How to Keep Chickens Warm during the Winter

One question that many northern homesteaders may find themselves asking is: how can I help my homestead flock stay warm when the temperatures never get above freezing? First, let me tell you that it is a legitimate question to ask. Chickens can handle cold weather better then warm weather, and many homestead breeds are extremely hardy when it comes to tolerating low temperatures. However, cold stress is a very real thing and can be detrimental to the health of your flock. Knowing a few tips and tricks for helping your chickens stay warm during the cold weather can help them stay healthy and minimize the effects of cold stress. Here are some of my tips for keeping chickens warm during the winter on the homestead without using electricity!

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#1. Give Them Straw

Straw is a wonderful insulator and will keep chickens entertained for hours! I buy 3-4 bales of straw each fall to use during the winter months. My chickens love it when I put a couple straw flakes in their enclosure so they can spread it around.

Not only does the straw keep them entertained, but it also helps generate heat. As the straw composts with the chicken droppings, the decomposing process creates a little bit of heat. My chickens love foraging through the flakes of straw on cold winter days!

Make sure you periodically (at least once a week) stir the straw up to prevent droppings from building up on the top layer of straw and to aid in the composting process. I use a modified deep litter method in my flock’s enclosure during the winter. You can also rake old straw into big piles for the chickens to sort through again!

Straw helps chickens stay warm by generating some heat through the composting process, but it also encourages them to be active. Activity stimulates circulation which will help your chickens stay warm. Keep in mind that there should be a balance between activity and resting since your chickens still need to conserve some energy for staying warm when they aren’t moving around.

I like to give my flock a few flakes of straw in the afternoon during really cold spells.

#2. Provide Extra Protein

Extra protein is helpful during the cold winter months as the chickens are using more energy to keep warm. Protein helps generate heat, fight off diseases, and keeps all the body’s functions working properly! Here are a few protein rich treats you can provide for your flock:

• meat scraps (chicken, turkey, venison, beef, fish)
• peanut butter– feed in moderation because it also contains fat, also make sure you supply plenty of fresh water
• non-salted sunflower seeds– again, feed in moderation since the shells of the sunflowers seeds have a high fat content
• mealworms or black soldier fly larvae
• high protein treat mixes– Chicken Crack by Treats for Chickens or Ultrakibble by Farmer’s Helper are both high protein treats

The fat that is often found in high protein foods (like peanut butter) can be beneficial if fed in moderation. Fat can provide up to twice the amount of energy as carbs do. It also slows down the digestion process, which can help the chicken’s body better absorb the nutrients in feed. A slowed digestion process can also cause chickens to become fat, which can lead to major health issues.

You will need to find a balance between offering to much high fat foods and offering just the right amount of high fat foods to be beneficial. A good rule of thumb is to feed no more than 1 tbsp. of a treat per bird and don’t offer the same treat every day.

Learn why protein is so important for your backyard flock as well as some other great high-protein sources that you can give your chickens!

#3. Use Natural Supplements

Supplements are foods that you give your flock to help them maintain good health or to treat an ailment. The supplements that I have chosen to highlight for helping keep your flock warm are ones that stimulate circulation. Good blood flow is important for transporting heat to different parts of the body.

You can offer these natural supplements in dishes or dispensers so your chickens can eat what they need of the supplement. You can also sprinkle them on top of treats or make them into a tea for your flock to drink. Here are some supplements that I like to supply during the winter:

• Ginger- you can offer ground ginger to your flock to help with good circulation
• Garlic- I crush 4 large cloves of garlic into my flock’s water once a week to help boost the immune system and promote good blood circulation
• Lavender– lavender is both relaxing and helps with good blood circulation, I like to place lavender in the nesting boxes, that way it calms the hens and they can nibble on some if they want

For more beneficial feed supplements, be sure to check out my post on 8 Natural Supplements for Chickens. Also, learn how to properly use Homemade Chicken Feed Supplements so that you can help your flock and not harm them.

You may also consider making some other minor dietary changes to your flock’s diet during the winter, in which case you should check out What to Feed Chickens During the Winter.

#4. Offer Healthy Scratch Grains

A special treat that you can give your chickens during the cold months are scratch grains. Scratch grains are high in energy but low in vital nutrients and vitamins, so they should not take up too much of a chicken’s overall diet. They should be fed as a treat, not as part of the daily feed. You can make your own scratch grains or buy commercial scratch grains.

