Thank you so much for this info. I live in Alberta Canada and have been looking for info for winter. We get very cold here and knew it can be done as I grew up on family farm and my grandma had layers. Unfortunatly she's gone and I can't turn to her wisdom. Thanks again.
Thanks for the tour! Good information I'd say. I don't live in Alaska but I'm in Central IL and we do get some pretty brutal winters here. This is my first winter with my flock and I'm watching them closely. Straw does seem to make a big difference for insulation. Probably need to add more. Good luck with your gate. ;-)
$30 isn't much to pay for keeping chickens more comfortable at the coldest times of the year in the colder states. Safer is all about the responsible or irresponsible person using the heat light.
Thank you! Best “real” info on keeping chickens in the winter. Christmas lights in the coop is a great idea. I find my chickens on the floor and wasn’t sure how to help that. 25 degrees is a good solid temp to gauge if they need the supplemental heat. And being colder on the floor. I didn’t realize the temp could vary that much in the coop. All the more important to get them off of the floor. Thank you.
Ive never heated my coop although we only get temps down to around -10 to -15 °c here in winter (in Scotland) i just make sure they are dry and sheltered. Hardy breeds have around 8000 feathers and very tolerant to cold. Heating a coop would make mine less tolerant to cold weather👍🏻
@RoslinLassie Our chickens survive Canadian winters below -40 without any heating. You make some good points! I give 10 MUST-DO points in this video. ua-cam.com/video/SJotK6phNDM/v-deo.html
In your area with temps like you mentioned not heating isn't necessary. People priding themselves on not using heat to me is a chicken owner that hates there chickens. 8000 feathers don't mean diddly below -29 C. Combs and waddles have blood in them and blood has water in it. I don't like my chickens waddles and combs to be black and later fall off or turn white from frostbite not to mention the pain that they endure. Chickens were never made to be in the climates we put them in today. From jungle fowl with emphases on jungle climates originally. So, to say they can handle it without losing body parts is just wrong thinking and projection. People projecting their warm ideas onto the chickens doesn't make them warmer. If they could talk to us and if we would listen they would say, GET SOME HEAT IN HERE NOW! YOU HAVE HEAT IN YOUR HOUSE ! Vaseline helps to prevent frostbite on there combs and waddles in winters coldest days. I live in Wisconsin, USA.
@@danielwagner6290 mine are in well insulated coops at night, and temps like that are rare…it’s 11°c here right now and it’s evening in January. I wasn’t telling anyone not to heat their coops only that I didn’t need to and it’s not a brag it’s that it is fine for my location and breeds. We are far from the jungle fowl of our chicken breeds now unless you keep game birds. Mine are large breed chickens, well feathered, that are well insulated and have been for the thousands of years they have been in existence and been bred and adapted to different areas of the world. Their down feathers are specifically made to trap heat….how on earth do other birds survive outside at this time of year.They deal with heat a lot worse than cold and in the summer even in Scotland I set up misting sprays around their pen to keep them cool. We do not get frost bitten combs here and I did not advocate it in temps at -29°c if you read my comment you will see that the minimum temp we would ever get is -10 to -15 degrees and rarely ever that. Our average is more like around freezing…outside and exposed. My chickens are very well cared for and I am well aware of the anatomy of a chicken, i know what a wattle and a comb is (3 of my 6 don’t have either) I take my chicken care very seriously, but also am aware of the fire risks of heating coops and in temps like mine it isn’t necessary. My run is roofed and tarped…very rarely (once or twice a year) does water even freeze in their run. My Brahmas could die in extreme heat due to their extensive feathering (they aren’t Jungle fowl any more!) but they are well in the cold.
