worried about my New Guinea hens
 

We have a pair of wild New Guinea hens that took up residents here the last few years. We feed then and they hang out all day then roost in the trees at night. They have a little shelter but only use in the rain.

The temperatures are getting cold, down to 12 degrees. Im worried they will freeze. Its never been that cold here before. How do they handle those temperatures? Should we try and catch them and put them in a shelter for a few days.? Is there anything that will help them in the cold?
Also they used to eat chicken food but have stopped eating. They will only eat the black oil sunflower seeds the birds eat. They ignore the feed and wait for me to put out the sunflower seeds. Are they getting enough nutrients from that?

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

If I were you I would let them have the black oil sunflower seeds for now. Perhaps increase the amount of those you are letting them have. If they are making this choice for themselves at the moment it could well be because it is what they instinctively feel is the best food for them in these conditions.

Since they have a shelter available and there are two of them that can snuggle up together I would not be too worried about them freezing unless it gets colder yet. 12 C is still well above freezing.

I'll ask Raven Dancer if she has any suggestions, she is very good with birds.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

I've got 5 Rhode Island Reds that I made a small box coop for and have put one of the catalytic heaters out for each of the last two nights. Will do the same through the cold snap here in Atlanta. The small bottle of propane lasts long enough during the night to keep it above freezing I think.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

I have a wild chicken hen (Nelly) that roost out back under a semi-trailer. She does fine on these cold nights (12 degrees). I also have 5 hens and a rooster that are penned in for the winter, never had a problem, just feed them heavy before they roost for the night. A gullet full of feed helps them stay warm. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p>
About the Black Oil Sunflower over chicken feed, they are spoiled! They like the black oil better than the corn, and they know you'll be there with the good stuff.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Yup! You spoiled them with the sunflower seeds. My chickens gobble up the scratch feed I give them and only eat the chicken feed because I don't give them all the scratch they would eat. As for the cold, if they've been out in the climate, chances are they will survive just fine. I have my hens in a coop, all 26, they seem to get along just fine and I leave the little door to their run opened 24/7. It will be down single digits or below zero this week here. I'm not planning on supplying any extra heat source for them. Their coop seems to stay quite a bit warmer than the outside air.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Up north all my neighbors have some kind of heat in their hen houses.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

[What happened to that "Off-Topic" smilicon? when you need it] :biggrin:

Sorry, I've got another New Guinea on my mind today.

...New Guinea Gold, that is. (One of my favorite junior miners). Very high grade ore right on the surface. They're just now starting to scoop it up. Today's news release: http://biz.yahoo.com/ccn/090114/2009...1001.html?.v=1

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

My chickens have been fine at 6 below zero in their coop. Chickens just need somewhere to keep the wind off them. They are insulated with a layer of fat and feathers. We are supposed to see 10 below zero tonight and tomorrow and a high of 10 above. The biggest problem is keeping their water from turning into a chunk of ice.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Yes, they should be fine as long as they have some shelter from the wind. Just make sure that there is liquid water available and send them to roost with full tummies - corn scratch or feed. People who truly like to spoil their birds will bring them a warm mash (oatmeal, etc...) for breakfast.

Check out the backyard chickens forum if you are still concerned. There are a lot of active threads on cold weather in the managing your flock section right now.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

the forum is really cool..Looks liek lots of people cook for their birds.. I wonder if my hens would like warm oatmeal. Ill try it in the morning..

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Avalon, don't freeze your tail feathers getting out there in the morning to feed your birds....:36_1_63::111::thumb.aspx: I do have a heater for their water so they always have warm water to drink when they want. I also have a light on a timer in the coop to wake them early about 4 AM. When ever I go out near their run they always come running to see what kind of goodies I have for them.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

I have to agree with the posters who say that they should be fine as long as you can keep the wind off of them. With some feed and some water they should be fine. My girls are all inside, but it is chilly in their building... cold enough that the water would freeze if it weren't sitting on a heater. Seems pretty warm, though, when you go in there to do chores after doing all of the outside ones first! As I type this it is 5 below zero and I just came in from the great outdoors. Have to go back out soon... think warm thoughts for me!

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

I watched a humorous and interesting documentary about people's relations to chickens and one of the stories involved a lady whose pet chicken ending up freezing to "death". I included quotes because the thing was actually in suspended animation and after thawing out for a few hours it awoke and behaved as normal.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

And Mtn Man thought the sunflower seeds constituted spoiling?! You could always knit them little coats as well Avalon.:wink:

They are just lucky they are not up here, it is supposed to be -19 tonight, and it has been -30 where Raven Dancer is.:36_1_63:

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

well its just so damn cold out there.. The poor little hens look so cold. They are waiting outside my bedroom window at dawn every morning�I will try the warm oatmeal in the morning. I could put some raisins in it too.. I'm not sure they will eat it though. they only seem to like the sunflower seeds and bugs. If they don't eat it I'm sure the squirrels will.

My poor Pomeranian gets distressed when I feed other animals. She is a food hog. I took her with me to feed my brotherinlaws ponies and she went right through the fence and tried to grab the carrots from them...

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Black oil sunflower seeds have a high fat content. Best thing to eat when its cold.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

At my brothers place in Colorado it typically gets down to -20 F quite a bit. He's up at 8300 feet altitude. They provide no heat to their Araucanas. They do fine. Many of them keep laying right through the winter.

s

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Probably the best thing to do is go ahead and eat the guinea hens tonight.

