# Protecting Immature Chickens Kept in Small Numbers in Otherwise Open Air Pens



## Closed Flock (Nov 17, 2020)

I have most of my chickens in smallish pens made so I can move easily. Small and movable makes them easy to displace by high winds or collapse when heavy wet snow involved. To get around those issues I make covers are small and protection from wind very localized, sometimes by where the pens are placed. The juvenile chickens, especially when mom not covering them, can have a hard time with wind chill. I added a wooden milk crate and affixed to pen material in middle upper length of pen directly below cover blocking snow and rain. The crate is oriented so everyone can walk in from roost pole. Here is how everything looks with mom still present. Soon mom will be placed in her own pen leaving juveniles alone. I expect the young birds to move into crate when wind-chill gets serious making it easy for them to stay warm.


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## Overmountain1 (Jun 5, 2020)

I noticed my juvenile white birds seemed to have a harder time staying warm than some of the other colors of the same age; it's like they didn't get their 'under fluff' as fast as the others. They stay in the coop when it's cold and windy for sure! The crate should help, as long as it stays oriented against the wind especially. Cute birds! Tell me more about them!


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## Closed Flock (Nov 17, 2020)

Black birds do seem better with heat gain from sunlight, which can be to their detriment when it is hot and sunny without access to shade. Today is cold and overcast, so staying warm is solely through heat generation and conservation. I upped their scratch allotments which they consumed even after full of complete feed. They are fluffed up and standing close together staying out of wind. No orientation relative to sun. If sun comes out they will position themselves to gain heat big time. Current temperature is about 22 F so below thermal neutral range.


All these changes in behaviors make the sail on pelycosaurs seem a lot more plausible as a heat gaining device. Chickens do the heat uptake in a big way despite being outright endothermic homeotherms even though they lack a sail.


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## Poultry Judge (Jul 15, 2020)

Closed Flock said:


> Black birds do seem better with heat gain from sunlight, which can be to their detriment when it is hot and sunny without access to shade. Today is cold and overcast, so staying warm is solely through heat generation and conservation. I upped their scratch allotments which they consumed even after full of complete feed. They are fluffed up and standing close together staying out of wind. No orientation relative to sun. If sun comes out they will position themselves to gain heat big time. Current temperature is about 22 F so below thermal neutral range.
> 
> All these changes in behaviors make the sail on pelycosaurs seem a lot more plausible as a heat gaining device. Chickens do the heat uptake in a big way despite being outright endothermic homeotherms even though they lack a sail.


Good point!


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## Overmountain1 (Jun 5, 2020)

Absolutely! You're so right too, we have seen the same in our darks vs lights and sunshine. We have some dedicated sun bathers in this flock, I tell ya!

Also a good point on the sail- it rly does make a kind of sense, especially for a lizard.


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## Closed Flock (Nov 17, 2020)

A challenge today has been keeping the young ones in water. High temperature was well below freezing making so liquid water only present for about an hour without intervention. Adult chickens in maintenance mode have no problem with that, but growing immature birds need more frequent access. Tomorrow I will try the crushed ice approach that does work for adults in part pecking out of boredom.


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## Closed Flock (Nov 17, 2020)

I am also moving pens regularly to keep birds on fresh ground and protect vegetation from too much damage. The moving also helps keep the birds in additional greens and also helps control worm burden. During summer pens can be put back over same patch of ground after a month or so, but any ground covered by pens now will not be good again until spring.


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