I read a book written around 1900 for chicken growers in New England where temps could hit -40.The premise of the book was how chickens were much heartier in OPEN coops!DO NOT COOP UP YOUR CHICKENS THINKING THEY ARE COLD IN COLD WEATHER!Ever seen a cold duck?A cold ptarmagan?A cold spruce hen?Chickens have WARM COATS. You will notice they will eat more.Give them all they can eat.Give them somewhere to get out of the wind if the wind is blowing. In Fairbanks face your shelter south .The problem with coops is respiratory disease.Would you like to be cooped up in foul smelling quarters?Neither do chickens.Ever seen a cold raven?Gather eggs once a day and you will find them under your hens warm.Even in -40 weather.Make sure they have unfrozen water and plenty of it.Keep them safe from aerial assault.OWLs,hawks ect.by buying cheap nylon string netting for bird and trees.They don't like snow give them a roofed in area.In summation PLENTY OF FRESH AIR [cold matters little to them]Plenty good fresh water.Plenty food.No way you can match the cheap price of eggs at Freds right now.The thing is if you can free range your chicken in summer you can get the mineral requirements needed from their eggs.!!Very Good for you!They are also VERY FUN TO HATCH eggs.Beware chickens will LITERALLY dig up the roots of big spruce trees in search of whatever.If you are in Fairbanks get a hearty breed.Rhode Island reds[double yokers]Buff orpintons Black Astrolorps Wydottes and others.Be warned chicken feed in Fairbsnks is expensive.If you hatch out 40 eggs twice from your original 20 chicken and find yourself with 105 chicken they will eat you out of house and home.Better to have 4 or five good hens and a rooster.Have Fun!!!Oh Great fertilizer for you garden.
I learned a lot from this and live in Unalakleet. I'm impressed by you having them in Fbx because I lived there for 7 years. But I'm not going to use electricity other than Led tree lights and a water dish warmer. And I can harvest lots of bedding here locally myself. I also want to make hay to help feed the chickens, and store local wild rye to also feed them. I'm hoping it won't be expensive, but other people do it in the North without heat and relying too heavily on electricity. Thank you for doing this and being a blessing and inspiration!!
😊 when you pick up your hens, cup your hands around their wings. This way they can't flap them and they calm down. Then hold them close to you , then with the freedom hand you can pet them. One of them Even jumps on my lap and will fall asleep when I pet her, my , my clara bell 😊. Thank you for your advice. Most say that hens don't need heat, but frostbite is so painful and the hens need our care. Agape love ❤️
Heating lamps are not necessarily needed and could actually do more harm. If the electricity goes out they will freeze and if there's issues fires can start. They stay warm just need instalation, vents, dry coop, and draft free. Also a flat perch is better for cold weather
Agreed on the flat perch, I offered both in my coop when I was keeping chickens. However, whether or not one can do without a heat lamp really depends on where in Alaska one is located - and the integrity/size of the coop. At -40 below without a heat lamp one definitely risks frost bite and too much stress to chickens without supplemental heat. I would not advise it. However, the caution about electricity going off unexpectedly is also well noted. One should try to make the coop insulated enough so that in the event of a power outage in extreme cold, the birds can survive eight to 10 hours. Yes, I have experienced power outages longer than that, and up to 24 hours with monitoring the birds can certainly pull through. However, when we once had a power outage of several days, I put my coop on a generator.
Thanks for the interesting and informative video. We have experienced many of the ups and downs of chicken keeping off grid so thought electricity. It is hard.
Nice video, great information. I have had chickens my whole life except for the last 2 years. We are in the process of moving to our house in the Kenai, from Texas. I think everywhere has unique challenges with chickens. The biggest problem here in Texas is Chicken Snakes, some call them rat snakes, and fire ants. At least we won’t have those issues in AK.
Greetings from Minnesota! I am a former resident of Fairbanks and I was just wondering if your coop is insulated. Also do you ever have trouble with the chickens pecking the Christmas lights? I live on the edge of town in northern Minnesota but not far enough out I'm only allowed to have five chickens for my $25 chicken license. I was hoping to get a simple prefab coop at Walmart but the powers that be had other ideas with all sorts of rules & regulations. regarding the size of my coop right down to light space available through the window and size of my run vs exercise area so I'm spending around $4,000 for my custom built Coop instead of $400 from Walmart. I loved every place I lived in the Fairbanks area. They seemed to come with a chicken coops already on site with far less regulations. Thanks for the great video and look forward to many more 🙂
