to find what works best for your situation.
Though we still have some time in Texas before winter and its colder temps hit, by taking proper steps now and when it does get cold, we can ensure that our chickens make it through these months warm, safe and healthy.
Comments