Chicken bald back

[emchook]

I would like to know who would contemplate leaving an eglu door open for 2 days over the Christmas period ?

Edited December 26, 2009 by Guest

[Ain't Nobody Here]

I haven't done it but would have no qualms about doing so.

 

What I would do is put some sort of cover over the run at the eglu end just to give a bit of shelter from wind and wet (winter cover or shower curtain?).

[BarbaraJ]

I have a cube but have mine half open but it is quite sheltered and saves me getting up to let them out they are fine and had it open all summer too with no extra noise from them

[emchook]

My eglu is quite sheltered as it runs down the side of the fence and it has a winter shade and an extension shade on it.

I have had the eglu door open for a couple of days in September and they were fine then ...

[Guest]

if you're going away then obviously leave it open but if you're there I'd close it as i worry about them being a draft. We don't bolt it down, just close it to and they push it open themselves in the morning and then we open it fully when we get up.

[emchook]

I normally close it ! [ especially when cold like this ]

This is just an exception to the rule for the Christmas break.

[chelsea]

I voted yes to leave open just for the 2 nights.

 

Do you have anyone popping in to see your hens? The only thing I would worry about is the water freezing..

[docsquid]

I didn't close it at night until the cold weather started. I've been closing it when it got cold, but I'm sure they don't actually need it closed, it's just to make ME feel better rather than them.

[emchook]

I have set up a water trough inside the eglu. If it works tonight I will post a picture.

I am going to open the eglu door tonight as an experiment to check the water doesnt freeze...or the chooks

If there is a problem I will try and ask the neighbours [ I would rather they help when I am on a longer holiday ]

[Barkisland]

I have a cube, I always leave the door open, so that they can get in and out as they please. (It's inside a secure WIR).

My girls are all fine and don't appear to notice.

[batcatz]

YES!

 

I'm also trying with the eglu door open tonight as I get home late on xmas day. I'm sure it will be fine. The chooks in the wooden coop always have the pop hole half open even when it snowed.

 

I've put a ping pong ball/corks in their water to stop it freezing, but its probably milder weather here.

 

I checked both chooks had gone in to roost and they had. Lavender had perched on the first roosting bar with her bum sticking over the edge. She would have had a draught up there if I hadn't pushed her right in and around to the back right of the eglu. she's not used to the roosting bars yet and trips over them. lol Unfortunately, she didn't win the egg port tonight.

 

Also have the all weather cover inside the wir which protects the door opening from wind.

 

I was thinking of sellotaping a newspaper over the doorway or propping one up inside as I did that before. They know how to push it away to get out.... lol.

[sandyhas3chucks]

ok guys I am going to be blunt and maybe controversial here, and very unpopular with you that advocate leaving the door open in sub zero temperatures.

Why on earth have you even bothered paying good money for an Eglu.

An Eglu with the door open is at VERY best 1 degree warmer than the ambient temperature.

Don't believe me?

Then get a thermometer and see for yourselves.

I have tested tested and tested ALL year.

It is insulated .... yes.

But so are your homes, but that insulation means NOTHING if you leave your front door open, just look at loft insulation.

And don't forget that cooler boxes are also insulated. Stick a tub of ice cream in one.

I agree that some might wish to risk Mr Fox on milder days, but there are a few girls got at from Open Eglu's, and apart from the cold ,the foxes are cold too & bloomin hungry.

A wooden coop with a tiny pop hole is a totally different proposition.

The Eglu door is HALF the front of the house and there is the open hole at the back by the tray, AND 5 bloomin big ventilation holes.

You might just as well NOT have a coop.

I can tell you that the temp DROPS in my Eglu by .5 of a degree at approx every 10 mins in the morning after opening until it levels out. And that is totally dependant on the outside temperature.

For info my Eglus are all in a WIR which is under a carport and 3-4 ft from the house.along it's whole length .

It has clear tarp on both ends a a solid fence on one side.

It has had a space blanket over one section and a doubled clear tarp over the rest.

And a sort of curtain on another piece.

I ALSO have a heat lamp on during the coldest part of the day am & eve, and all day when it has been ultra minus as I have 3 disabled girls, one of which can barely walk.

[Gelbel]

I stopped closing the door after day 4 of my hen adventure as they were going to bed later than me (mind you that is not hard). We've had temperatures down to about -7 this week and there is a 2" layer of frozen solid snow over everything and my girls are fine (as you can see if you've seen my video).

 

With the door open I know they can get up and out when they want and have access to food and water whenever they want too and it does tend to keep the big & curry poos confined to the run (bit graphic there but it's true).

[Gelbel]

ok guys I am going to be blunt and maybe controversial here, and very unpopular with you that advocate leaving the door open in sub zero temperatures.

Why on earth have you even bothered paying good money for an Eglu.

OK - I am going to chuck a spanner in the works; it's not personally aimed at you sandyhas3chucks. Eglus and, probably about 90% of, what we do for our girls (and boys) is to keep us happy.

 

Hens and cockerels lived for 100s of years quite happily before they became 'pampered' pets. And that pampering to make us feel good. OK - so they get the benefits - but they do quite well on their own and so long as they have some kind of shelter and food and water they will carry on doing what chooks do.

