Winter Chicken Care

Great tips on homesteading, frugal living, and self reliance.
	Winter Chicken Care Winter chicken care may be a concern if you’ve never had a flock of chickens before, but chickens are actually a lot tougher than you think. If you live in an area where winters are mild, all you’ll have to do is provide shelter from rain and wind, make sure to provide them with fresh water daily, and your flock should be fine. If you live in a colder area, however, here are some tips to provide your flock with the best winter chicken care. Fresh Water Chickens don’t like icy water and can’t drink at all if it’s frozen, so for good winter chicken care either provide heated waterers or change your chickens’ water twice daily. You can find heated water bowls at most feed stores at a reasonable price, so if you don’t want to go outside twice a day to change your flock’s water, it’s well worth the investment. Extra Insulation You don’t want to cut off all ventilation to your coop. Chickens give off a lot of moisture both through respiration and droppings and need fresh air even in the winter, but you can insulate the coop by adding extra cardboard or even hay in their roosts. On a regular basis, cover the dirty hay with fresh, clean hay. The old hay will decompose and heat up, the same way a compost pile does, providing your chickens with warmth during the winter and your garden with compost the following spring. Provide Extra Nutrition A late afternoon treat of scratch grains will provide your birds with a full crop to digest throughout the night while they are roosting. Better still, for excellent winter chicken care, provide your flock with whole wheat. The spilled kernels will sprout, providing your birds with fresh greens and excellent winter nutrition. To help increase winter egg production, give your flock a Vitamin D supplement. Get a Winter Breed Different breeds of chickens handle the winter months better than others depending on how tightly woven their feathers are. The breeds that do best in the winter months include: the Brahma the Cochin the New Hampshire the Orpington the Plymouth Rock the Rhode Island Red the Wyandotte Complete Chicken Tractor Design Complete instructions plus tons of helpful chicken care tips! Get the E-book Today For Just $7.95! To learn more, click here. More Homesteading Chicken Links Keeping a backyard flock Get your chicks off to the right start with a brooder How to care for your flock Why a portable coop is best Eggs - a great source of homesteading income Learn which breed is right for you Tips on raising the organic flock Return from Winter Chicken Care to the Home Page	Subscribe to my free ezine! Successful Homesteading is a bi-weekly e-zine covering everything about self-reliance and the healthy, frugal life. Imagine! Great tips on organic gardening, self reliance, frugal living and frugal recipes on a regular basis and sent straight to your ebox! Click here to subscribe.
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