Alaska has no regs on keeping chickens other than in Anchorage where there is a 5 hen limit (there are exceptions for larger lots) and no roosters. I recommend 3 square feet coop space in a well insulated coop. This arrangement means the birds keep themselves warm by close proximity if necessary. I gauge insulation by frost build up...too much frost=not enough ventilation. We have a video specific to Fairbanks that would apply to MN. Look on UA-cam for "Winter Chickens:the Down and Dirty of keeping Laying Hens in Alaska" by Marla B. We also sell the DVD for $5. Request UAF CES publication LPM -003339. I am surprised that MN has such strict regs on chickens. There is no standard template for coops or runs in Alaska. Designs vary from rededicated derelict vans, shipping containers, horse stalls, etc. Our prefab coops cost about $1,000. At $4,000 in MN I'm in the wrong job ;) I put up Christmas lights for my birds, but they are out of reach of pecking. -Steve Brown, 907-745-3639 or scbrown4@alaska.edu
@@UAFExtension I am only on .3 acres here on the edge of town. Real adjustment coming off 40 acre farm with no real restrictions I can think of not even setbacks when putting up a fence. But here: (1) No more than five hens shall be housed or kept on any one residential lot. (2) Roosters are prohibited. (3) Slaughtering of chickens on the property is prohibited. (4) A separate coop is required to house the chickens. Coops must be constructed and maintained to meet the following minimum standards: a.) Located in the rear or side yard. b.) Setback at least seven feet from the rear or side property lines. c.) Interior floor space - two square feet per bird. d.) Interior height - six feet to allow access for cleaning and maintenance. e.) Doors - one door to allow humans to access the coop and one for birds (if above ground level, must also provide a stable ramp). f.) The roofed structure shall be fully enclosed, wind proof, have one square foot of window to fifteen square feet of floor space and have a heat source to maintain an adequate temperature during extreme cold conditions. g.) Nest boxes - one box per every three 3 hens. i.) Roosts - one and one-half inch diameter or greater, located eighteen inches from the wall and two to three inches above the floor. j.) Rodent proof - coop construction and materials must be adequate to prevent access by rodents and raccoons. (5) A run or exercise yard is required. a.) Runs must be constructed and maintained to meet the following minimum standards: 1. Location: rear or side yard. 2. Size: Eight square feet per bird, if access to a fenced exercise yard is available; sixteen square feet per bird, if access to an exercise yard is not available. If the coop is elevated two feet so the hens can access the space beneath, that area may count as a portion of the minimum run footprint. 3. Height: Six feet in height to allow access for cleaning and maintenance. 4. Gate: One gate to allow human access to the run. 5. Cover: Adequate to keep hens in and predators out. 6. Substrate: Composed of material that can be easily raked or regularly replaced to reduce odor and flies.
There are still broody breeds, like Orpington's and Wyandottes. You can cross Silkies with a suitable breed like Wyandottes and get crazy broody hens. They will try to hatch anything that looks like an egg. Other breeds as they mature, may become broody.
i have a HUGE problem with dust in my coop, such that thick clouds are raised whenever I move the bedding at all (deep litter). Mostly wood shavings but had to use straw too, in a pinch. Do you have a wooden floor? Mine is dirt (I can change that next spring if needed). The dust is all over everything. I have to mask up or I cough the rest of the day (not from allergies). Also my chickens (no heat, good ventilation) began to frostbite at 27 degrees! I'm so confused! Is your coop insulated? I am a first-year noobie, so any help is appreciated!
I do the deep litter method with my birds and have minimal dust until I clean in late Spring and Fall. I have a cement floor which likely makes a difference. Try using wood stove pellets instead of wood chips. Are you adding woodchips every week or two? That should help. -Steve Brown, 907-745-3639 or scbrown4@alaska.edu
When you add supplemental lights over the winter, is it okay to have the timer go on after sunset, as long as they get 15 hours of light? Will the hens still lay eggs if both the coop and the run are lit but outside is pitch dark?
Alice, since your post is two years old, I’m guessing you’ve found your answer already, but if not, I receive 9 hours daylight, now. I’ve a light in the coop, that’s on a timer, and turns on at dusk. Unfortunately, it only has a two or a five hour option, so I have it on five hours per night, only, -giving my hens a total of fourteen hours light per day. They’re still laying to date, December 09.
Interesting question....we do have least weasels here around my coop and I never had that problem...maybe lucky. An off of the top answer would be to reinforce at ermine height the door and frame with metal...but I think they are fairly agile and can squeeze through very small cracks and also climb. A useful answer to that might be found by querying poultry keepers in regions that have higher numbers of weasels.
Depends on where you live....I know folks who have set up a run with double walled plastic around it, also positioned to receive what sun is available in the darkest months, and their chickens go in and out. In my case, my coop was not positioned to get much sun from Nov through end of Feb and my chickens self selected not to go outside once the first dusting of snow occurred. However, by March when the sun reached their outside run, and on days about 20 degrees and above, they loved to come outside and sit in the sun. I put straw down over the snow in the sunny patches.
