Winterizing the Tractors

WINTER WITH PORTABLE COOPS

Tennessee has a strange winter.  It may be freezing one week and 75 the next, or lows in the 20's with snow preceded by a few days in the mid-50s.  The average is 26 with RH low of 53, which is good chicken weather!  Single digits do happen and wind chill low of -15 degrees with dew point -9 degrees. So, better to be prepared for the worst and hope for the best!

This picture was made on January 20, 2016, at 11 a.m.  
24 hours later, 8" of snow had accumulated.

December, 2016  [My second winter with chickens!]

I have added 10 chickens to my flock, and three more tractors.  After researching Open Air Chicken Coops, and reading many testimonies about the success of these in the harshest of winters, I completely enclose the hoop in a tarp plus one end, leaving the access door side open.  This method slightly varied with design of the other tractors, but, basically, the access door side was left open.  To prevent the wind from directly hitting the waterer, a clear, plastic shower curtain covered the access door. 

January 6, 2017
Everything is good after the first cold days of winter.  Tonight, 9 degrees, wind chill 0 degrees.  See Cookie Tin Waterer for information on how to keep the water from freezing and updates!

Another thing I did was to cover the area beside the tractor with a sheet, when expecting snow.  This area would be the location once the tractor was moved.  So, pulling the sheet away, the ground and grass is exposed for the chickens.  Of course, with TN, it is unlikely the snow will last more than a few days, so I rarely covered more than one move.  ]The key is to move the tractor to a new spot immediately, once snow is predicted or likely, and cover the ground for the next move.  This guarantees the chickens will have access for at least 6 days.]