Most scratch grains contain corn, wheat, and oats. Avoid scratch grain mixes that contain a lot of barley, as barley is hard for chickens to digest. Some things that you can include in a homemade scratch grain would be:

• cracked corn
• whole oats
• wheat
• whole flax seeds, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds
• mealworms or black soldier fly larvae

Scratch should be made with whole grains, not processed grains. Whole grains take longer to digest and provide more nutrients. The longer digestion period increases internal body heat which helps the chicken stay warm. Tossing some scratch grains into your flock’s enclosure before roosting time will allow them to get some exercise and get their blood circulating well by scratching around searching for the grains.

A healthy alternative to scratch grains is to use a whole grain chicken feed that is different from what you normally feed your flock on a daily basis. The new mix of whole grains will be like a treat for your chickens, and you can sprinkle the mix around just like regular scratch grains.

*Note: Don’t feed scratch grains to chickens under 8 weeks of age. Scratch grains can decrease the amount of protein that is received by the growing birds.

#5. Give Them Warm Treats

Feeding your chickens warm treats will help warm their insides, just like a cup of hot cocoa does for us! On especially frigid days I make sure to bring out enough warm oatmeal or warm chicken feed for every flock member to get a few mouthfuls. Here are some other ideas for warm treats to feed your chickens:

• oatmeal– in moderation, soaking oats in warm water is actually more beneficial than cooking them
• heated feed– prepare chicken feed just like you would oatmeal!
• broth- homemade bone broth or even vegetable broth
• squash skins and seeds– chickens love warm squash skins, leftover flesh, and seeds
• cooked quinoa– serve instead of oatmeal!

Remember…. give treats in moderation! I have found that the healthiest way to offer my flock warm treats is by heating up their regular layer mash feed in some water just like oatmeal. The grains in the feed absorb the water just like oats do. My flock loves the warm, moist feed and will quickly polish off a bowl! I like that I can give them something warm while knowing that they are still getting the needed nutrients from their feed.

I try to limit other special, warm treats to once a week for my flock during cold spells. Some of my flock’s favorites include overnight oats, cooked quinoa, and cooked millet. I make sure I rotate which treat they get so that they aren’t getting the same treat on a regular basis.

#6. Provide Lots of Perches

My chickens love roosting on the various perches that I have in their enclosure. Providing plenty of perching areas during the winter can help keep your chickens warm in the winter. When chickens perch, they cover up their feet with their breast feathers and fluff out their body feathers to help trap warm body heat. They are also conserving energy when they roost.

Make sure the perches are wide enough so that the chicken’s toes don’t wrap around the perch, because then the breast feathers can’t cover the toes. Exposed toes could lead to frostbite. Your flock will also appreciate it if the perches are located in various locations. Put some perches in a sheltered spot of the enclosure that doesn’t get any wind or drafts. Other perches should be placed in a sunny location so that the chickens can soak up some sun on sunny days.

Recreational perches should be different than the nightly roosts. I recommend 2 x 4 boards for nightly roosts. In the enclosure though, I provide a variety of stumps, branches, and boards for my chickens to perch on. Giving your chickens an option to get up off the ground can help them stay warmer too.

#7. Provide a Shielded Enclosure

Shielding the run or enclosure protects your chickens from cold winds or blustery snowstorms (or sometimes rain/ice storms). I put plastic up on the north and west sides of my enclosures in the fall when I winterize the chicken coops. The chickens appreciate being shielded from the weather. My enclosures also allow in some southern sun, so on sunny days my chickens enjoy sunbathing or basking in the sun.

The plastic around the enclosures also helps to keep snow from drifting in. A lot of my chickens do not like walking through snow, so the less drifting, the better. Of course, it is always helpful to have the enclosure covered and roofed in to keep snow and other precipitation out.

Make sure you surround the enclosure with a sturdy plastic and fasten it down securely. Avoid using black plastic since it can make the enclosure seem very dark and when the sun heats the black plastic up, the enclosure could get too warm. I like to use opaque construction plastic to put around the chicken coop enclosures.

Instead of wrapping just a few sides of the enclosure, you can also wrap your entire enclosure in plastic, just make sure there is good ventilation. Having a covered and sheltered enclosure is essential if you live in an area that gets a lot of snow. A covered enclosure will provide more space for your flock to stretch their legs and stay moving around.

#8. Stimulate Them with Interactive Toys

Keeping your chicken’s entertained and active during the winter months can help prevent bad boredom habits and help to keep the blood circulating in a chicken’s body. Many boredom busting options involve treats, so you should keep in mind that all treats should be fed in moderation. Healthy boredom busters will keep your flock entertained and prevent health issues!