Our birds free range during the winter, even at -20 below. However, we are not Fairbanks cold. When it gets down to -30 I heat at night, but they still like to come out to eat.
no kidding, I got something from my coop in commodity with me eye vise versa, touching my face.. I used Genteel eye drops. School of hard knocks. I did this as a dream with my RIP Dad. Now I'm in it. Thanks UAFExtension. Good as you go! Yogi Bear you don't know what you don't know.
Chicken don't need a heat ..they body produce enough heat for comfort ...If really really cold then give them little beet a corn and barely ....If you use a heat lamp you will get a chicken coop fire and possibly lost a house if close to chicken coop
You seem to have no ventilation in your coop. It’s a wonder you have no respiratory problems in your flock. And you have a dangerous heat lamp. If you have good ventilation and use the deep litter system, you wouldnt need a lamp. Switch to a radiant heating system.
@rosaloving9106 you make some excellent points. Our chickens survive Canadian winters below -40 without any heating. I give 10 MUST-DO points in this video. (hint: ventilation is one point!) ua-cam.com/video/SJotK6phNDM/v-deo.html
I love that you keep your chickens beyond egg laying:D
Your teaching is great. You seem to know how to teach very well. Thank you for the information.
Thank you so much for this info. I live in Alberta Canada and have been looking for info for winter. We get very cold here and knew it can be done as I grew up on family farm and my grandma had layers. Unfortunatly she's gone and I can't turn to her wisdom. Thanks again.
Thanks for the tour! Good information I'd say. I don't live in Alaska but I'm in Central IL and we do get some pretty brutal winters here. This is my first winter with my flock and I'm watching them closely. Straw does seem to make a big difference for insulation. Probably need to add more. Good luck with your gate. ;-)
I got a brooder heater that can be a coop heater. It was 40 bucks at tractor supply. Much more energy efficient and safer than the bulb
I seen one person who lost 8 chickens because of these heaters I was on board with it now I’m hesitant
$30 isn't much to pay for keeping chickens more comfortable at the coldest times of the year in the colder states. Safer is all about the responsible or irresponsible person using the heat light.
Thank you! Best “real” info on keeping chickens in the winter. Christmas lights in the coop is a great idea. I find my chickens on the floor and wasn’t sure how to help that. 25 degrees is a good solid temp to gauge if they need the supplemental heat. And being colder on the floor. I didn’t realize the temp could vary that much in the coop. All the more important to get them off of the floor. Thank you.
Ive never heated my coop although we only get temps down to around -10 to -15 °c here in winter (in Scotland) i just make sure they are dry and sheltered. Hardy breeds have around 8000 feathers and very tolerant to cold. Heating a coop would make mine less tolerant to cold weather👍🏻
@RoslinLassie Our chickens survive Canadian winters below -40 without any heating. You make some good points! I give 10 MUST-DO points in this video. ua-cam.com/video/SJotK6phNDM/v-deo.html
In your area with temps like you mentioned not heating isn't necessary. People priding themselves on not using heat to me is a chicken owner that hates there chickens. 8000 feathers don't mean diddly below -29 C. Combs and waddles have blood in them and blood has water in it. I don't like my chickens waddles and combs to be black and later fall off or turn white from frostbite not to mention the pain that they endure. Chickens were never made to be in the climates we put them in today. From jungle fowl with emphases on jungle climates originally. So, to say they can handle it without losing body parts is just wrong thinking and projection. People projecting their warm ideas onto the chickens doesn't make them warmer. If they could talk to us and if we would listen they would say, GET SOME HEAT IN HERE NOW! YOU HAVE HEAT IN YOUR HOUSE ! Vaseline helps to prevent frostbite on there combs and waddles in winters coldest days. I live in Wisconsin, USA.
@@danielwagner6290 mine are in well insulated coops at night, and temps like that are rare…it’s 11°c here right now and it’s evening in January. I wasn’t telling anyone not to heat their coops only that I didn’t need to and it’s not a brag it’s that it is fine for my location and breeds. We are far from the jungle fowl of our chicken breeds now unless you keep game birds. Mine are large breed chickens, well feathered, that are well insulated and have been for the thousands of years they have been in existence and been bred and adapted to different areas of the world. Their down feathers are specifically made to trap heat….how on earth do other birds survive outside at this time of year.They deal with heat a lot worse than cold and in the summer even in Scotland I set up misting sprays around their pen to keep them cool. We do not get frost bitten combs here and I did not advocate it in temps at -29°c if you read my comment you will see that the minimum temp we would ever get is -10 to -15 degrees and rarely ever that. Our average is more like around freezing…outside and exposed. My chickens are very well cared for and I am well aware of the anatomy of a chicken, i know what a wattle and a comb is (3 of my 6 don’t have either) I take my chicken care very seriously, but also am aware of the fire risks of heating coops and in temps like mine it isn’t necessary. My run is roofed and tarped…very rarely (once or twice a year) does water even freeze in their run. My Brahmas could die in extreme heat due to their extensive feathering (they aren’t Jungle fowl any more!) but they are well in the cold.
