Poorly chicken

[Hayleybug]

Hi- quick query really as i havent got my eglu yet but was wondering after all the chat about what time you all open the doors, can you leave the door open all of the time unless its really cold? i.e. what sort of weather conditions can the birds take until you need to make sure they are closed in? we like to go away overnight sometimes in winter aswell as summer, and i was a bit concerned that i would have to get someone to come along and let them out/put them back in (no family around here just yet and not sure the neighbours will want to have to potentially herd the chooks inside at night).

[Busybird]

If the chooks are in their run then they will go into their coop at night - no herding required

 

I shut my coop doors when it gets dark before I go to bed and light after I am up - in other words through the supposedly coldest months but really when it suits me. There are some who never close the coop door and others who always do (generally because of noise issues).

 

Hens are hardy and, like other birds, could roost in trees in most weathers. In extreme cold (well below zero) it may be necessary to give them a little more TLC - vaseline rubbed into the comb and more protection from the elements such as a closed coop - but for most of the year they are just fine with an open door so long as the run is secure from predators.

 

One thing to remember though is that they need access to water and this can freeze. You may need to get someone in to sort that out if you are away in winter. During the cold snap this year I was going out several times a day to remove a frozen glug and replace it with fresh water.

[spencerwood]

Hello,

 

During the winter and on very cold, wet and windy nights my husband and I always close the door to keep them snuggly and safe.

 

However, for the last three nights I have been leaving the Eglu door open, as we've had some noise issues recently with it being lighter earlier in the morning and them 'wanting out'!! I usually release them at 7:30am but this way, they can come and go as they please. This morning I got up to pop the kettle on at 5:50 and they were merrily preening away in their run, so who knows what time they actually got up!?

 

I did popped out to see them last night at about 11:30pm to see if they were ok and they were quite warm and seemed happily fast asleep, probably dreaming of corn!!

 

I hope this helps!

[Egluntyne]

I left my Eglu doors open right through the recent cold spell, when the temperatures were in the minuses. No problems at all, even with my 3 little Pekins.

[chickyhazel]

We generally close the coop in winter and leave it open in summer, but it really depends on how cold it is. I don't know an exact temperature - just do what you are comfortable with1 In the summer it is best to leave it open, otherwise you could have chickens wanting out at sun-up at 4 o'clock in the morning!

[Lewis]

I leave mine open all year, too

[Hayleybug]

thats great, thanks for all of the replies- yet more ammunition in the debate with the OH i will win!!

[Hen Watch]

We generally close the coop in winter and leave it open in summer, but it really depends on how cold it is. I don't know an exact temperature - just do what you are comfortable with1 In the summer it is best to leave it open, otherwise you could have chickens wanting out at sun-up at 4 o'clock in the morning!

 

I am totally the opposite of chickyhazel.

 

I close the eglu door every night from late Spring, through Summer, until late Autum.

 

In Winter I leave the eglu door open 24/7 and never shut it, not even when it snows......

 

My motivation for this madness, is purely noise levels. In Winter it's dark they get up at a reasonable hour, come out into the run when it's light. In Summer, 3 years ago when I left the door open all the time, they came out 4am sun up, got spooked by something and all 4 squarked so badly they woke my whole family up. I had to go out and pacify them, and my patience ran thin after 2 weeks of nightly disruption. From then on they were shut in at night until I get up at 7.15am.

 

Three years later, they've not died of cold due to door open in Winter, and neither have they boiled in Summer. They've been fine.

[docsquid]

If it is going down to freezing or below I shut them in, otherwise the door is open and they come and go as they please. I've found it is quieter this way on spring mornings. If the door is shut they start bok-bok-bok-bwAAARK!-ing at first light and don't let up until I open the door. I don't hear a peep out of them if the door is open. It isn't too bad in winter but once the clocks have gone forward I object to getting up so early to let the chooks out!