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[amys garden]

Hello chickeny people

I'm coming up to my first winter with my girls ad I'm thinking about winter weather protection

I've got a fair sized (Devon) coup with a small wire run attached an three girls

 

They do allot of free ranging and especially like sheltering under our covered trampoline in rainy weather

I'm planning to build them extra shelter from pallets - kinda like an open sided shed

But do they need extra shelter over or around there coup like hay bales or something simmlar?

And do they need feeding up for winter I've seen lots of posts in the US talking about feeding them scrambled eggs n oats and I know one lady who occasionally feeds her girls cat food

Any sugestions regarding preparing for winter would be great

Thank you

[zakjon-98]

Hay bales could be used as a wind break or as insulation around the coop in very cold weather but I don't think it is vital to have as shelter since they have other areas. They don't need to be fed up for winter as feeding them lots of oats is not particularly nutritious for laying eggs and to make them scrambled egg you will be wasting your eggs to eat. Feeding cat food is good as extra protein for moulting and as an occasional treat but I wouldn't think it is needed all the time. If you want to give them something to keep warm you could add hot water to layers pellets to make them a 'porridge' that is good for them. People on here also feed their chickens oats and warm porridge in winter but I wouldn't do it everyday so the chickens get the nutrition they need from their pellets. Hope this helps

Edit: Also feeding corn just before bed once they have eaten their pellets in the day is good as this keeps them warm overnight as they digest it. If you are worried about their protection in the run you could cover it with something like a shower curtain to keep them dry.

[amys garden]

Thanks Zak

The hot water in pellets sounds like a good idea preferable to making up other mashes. I go very easy on the treats already and they get corn as bed time snack/treat now it's cooler. I'm reassured that I'm doing the right thing

I guess all the adverts for Eglu insulation made me wonder if my wooden coup needed something extra too

Now all I need to sort is their free range run securtity ....

[jackian]

My girls have a wooden coup and they were in it all last winter and had no problems. They do have a WIR that is covered with a plastic roof. They all sleep in the nesting box all squashed up together snuggly so keep each other warm (don't forget their feathers fluff up like duvets. )

As for food pellets in warm water is great as they love it and think they are getting a treat.

The biggest concern is keeping the water from freezing over .So that needs changing more than usual or a hole bashed in .

[Ain't Nobody Here]

Some parts of the US get far harsher winters than us and much lower temperatures so that's probably why they seem to take so many extra precautions. I put some wind/rain protection round my WIR but apart from that, my routine is the same. My girls have survived 4 winters, including the one 2 years ago which was pretty bad .

[amys garden]

Thanks for your replys

They've reassured me

Now all I have to make sure is that my perimitures are secure

Them ill be all set for winter !

[Lavenders_Blue]

All I do for my wooden coops is make sure that they have had some wood preservative slapped on (shouldn't be necessary in the first year as it has probably already been done) and then provide a couple of sheltered areas for the chooks to huddle from the wind, rain and snow. Tarps or acrylic panels over the run are good for this. Other than that, the chooks' own feather duvets do the rest of the work!