Excellent video. Thank you so much for all the great information. 🐔🐔🐔
I read a book written around 1900 for chicken growers in New England where temps could hit -40.The premise of the book was how chickens were much heartier in OPEN coops!DO NOT COOP UP YOUR CHICKENS THINKING THEY ARE COLD IN COLD WEATHER!Ever seen a cold duck?A cold ptarmagan?A cold spruce hen?Chickens have WARM COATS. You will notice they will eat more.Give them all they can eat.Give them somewhere to get out of the wind if the wind is blowing. In Fairbanks face your shelter south .The problem with coops is respiratory disease.Would you like to be cooped up in foul smelling quarters?Neither do chickens.Ever seen a cold raven?Gather eggs once a day and you will find them under your hens warm.Even in -40 weather.Make sure they have unfrozen water and plenty of it.Keep them safe from aerial assault.OWLs,hawks ect.by buying cheap nylon string netting for bird and trees.They don't like snow give them a roofed in area.In summation PLENTY OF FRESH AIR [cold matters little to them]Plenty good fresh water.Plenty food.No way you can match the cheap price of eggs at Freds right now.The thing is if you can free range your chicken in summer you can get the mineral requirements needed from their eggs.!!Very Good for you!They are also VERY FUN TO HATCH eggs.Beware chickens will LITERALLY dig up the roots of big spruce trees in search of whatever.If you are in Fairbanks get a hearty breed.Rhode Island reds[double yokers]Buff orpintons Black Astrolorps Wydottes and others.Be warned chicken feed in Fairbsnks is expensive.If you hatch out 40 eggs twice from your original 20 chicken and find yourself with 105 chicken they will eat you out of house and home.Better to have 4 or five good hens and a rooster.Have Fun!!!Oh Great fertilizer for you garden.
What was the name of the book?
Fresh-Air Poultry Houses: The Classic Guide to Open-Front Chicken Coops for Healthier Poultry
I learned a lot from this and live in Unalakleet. I'm impressed by you having them in Fbx because I lived there for 7 years. But I'm not going to use electricity other than Led tree lights and a water dish warmer. And I can harvest lots of bedding here locally myself. I also want to make hay to help feed the chickens, and store local wild rye to also feed them. I'm hoping it won't be expensive, but other people do it in the North without heat and relying too heavily on electricity. Thank you for doing this and being a blessing and inspiration!!
You should consider Chantecler chickens bred in Canada for the cold weather. Do some research to see if they will work for you.
@@Nimblebee-iy4nz I have Partridge Chanteclers, they are great dual purpose chickens for cold weather. They have nice temperaments as well.
😊 when you pick up your hens, cup your hands around their wings. This way they can't flap them and they calm down. Then hold them close to you , then with the freedom hand you can pet them. One of them Even jumps on my lap and will fall asleep when I pet her, my , my clara bell 😊. Thank you for your advice. Most say that hens don't need heat, but frostbite is so painful and the hens need our care. Agape love ❤️
Great coop. Maybe a better hook to hang that light (safer clasp) just in case they get roudy and hit the cable and make it swing.
Snow load on that roof must be a lot. I’m in nw Ohio and have too watch the load. Can’t imagine how heavy yours is?? Great video 👍🏻
Heating lamps are not necessarily needed and could actually do more harm. If the electricity goes out they will freeze and if there's issues fires can start. They stay warm just need instalation, vents, dry coop, and draft free. Also a flat perch is better for cold weather
Agreed on the flat perch, I offered both in my coop when I was keeping chickens. However, whether or not one can do without a heat lamp really depends on where in Alaska one is located - and the integrity/size of the coop. At -40 below without a heat lamp one definitely risks frost bite and too much stress to chickens without supplemental heat. I would not advise it. However, the caution about electricity going off unexpectedly is also well noted. One should try to make the coop insulated enough so that in the event of a power outage in extreme cold, the birds can survive eight to 10 hours. Yes, I have experienced power outages longer than that, and up to 24 hours with monitoring the birds can certainly pull through. However, when we once had a power outage of several days, I put my coop on a generator.
