Keeping Backyard Chickens in the Winter

Reader Contribution by Tammy Kimbler
Published on March 10, 2015

Minnesota has legendary harsh winters, and in recent years with the Polar Vortex, they’ve gotten dangerously unpredictable as well. Temperatures in Minneapolis routinely hit -10 degrees Fahrenheit with wind chills bottoming out around -30 degrees. This happens in 3-to-5-day sprints, four to five times during the winter months. Beyond that, average temps range between zero over night and 20 degrees during the day. Snow is the least of our worries, actually bringing welcome 25+ degree temps to the area.

Now bring chickens into this scenario. With planning and preparation chickens can be happy and healthy in harsh winter climates. We have four lovely laying chickens that have fared quite well this winter, but not without some serious effort on our part. Here are the things we have learned that really make a difference in the lives of our chickens and their owners.

Coop Placement

The position of your coop on your property (or in your backyard) relative to other buildings and the sun will determine much of the winter viability of your chickens. In the North we needed to expose our coop to as much sun as possible to warm it up. We also wanted to shield the coop from the north wind. We positioned our coop in a sunny spot where the roof was titled towards the south. We also place the coop between our garage on the north and our neighbors garage on the south, which blocked much of the north winds, which bring frigid wind chills. If you can not block the wind in this way, consider wrapping tarp around the north side of our exposed chicken run to give the flock some shelter while outside in the winter. If you’re in the city, check with the zoning and planning department as they may have some requirements that impact coop placement (ours had to be 40 feet from the street curb).

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