A few fun ideas that my chickens like are:

• Treat balls– You can buy a little yellow ball that you can fill with scratch grains, seeds, or whole grain feed and the chickens have to peck at it to get the treats out.
• Garland– String up treats like popcorn, cranberries, or leafy greens. I advise you only use garland when you can monitor your flock since it can present a health hazard if sturdy material is not used. Use sturdy twine or even wire to prevent breakage.
• Treat Wreaths or Suet– You can make your own healthy recipe for your flock using gelatin or oats mixed with seeds and other treats. I like to make quinoa cakes for my flock!
• Pine Boughs– Chickens actually love to eat long pine needles, such as from white pine trees. However, you may want to monitor your flock at first since too many long needles could lead to crop issues.

If you are using boredom busters that involve treats, just remember to keep the treats as healthy and varied as possible. Leafy greens, vegetables, and occasional fruits are healthy foods for your flock to consume during the winter when they don’t have access to forage or free-ranging.

Grazing boxes, fodder, and sprouts are always fun, interactive and healthy snacks that chickens love during the winter!

What Chicken’s Don’t Need During the Winter

Now that we have covered some beneficial ways that you can help your flock stay warm during the winter, let’s discuss a few options that should not be used to help your flock stay warm during cold temperatures.

#1. A Heated Coop

Chicken’s produce approximately 35 BTU’s an hour in cold weather by physical activity and metabolic processes. By producing their own heat and by the small things that you can do to help them retain heat, chickens do not need a heated coop. Many first time chicken owners will say they feel bad for their hens on freezing nights, but in all honesty, the hens are way more comfortable with their big fluffy feathers and nice draft free coop then they would be in a heated house or coop.

Providing heat does not allow your flock to adjust to the cold external temperatures which can be dangerous if the heat source fails or the power goes out. As long as you choose breeds that can tolerate colder temperatures and your coop is draft free, then there is no need for a heated chicken coop.

For more advice on when you should and shouldn’t provide heat for your flock, get the Winter Chicken Keeping handbook that is now available in The Trading Post!

#2. Chicken Sweaters

Chicken sweaters can make for cute (and awkward) pictures, but they are not needed to keep your chickens warm. The sweaters do not allow for chickens to fluff up their feathers, which in turn does not allow the feathers to trap necessary body heat under them. The bottom line is, chicken sweaters can be used for pictures, but please don’t use them thinking they will ‘keep your chickens warm’.

#3. Heated Roosts

Heated roosts is a new convenience that I just recently heard of. Again, they may sound like they will make your chickens happier, but really you are actually not helping them. Chickens are meant to live outdoors (except for maybe a few who are indoor pets) which means they are not used to having constant heat around them.

If the chickens relied on the heated roosts to keep them warm, and for some reason the heated roosts stopped working (power outage, malfunctioning) the chickens would have to rapidly adjust to the cold external temperatures. This could then stress them out or cause them to become chilled.

While heated roosts may sound like a luxury, they are actually not necessary, so save your money and your electricity. Your roosting flock will keep each other warm at night when they roost close together and fluff out their feathers.

#4. A Heat Lamp or Heater

Heat lamps and heaters should not be needed to heat the coop or provide additional heat. This again goes back to what would happen if the heat lamp or heater stopped working. Heat lamps are especially dangerous and create a fire hazard in the coop.

Heaters are not quite as dangerous but should still be avoided. Only use a heater in the coop under extreme conditions, such as if the temperatures drop near -10 degrees F or there is a prolonged period of extremely cold weather. Even then, keep the heater on a very low setting and if there is a chance of a power outage you may be better off not using it.

One option that I have heard of is providing heat boxes for chickens. A heat box is basically a box with an open side to allow for entering and a heat source within. Chickens can go into the heat box whenever they wish but are not forced to take advantage of the additional heat. These may be a good option in extremely cold areas. You will just want to make sure the heat source is completely safe, secured tightly, and does not pose a fire threat.

Now you should have a pretty good grasp on what you can do to help your homestead flock stay warm during the winter! They don’t need heaters, heat lamps, or sweaters. Instead, they would much rather have flakes of straw to sort through, yummy warm treats to enjoy, and cozy perches to use during cold days. Having insulating litter, plenty of perch options, slight diet adaptions, and interactive activities will make your flock more comfortable throughout the cold weather. With these simple tips you should be able to keep your flock happy and warm this winter!

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by Alexa