Thanks for the interesting and informative video. We have experienced many of the ups and downs of chicken keeping off grid so thought electricity. It is hard.
Nice video, great information. I have had chickens my whole life except for the last 2 years. We are in the process of moving to our house in the Kenai, from Texas. I think everywhere has unique challenges with chickens. The biggest problem here in Texas is Chicken Snakes, some call them rat snakes, and fire ants. At least we won’t have those issues in AK.
Greetings from Minnesota! I am a former resident of Fairbanks and I was just wondering if your coop is insulated. Also do you ever have trouble with the chickens pecking the Christmas lights? I live on the edge of town in northern Minnesota but not far enough out I'm only allowed to have five chickens for my $25 chicken license. I was hoping to get a simple prefab coop at Walmart but the powers that be had other ideas with all sorts of rules & regulations. regarding the size of my coop right down to light space available through the window and size of my run vs exercise area so I'm spending around $4,000 for my custom built Coop instead of $400 from Walmart. I loved every place I lived in the Fairbanks area. They seemed to come with a chicken coops already on site with far less regulations. Thanks for the great video and look forward to many more 🙂
Alaska has no regs on keeping chickens other than in Anchorage where there is a 5 hen limit (there are exceptions for larger lots) and no roosters. I recommend 3 square feet coop space in a well insulated coop. This arrangement means the birds keep themselves warm by close proximity if necessary. I gauge insulation by frost build up...too much frost=not enough ventilation.
We have a video specific to Fairbanks that would apply to MN. Look on UA-cam for "Winter Chickens:the Down and Dirty of keeping Laying Hens in Alaska" by Marla B. We also sell the DVD for $5. Request UAF CES publication LPM -003339.
I am surprised that MN has such strict regs on chickens. There is no standard template for coops or runs in Alaska. Designs vary from rededicated derelict vans, shipping containers, horse stalls, etc. Our prefab coops cost about $1,000. At $4,000 in MN I'm in the wrong job ;)
I put up Christmas lights for my birds, but they are out of reach of pecking.
-Steve Brown, 907-745-3639 or scbrown4@alaska.edu
@@UAFExtension I am only on .3 acres here on the edge of town. Real adjustment coming off 40 acre farm with no real restrictions I can think of not even setbacks when putting up a fence.
But here:
(1) No more than five hens shall be housed or kept on any one residential lot.
(2) Roosters are prohibited.
(3) Slaughtering of chickens on the property is prohibited.
(4) A separate coop is required to house the chickens. Coops must be constructed and maintained to
meet the following minimum standards:
a.) Located in the rear or side yard.
b.) Setback at least seven feet from the rear or side property lines.
c.) Interior floor space - two square feet per bird.
d.) Interior height - six feet to allow access for cleaning and maintenance.
e.) Doors - one door to allow humans to access the coop and one for birds (if
above ground level, must also provide a stable ramp).
f.) The roofed structure shall be fully enclosed, wind proof, have one square foot of
window to fifteen square feet of floor space and have a heat source to maintain an
adequate temperature during extreme cold conditions.
g.) Nest boxes - one box per every three 3 hens.
i.) Roosts - one and one-half inch diameter or greater, located eighteen
inches from the wall and two to three inches above the floor.
j.) Rodent proof - coop construction and materials must be adequate to prevent access
by rodents and raccoons.
(5) A run or exercise yard is required.
a.) Runs must be constructed and maintained to meet the following minimum standards:
1. Location: rear or side yard.
2. Size: Eight square feet per bird, if access to a fenced exercise yard is available;
sixteen square feet per bird, if access to an exercise yard is not available. If the
coop is elevated two feet so the hens can access the space beneath, that area
may count as a portion of the minimum run footprint.
3. Height: Six feet in height to allow access for cleaning and maintenance.
4. Gate: One gate to allow human access to the run.
5. Cover: Adequate to keep hens in and predators out.
6. Substrate: Composed of material that can be easily raked or regularly replaced to
reduce odor and flies.
Thanks for the video very good overview.
Thanks for sharing. 👍🏾👊🏾
Curious about your luck with para Gallo Bota
Iove that picture of them on the roost I have similar pictures :)
Awesome video!!
