Winter is Coming

First snow!

Sparrow and Edgar

Winter is coming and baby chicks are growing large; too large to stay in their brooder in the basement and too large to be called baby chicks. These fully feathered birds are now pullets, and at least one cockerel. Having grown all their feathers means they are finally ready to move out to the coop.
Thursday was the big Moving Out day. Here is what we did to make the coop ready for our chickens:

Bedding in the hen house

Snow and rain was blowing in to the hen house, so we sealed the gap with some weather stripping.
Then we closed the gap around the hen house door with strips of wood. We filled the nesting boxes with clean hay and put a thick layer on the floor of the hen house to make it nice and cozy.
We drilled ventilation holes towards the top of the coop. This helps keep the coop dry, as chickens produce a large amount of moisture.
We ran an extension cord and plugged in the heated base that the water fount sits on. This keeps the water from freezing when the temperatures drop. We filled the big feeder full of food.

The chickens were eager to explore their new home. They immediately started eating from the feeder and scratching at the grass. We gave them several handfuls of cracked corn as a bedtime snack. The corn gives them something to digest overnight, which helps keep their bodies warm.
Since this was their first night, they didn't know where to sleep, so we helped them in to the hen house and placed a small board over the pop door. That made it a little warmer inside and also made sure no one went out in the dark and cold.
The next morning they were snuggled together, warm and dry.

Breakfast!

Billina explores under the hen house

Sparrow examines the snow