[Guest]

ok guys I am going to be blunt and maybe controversial here, and very unpopular with you that advocate leaving the door open in sub zero temperatures.

Why on earth have you even bothered paying good money for an Eglu.

OK - I am going to chuck a spanner in the works; it's not personally aimed at you sandyhas3chucks. Eglus and, probably about 90% of, what we do for our girls (and boys) is to keep us happy.

 

Hens and cockerels lived for 100s of years quite happily before they became 'pampered' pets. And that pampering to make us feel good. OK - so they get the benefits - but they do quite well on their own and so long as they have some kind of shelter and food and water they will carry on doing what chooks do.

 

ahhh, but chickens are jungle fowl so really are designed for warmer climes. They probably do do okay in the cold BUT their health and immune system would be better maintained if not subjected to sub zero temperatures....in my opinion anyway.

[Lewis]

When we first got the eglu we always shut it, but then it was summer and the chicks were growing so I started leaving it open and they've always been fine.

 

I popped up really late last night, and they were all warm enough inside the eglu with the door open, but I shut it to just incase ... personally I'd say cover the run and they should be ok

(the only problem, being with the freezing water)

[Redwing]

I dont shut the doors on any of my coops, Eglu or wooden

[ClaireG]

I don't shut doors either. The plastic dog kennel my girls in the WIR are in doesn't even have a door.

[sandyhas3chucks]

Insulation - The twin walled insulation and draught free ventilation keeps your chickens warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

 

So Omlet designed the insulation for what purpose?

And yet another opinion

In this issue of "Chicken Keeping Secrets" we have a reader that's

entering her first winter as a chicken keeper and she has asked

about the best way to ensure her hens remain warm and comfortable.

So here's the rundown on keeping your flock warm in a cold

climate in the winter.

 

First and foremost, your coop needs to be completely enclosed. No

matter what you do to produce heat inside the coop, if there are

big gaps between boards, you will never be able to maintain

temperature.

 

Depending on the material your walls and roof are constructed

from, you might want to consider insulation. After installation,

be sure to cover the insulation to completely deny access to the

chickens because they will likely peck at it and obviously that

would be detrimental to their health.

 

Another option for insulation would be to stack straw bales

around the exterior of the coop.

 

This is a pretty easy way to help keep heat inside the coop and

when the weather warms up, you can just take them down. Leave a

few inches of space between the bales and the wall so that when

the straw gets wet, it's not leaning on the walls of the coop.

 

This option is better suited to a climate that is very cold but

not terribly wet. If you are likely to freeze and thaw, freeze

and thaw throughout the winter months, insulating the walls

inside the coop would be a better option.

 

You're goal here is to keep the temperature in the coop above

freezing. Well above freezing if possible and if it is practical.

Your chickens have to work hard in the winter just to maintain

their health, I'm not suggesting you go broke keeping them warm

and toasty but understand that winter is hard on them. In the

long run, good insulation will really cut down on the cost of

electricity needed to keep the coop warm.

In many climates, an additional source of heat will be necessary.

In some places you'll need to provide heat not only in the night

but during the day as well. Here's a good rule of thumb; if the

water is likely to freeze, provide heat.

[Lewis]

I know what you're saying is right sandy, it does need to be shut for it be properly insulated, just for me to leave it open has been fine, and the chooks don't seem to mind the cold ... it means they can get up at whatever time they want to as well

[Guest]

my DH gets fed up of me asking "have you put the chickens to bed yet?" meaning...have you closed the cube and eglu doors yet?

 

Our run is quite sheltered and next to the house too but I can tell the girls are cold during the day so they must be cold at night which is why we close the doors, or rather DH gets shoved out the door to close them up!

[Redwing]

I'm with Lewis on this one, its all good advice but that doesnt make us bad chook keepers for not following it - if it works for us then live and let live, we are all different in our husbandry but whats important is that we all love our chickens, if I felt I was mistreating mine I would be mortified but I dont believe I am

 

I think that second article looks American where there are very harsh winters in the North, it refers to heating the coop which as a rule isnt done in the UK so it could be slightly mis-leading to a newbie here, I dont know it is for sure so feel free to condradict me please!

[sandyhas3chucks]

there was a bird of prey, beautiful bird, cannot recall what breed, Osprey maybe a truly wild bird, on one of the wild life shows this other week. This one can never be returned to the wild because it's previous owner failed to give it protection from freezing temperatures and it got frost bite in it's wing tips and lost them, it will never fly again, and looked such a shame to see it's stumps open on the handlers arms feeling the wind under it's wings.

[Redwing]

Sandy, you are guilt-tripping us a bit here, your posts are starting to sound a bit evangelical

 

Those of us who leave the coops open arent encouraging people to follow suit, just saying what we do.

[Egluntyne]

Let's keep it calm folks.....it's Christmas.

 

For every one who closes the doors there will be another who doesn't. I don't and have not lost a chicken yet because of it.

 

I appreciate that there are others who prefer to do things differently and if it works for you....fantastic.

 

Like so many aspects of chicken keeping, there are no right or wrong ways of doing things....just alternatives.