There are still broody breeds, like Orpington's and Wyandottes. You can cross Silkies with a suitable breed like Wyandottes and get crazy broody hens. They will try to hatch anything that looks like an egg. Other breeds as they mature, may become broody.
Great video thank you
i have a HUGE problem with dust in my coop, such that thick clouds are raised whenever I move the bedding at all (deep litter). Mostly wood shavings but had to use straw too, in a pinch. Do you have a wooden floor? Mine is dirt (I can change that next spring if needed). The dust is all over everything. I have to mask up or I cough the rest of the day (not from allergies). Also my chickens (no heat, good ventilation) began to frostbite at 27 degrees! I'm so confused! Is your coop insulated? I am a first-year noobie, so any help is appreciated!
I do the deep litter method with my birds and have minimal dust until I clean in late Spring and Fall. I have a cement floor which likely makes a difference. Try using wood stove pellets instead of wood chips. Are you adding woodchips every week or two? That should help.
-Steve Brown, 907-745-3639 or scbrown4@alaska.edu
When you add supplemental lights over the winter, is it okay to have the timer go on after sunset, as long as they get 15 hours of light? Will the hens still lay eggs if both the coop and the run are lit but outside is pitch dark?
Alice, since your post is two years old, I’m guessing you’ve found your answer already, but if not, I receive 9 hours daylight, now. I’ve a light in the coop, that’s on a timer, and turns on at dusk. Unfortunately, it only has a two or a five hour option, so I have it on five hours per night, only, -giving my hens a total of fourteen hours light per day. They’re still laying to date, December 09.
Forget the Ag Department, I'll sell my eggs when I God damn want to.
Good as you go people. USA. People way smarter than me.
Is the rooster fixed? Otherwise, you'd be getting chicks in your eggs, no?
How do you make the door and frame so that ermine do not breach it?
Interesting question....we do have least weasels here around my coop and I never had that problem...maybe lucky. An off of the top answer would be to reinforce at ermine height the door and frame with metal...but I think they are fairly agile and can squeeze through very small cracks and also climb. A useful answer to that might be found by querying poultry keepers in regions that have higher numbers of weasels.
Do you let them out during the day in the winter?
Hi Judy, I think most people don't let them out during the winter unless it is a fairly warm day.
Depends on where you live....I know folks who have set up a run with double walled plastic around it, also positioned to receive what sun is available in the darkest months, and their chickens go in and out. In my case, my coop was not positioned to get much sun from Nov through end of Feb and my chickens self selected not to go outside once the first dusting of snow occurred. However, by March when the sun reached their outside run, and on days about 20 degrees and above, they loved to come outside and sit in the sun. I put straw down over the snow in the sunny patches.
Our birds free range during the winter, even at -20 below. However, we are not Fairbanks cold. When it gets down to -30 I heat at night, but they still like to come out to eat.
@@UAFExtension I am in the MatSu, but my birds are out every day
What if you lose power and your heat lamp does not work?
I've asked one of our faculty your question and will post when I hear back.
Steve Brown says you can 'crowd them together at 2 square feet/bird.'
Our chickens survive Canadian winters below -40 without any heating. I give 10 MUST-DO points in this video. ua-cam.com/video/SJotK6phNDM/v-deo.html
no kidding, I got something from my coop in commodity with me eye vise versa, touching my face.. I used Genteel eye drops. School of hard knocks.
I did this as a dream with my RIP Dad. Now I'm in it. Thanks UAFExtension. Good as you go! Yogi Bear you don't know what you don't know.
Chicken don't need a heat ..they body produce enough heat for comfort ...If really really cold then give them little beet a corn and barely ....If you use a heat lamp you will get a chicken coop fire and possibly lost a house if close to chicken coop
Couldn't it be more cost effective to add a wood burning stove to a larger coop to keep them warm?
Wow! That scares me for sure.
You seem to have no ventilation in your coop. It’s a wonder you have no respiratory problems in your flock. And you have a dangerous heat lamp. If you have good ventilation and use the deep litter system, you wouldnt need a lamp. Switch to a radiant heating system.
@rosaloving9106 you make some excellent points. Our chickens survive Canadian winters below -40 without any heating. I give 10 MUST-DO points in this video. (hint: ventilation is one point!) ua-cam.com/video/SJotK6phNDM/v-deo.html
Organic food only for my chickens