shocked chickens

[cedarpondfarm]

We have a chance for snow tonight down here in the Florida panhandle.  Only an inch or so but I\'m sure these southern chickens will be surprised !!  Luckily it won\'t drop lower than 30 this time but next week it will be in the mid twenties for a couple days so I\'m wondering how cold does it have to get inside the four walls of the pen to make eggs infertile?  How cold to freeze combs?  What about toes?      

[bantamhill]

I doubt you will see much decrease in fertility if you are picking the eggs often during the day. From my experience combs and toes do not freeze at those temperatures if the chickens have protection from the wind.

Combs normally freeze when you are around zero for longer periods.

If they have cover out of the wind and are dry they should be fine . . . not adjusted, but fine. A little corn before roosting will help keep them warm overnight.

Michael
Mid-Missouri

[Paul]

There won\'t be a problem with combs freezing with a little snow and only 30º!  They may freeze when it gets in the low teens.  When a male\'s comb freezes-he becomes sterile until his comb completely heals-so we have been told by several fanciers with much more experience than us.  We have had only one with freeze comb injury the past 15 years.  We had our first snow last week-the earliest in the season that I remember.  All the Ameraucanas made it just fine, but the egg production went to 0 for a few days.  The highs had been in the 70\'s until the \"Artic Front\" pushed the temp into the low 20\'s at night.

Here in the South we are much more concerned about the birds during the heat than the cold.  They can usually take it fine up to 105º F.  Any warmer and they start having heat strokes, especially the older ones.

Paul Smith

[Jean]

It is 10 here this morning with a wind chill of -9.  Most of my birds will be shut up in the barns for the rest of the week since it will not be getting much over 20 until the end of the week.

We occassionally get this cold weather here, but I have never had a bird get frost bite on their comb.

Please send my cockerels warm thoughts since they are outside braving the weather..........

[Mike Gilbert]

Chickens with small pea combs and no wattles to freeze should be fine down to at least zero degrees farenheit as long as they are not in the wind.    I once kept a pen of Asils in an outside pen with a three sided shelter with a roof over it all winter.   Snow blew right into the shelter.  Asils are much tighter feathered than Ameraucanas so I was concerned about them;  it got down to 20 below zero and they came through it with no problems whatsoever.   In fact they were probably healthier than the other chickens kept indoors.     If anyone has Ameraucanas that start sniffling at the first sign of cold weather stress they are probably not worthy of breeding from, regardless of what other traits they may possess.    In breeding Ameraucanas or any other chickens we need to consider much more than pretty feathers if they are going to remain popular for the long term.  The standards are full of pretty birds that lacked hardiness and productivity that we seldom if ever see any more.  End of sermon.

[Jean]

My gals just started laying again last week.  They had a long molt and the eggs are starting to come again lot hot cakes!

I like a bird that can lay in the single digits.......  

[Paul]

I agree with Jean about using breeders that lay in the adverse winter weather conditions and with Mike about using hardy, productive breeders that can adapt to all types of climates and facilities.  I think where most have missed the concern-is in the sudden change from nice pleasant weather conditions to low freezing temps. with snow added.

It was interesting to watch the interviews on the news with young people in their upper 20\'s that had never seen snow, until the 3 to 4 inches fell in Houston, Tex. about a week ago.  The news cast said it had been 33 years since Houston had a white blanket of snow.  Houston is 340 miles south of us.

Paul Smith

[cedarpondfarm]

Thanks to everyone for the info.  My hen house and breeding pens are open on all 4 sides and set up to make the most of the shade and breezes (for those common summer days when the heat index is over a hundred).  Not good with 40 mile an hour winds and in the 20\'s.  I wrapped the whole thing in plastic and mixed sawdust with the cedar shavings that I keep in there all the time.  My hens are like little tillers, constantly turning the dirt, manure, and all else.  When the sawdust starts to compost, it gives off heat.  
I think Paul is right about the change in weather being the biggest problem.  And Mike\'s point about hardiness is very important.  My hens haven\'t misssed a step, egg production has been the same and no sniffles.
With chickens, dogs, cats, and horses, there is always some \"small to others but huge to me\" concern to deal with.  What my husband likes to call the latest episode in \"As the Barn Turns\"            

[John]

wrapped the whole thing in plastic

A friend here in Michigan, wraps three sides of his outside pens, that don\'t have coos for the birds to go into, with clear plastic.  It stops most wind and lets the sun rays in.  These pens also have some roofing over the roost areas.   They used mainly for game birds, but also work for the hardy breeds of chickens.

cedar shavings

I would use pine, but not cedar.  It could be toxic.

[cedarpondfarm]

The Walmart cedar mulch is large pieces that I spread 3 or 4 inches deep on top of the sandy bed to control odor.  The sawdust was pine.  The birds are outside from daylight to dark (unless it\'s snowing in Florida), only shut up at night.  I\'ve never seen them eat the pen litter but do you think they would?  

Is cedar, cypress or juniper usually a problem with birds?  We have lots of those available at all the local lumber yards.  We have such a problem with wood (even pressure treated) rotting if it touches the soil that I use these three woods a lot for the out buildings.  

I have heard that black walnut bark, leaves, and wood are toxic, especially the sawdust.  A friend had some bw shavings shipped in to use in the stalls in her horse barn and it made the horses colic.                

[Blue Egg Acres]

I don\'t know about it causing problems with adult birds, but read that one should not use cedar shavings for chicks.

[verycherry]

It was interesting to watch the interviews on the news with young people in their upper 20\'s that had never seen snow, until the 3 to 4 inches fell in Houston, Tex. about a week ago.  The news cast said it had been 33 years since Houston had a white blanket of snow.  Houston is 340 miles south of us.

Paul Smith

I grew up in Houston, and I remember that blanket of snow!  I didn\'t realise that it hadn\'t really snowed since then.  I\'m envious of Houstonians!  I could do without the snow and ice mess we have every year here in AR.  

I didn\'t have heat or any electicity at the barn last year and all my birds did fine, but I can see the concern about birds that aren\'t used to very cold weather suddenly being stuck out in it.  

I\'ve thought about getting electricity at the barn several times, but I\'m in a very rural area about 20 minutes from town and our electric goes out a lot, every time the wind blows hard it seems, so I really don\'t want my birds to get used to it and then have to be without it.  Sure would be nice for me while I\'m out there feeding them, but I guess I don\'t need to get spoiled either!

[verycherry]

The Walmart cedar mulch is large pieces that I spread 3 or 4 inches deep on top of the sandy bed to control odor.  The sawdust was pine.  The birds are outside from daylight to dark (unless it\'s snowing in Florida), only shut up at night.  I\'ve never seen them eat the pen litter but do you think they would?

It\'s not so much them eating it, it\'s the oils in the cedar.  It can cause irritation to the lungs and eyes, and can kill small chicks....possibly adults too if they were shut up with a lot of it.  Yours have probably done ok since it\'s large chunks with pine over it and since they have a lot of ventilation, but I think I\'d stick with pine from now on to be on the safe side.

[cedarpondfarm]

Does anyone know if cypress or juniper has the same obnoxious oils as cedar?

Nita