...at least that's what we've heard for the last several days. After much discussion and contemplation, I decided I would NOT heat the coop this year. After all, I've heard from people in Alaska with temperatures well below zero, who never heat their coops. Our hens seem to be doing just fine huddling together if necessary. We did have fresh eggs last winter when we heated the coop, but our hens stopped laying way back in August, so it seems unlikely they'll lay again until spring.
But the temperatures are expected to dip into the teens for several days with snow predicted for tomorrow. So just before dark, after cleaning out the coop and providing my hens with fresh food and water, I ran an extension cord out to the coop and clamped a light fixture with a red light bulb onto their perch. I find the red glow coming from their window very comforting.
The girls were all cozy and snug when I closed them in tonight...
2 comments:
It's a tough decision--to heat or not to heat? I only put the heat lamp on the waterer to keep the water from freezing when the temps fall below 20 degrees at night. I don't relish tramping out to the barn in the freezing morning to fetch warm water to them.
What is the breed of that little gray one? We have one that looks eggs-actly like that. And how do you get your pictures so clear. I have a Nikon D60 but the images seem to be getting grainy. If you can help that would be awesome.
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