This entry was posted on 31 October 2019 in Keeping Chickens.
Winter can be a particularly scary time for chicken owners especially when it’s your first time. Winter is such a long period, and you will find yourself constantly wondering whether or not your chickens are warm enough. However, there are a few tips that you could use to care for your chickens even during the coldest of times. This chicken guide will help you and your chicken survive the winter period both healthy and happy.
Tips and tricks for keeping chickens during winter
When it comes to raising chickens, there are several approaches, and you should use the deep litter approach to help you through winter. This simply means that you need to allow poop and bedding materials to accumulate in your chicken coop over summer, fall, and spring so that when winter finally arrives, you will have almost a foot of warm material on the coop floor. The bedding and composting poop will keep the coop warm, thus providing winter care for the chickens.
Ensure that you get rid of all external and internal parasites before winter arrives. Once your facilities are clean, you will have no parasite problems during the winter. Use an insecticide to spray and dust your entire coop, including chicken house accessories. 
In some places, winter can be extremely devastating due to the cold winds. The best way to ensure that your chicken is well protected is by using thermal covers or automatic doors for your chicken coop. Both the automatic doors and thermal covers are a great way of ensuring your coop stays warm and is protected from the cold winds.
Chicken’s depend on each other for warmth and they do not need a heater to survive the winter. Now, if your chicken gets too comfortable due to the heat, they will start spending more time inside than outside. Soon enough they will start breathing in unhealthy moist air which will result in health complications. You may only heat your coop when there are sudden drops in temperature to help your chicken transition.
To keep your chicken warm all night, you need to feed them enough corn every evening. Since your chicken will be digesting for most of the night, they will easily keep warm. With full bellies, your chicken will be both happy and warm during the entire night. This will also help them to lay eggs and you need to ensure that you collect them early enough the following morning.
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