Conditions of Laying hens in winter need very skillful methods, This happens for various reasons. The most common is improper maintenance of layers in winter at home. Serious expenses will not be required, but all the efforts will pay off with stable winter egg laying.
Preparing the chicken coop for winter
In winter, the hen house becomes the main place where hens spend their time. Egg production directly depends on comfort. In unfavorable conditions, hens spend a lot of energy on producing and maintaining heat. A stable temperature regime, the right level of lighting, proper nutrition, and complaints that hens do not lay eggs well will be a thing of the past.
First, you need to decide on the optimal conditions for keeping:
- The temperature in the hen house in winter should be within the range of +12…+18°C. A sharp decrease or increase is fraught with a significant decrease in the number of eggs. If in the southern regions, the hens will survive the winter without an additional source of heating, then in the temperate zone, and especially in the north, lamps may be required to heat the hen house.
- Relative humidity is recommended to be kept at 60–80%. The indicator is maintained using a ventilation system, preferably with adjustable valves. The air in the chicken coop in winter should be fresh but without drafts.
- The lighting of the chicken coop during the day should last at least 14 hours. If in summer the birds have enough natural light, then in winter it is not enough. You cannot do without electricity. It is recommended to install communications in advance and switches for convenience can be equipped with timers. It is better to choose fluorescent lamps.
Make sure that there are no cracks or holes in the coop that will allow cold air to enter and create a risk of draughts; the windows must close securely.
The lamps for heating the chicken coop and for its lighting are placed so that the hens cannot get injured or damage the equipment. If there are frequent power outages in the area, take care of a generator. It will ensure that the laying hens are kept in winter without unnecessary stress.
These are the basic conditions under which hens lay eggs in winter. In addition, it is necessary not only to provide heating and lighting in the hen house in winter but also to ensure hygienic standards of maintenance. To do this, the room must be carefully puttied and disinfected.
All surfaces (floor, ceiling, walls, perches, nests) are treated with an aqueous solution of lime (2 kg per standard 10-liter bucket) or another agent with similar characteristics. The bedding in the nests must be changed to new.
Maintaining optimal temperature
In a warm climate, the problem of how to keep laying hens in winter, providing them with an optimal temperature, can be solved with improvised means. As a rule, it is enough to lay a deep litter and the birds will maintain the regime themselves.
The source of heat will be the droppings. As it decomposes, it will release methane and thus solve the problem of how to heat a chicken coop in winter. The main thing is to take care of hygiene and ventilation.
The bedding for the chicken coop for the winter is laid on top of the bare, previously disinfected floor. Usually, sawdust, peat, chopped straw, or hay are used for it.
The minimum bedding layer is 10–15 cm. It is poured in parts, carefully compacted, and then more is poured. The bedding material is completely replaced when the weather gets warmer. In winter, make sure it does not get compacted, for this purpose it is stirred with a pitchfork or rake, each time a new layer is poured on top.
As a rule, deep litter provides the necessary temperature even in a moderate climate, provided that the chicken coop is solid, without cracks, and with good thermal insulation.
In harsher conditions, to prevent hens from laying eggs, it is worth considering and using different heating methods, depending on the conditions and financial capabilities:
- heat guns;
- radiators;
- stove heating (as an alternative – potbelly stoves);
- lamps for heating the chicken coop.
When placing a heater, make sure that the chickens cannot be injured. It is important to ensure fire safety for your charges.
Proper nutrition of laying hens in winter
Temperature and light in the hen house are far from the last conditions for hens to lay eggs in winter. Without a balanced diet, the laying hen will not be able to form a sufficient number of eggs at the right time. The body’s reserves will quickly be exhausted, which will lead to a premature end to the productive age.
For laying hens, it is better to buy high-quality compound feed. It contains the necessary balance of nutrients, vitamin and mineral premixes, and often medications to prevent health problems in laying hens.
If high-quality compound feed is unavailable, you can make it yourself. It is important to maintain a balance of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, and enrich the grain mixture with animal proteins, minerals, and vitamins.
For adequate nutrition of laying hens in winter, you will need cereals (corn, wheat, barley, oats), legumes, as well as oilcakes, meals, fish and meat and bone meal, chalk, salt, lime, industrial premixes. Cereals can be given separately, without crushing. This way they are digested longer and provide the necessary energy reserve.
Keeping layers in winter requires sufficient caloric intake and a variety of diets. It is recommended to give the hens grated vegetables, both fresh and boiled.
Using wet mash is possible provided that you can give it warm.
Chickens need to be fed twice a day: in the morning and the evening. Wet food is given in the first half of the day, and dry food in the second half.
In a separate feeder, you need to give small river pebbles, sand, and shell rock – they contribute to the digestive process in laying hens. Water is left in open access. It is changed often, each time pouring warmed to the temperature of the chicken coop. Too cold causes health problems for hens.
As a rule, the main problem in winter is the lack of vitamins and sunlight. The first can be solved with grass meal, chopped hay, vegetables, and root crops, and the second – only by letting the chickens out for a walk.
Winter walk
For hens to lay eggs in winter, they need to be provided with a sufficient level of physical activity; the opportunity to bask in the sun. Despite the cold, hens need vitamin D to absorb calcium. Even in severe frosts, they can be let out for a walk for 10-15 minutes.
The enclosure should be adjacent to the hen house. It is fenced with a net not only around, but also from above – from birds of prey. It is recommended to lay wooden boards along the walking area, and throw straw or other bedding material to prevent frostbite of the hens’ feet.
You can hang bunches of dried nettles or hay in the enclosure so that the hens have an additional source of fiber and vitamins.
Winter maintenance of chickens must be organized taking into account their physiological characteristics. A container with ash or sand must be placed not only in the hen house, but also in the walking area. It is recommended to cover it each time to prevent moisture from getting in. Then the happy layers, having walked and bathed to their heart’s content, will lay eggs steadily all winter.
Tips and tricks
Despite the apparent complexity, keeping chickens at home in winter is easy to organize. Once you have taken care of a capital chicken coop with all the necessary communications in the form of electricity and ventilation, you will only have to adhere to a few rules:
- Follow the recommended stocking rates. No more than 5 layers per 1 m2 of the chicken coop floor. Chickens experience stress in cramped conditions. This causes pecking and a decrease in egg production.
- Feed a balanced diet and follow a feeding schedule.
- Provide a walk. Without physical activity, chickens will quickly become obese and stop laying eggs.
- Maintain cleanliness: regularly wash feeders and waterers, and provide chickens with a container of ash or sand for bathing to protect them from parasites. It is important to regularly add a fresh layer of bedding material and constantly stir up the old one to avoid excessive moisture, and, consequently, the development of pathogenic microflora.
- Monitor the temperature of the chicken coop in winter and, if necessary, turn on additional heating.
- Increase and decrease lighting gradually as daylight hours change. Light in the coop is stressful for chickens. Too much daylight without a transition can cause chickens to stop laying eggs.
If you maintain the recommended optimal conditions for keeping and feeding hens in winter, there will be no interruptions in egg laying. Otherwise, the hens do not lay eggs for other reasons, such as molting, resting, being too young or, conversely, too old.