Save the Pomeranian for later.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Greenspirit, bite your tongue!

Avalon, what you really need is a proper coop for them. Then they could use need a few friends, just to help keep them warm. :bear_w00t:

Chickies! Everybody needs more chickies! :banana:

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

The hens are fine this morning. Friday night is going to be the cold one at 12 degrees.:36_1_63:

I got up at dawn and made them some oatmeal with grapes and carrots. They ignored it and ate the sunflower seeds.:banghead:

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

we are talking about a chicken coop. I suspect its going to have to be pushing it to get it started. The problem is these are free range birds that just showed up a few years ago. I don't think they have ever been penned up. I am a little worried about hurting them trying to round them up. They are hysterical little creatures and get panicked over the slightest little thing..

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Good advice above they will be OK.

E-A

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

They know what the high energy food is. Sunflower is high in oil. Birds have a higher body temp than we do. Thats one of the ways they can handle the cold. Just keep pushin' the seeds. They'll be fine. :23_1_22:



s

Avalon: Here's what you need!
 

Don't they look fetching? :rofl:

http://editorial.jpress.co.uk/web/Up...50chicken1.JPG

http://www.northamptonchron.co.uk/ne...ens.4867968.jp

Hens kept warm by WI jumpers
A brood of rescued battery hens has been knitted jumpers by the Women's Institute to keep them warm during the winter weather.

Re: Avalon: Here's what you need!
 

You do realize that those things might actually make those girls colder right.

By compressing their feathers, the pin feathers underneath can't fluff up and create those downy air pockets that keep them warm.

They are kinda cute and crafty though. I would assume you take them off for butchering??? lol couldm't resist!!!

s

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Those sure do look fun to try and get on there, whew!

Re: Avalon: Here's what you need!
 

Not my idea...I just post the stuff. Anyway, they were made for rescued battery chickens. Lots of times those sad factory birds will be mostly plucked from living in overcrowded cages. They pull each others feathers out due to boredom, poor nutrition, and rivalry for space, the poor birds. And they never got to have anything pretty, either!
:rofl:

Re: Avalon: Here's what you need!
 

Hi Cassandra, I understand. My philospophy is "Free Range" is by far the best. Of course they still molt in the early summer. Nothing worse lookin' than a bunch of scruffy half nekkid chickens running around. Now if they had some silage juice to drink they could be drunk, scruffy half nekkid chickens. That would be a sight!!!!

s :36_3_12:

Re: Avalon: Here's what you need!
 

:111::111::111:

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Im happy to report the little hens made it through. They had a rough day the temperatures got into the teens. They ate sunflower seeds all day and kept tucking one foot up to stay warm. The day it snowed they didn't come out of the tree at all. They don't like wet feet in either the rain or snow..

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Avalon, My hens made it through fine, but they have a coop. I usually open their gate so they can get out and run around free range. Some of them come out and do run around a bit. Others won't even come out of the coop unless I go in and run them out, then they turn right around and go right back in. I've also noticed a drop in egg production with this lack of activity.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Avalon,

Just keep them well fed. If there's no wood in the stove, the fire can't burn! Also a source of water, as metabolizing food into heat energy requires water.

You might want to look into "suet" at your local hardware store. put it in a location they can access and see what happens. If the hens don't enjoy it, you'll still see a cluster of other birds there in no time.

Ironically, I used to wilderness guide for a while and when I put mixed bird seed in my hands, the chickadees would land and steal the sunflower seeds but leave everything else. Animals know what they need best I guess.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Glad they are OK, Avalon. I was wondering how they got on in view of you saying you got snow.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

I haven't had time to read all the posts but will add this: I have had no problems with chickens in minus 20 celsius provided things are dry. Keep them out of the wet. There are chickens native to the prairie where extreme cold exists. A dry shelter with no heat works well. If they don't use it they don't need it.

Also, using propane heaters and such give some thought to oxygen. Burners use it.

All fwiw.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

something got one of my birds last night... The other one is running around calling it. Life is cruel..

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Sorry to hear that one is missing. Just for info, where my cousin used to live there were two gun that used to roost in his fir trees out front. It got much colder than 12 degrees and they did just fine.

Not discouraging you from building something, just letting you know. I disagree that life is cruel. Although it is easy to believe so.

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

They used to sleep high up in the trees until till it got so cold. They started roosting in the pampas grass at night recently. I have been seeing a strange cat hang out in that area. i suspect the cat got it. We will set a trap tonight so it doesn't get the other one..

That's one of my reservations about building a chicken house. I couldn't handle it if something slaughtered them at night. I figure if we build one it will have to have an electric fence around it..

We will have to agree to disagree about life being cruel.. I know everything has its purpose but I see some very cruel things in my job at the hospital..

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Roosting in the grass, could have also been a fox, but my son's tom cat likes to plague my chickens when I open the gate and let them free range. However, if he sees me he high tails it for home. He knows my :452: voice! Can't tell me cats don't remember. He only runs off if he knows he is doing wrong and gets caught in the act, rest of the time he is a real pest.

As for life, I too worked at a hospital for almost 20 years, makes a person a bit cynical about life. As for being a war vet, you take on the attitude that "Life sux and then you die!" :signs14:

Re: worried about my New Guinea hens
 

Why do you think something will get to you guineas if you DO build a chicken coop?

Build it well, and shut the door every night, and they will be safe.

The only time we've had problems was when we used to leave the door open. Something was climbing over the fence around the chicken yard and entering through the door.

Shut door, and no more missing chickens.