Winter with Birds

The winter with the birds seemed to fly by.  The daily was going through some major changes and plans to sell the birds had already been put into place.  Regardless of this, I loved these birds throughout the winter.  There were no major issues throughout the cold months.  It was a mild winter for my area but we still had a few cold spells and some major dumps as far as snow fall goes.  The main issue in the cold months was of course water.  I managed to bring the large waterer with warm water every morning and afternoon and the birds would empty it before it froze each time… thanks to the ducks.  When building the coop we were sure to not have any low drafts and made the roosts flat so the birds would could keep their entire feet under their bodies rather than having to wrap their feet around a circular type roost.

If you have ever seen ducks or chickens in the cold you have seen how they will keep one foot tucked under their body for warmth while perched on one leg and then they switch.  During sleep it is difficult for the birds to do this so it is important to have a flat surface for them to roost.  

As for laying, the birds didn't slow down too much over the winter months.  They had been well into their fertile months and only slowed down moderately.  I usually got just under a dozen a day.  We also had a bird who laid double yolks on a regular basis.  The eggs were far larger than the rest, more like a duck egg, and the yolks were usually a fair size… poor girl.  

It was late in february that the birds were sold.  The chickens went to a local farmer who wanted to add to his flock and saw our for sale sign.  He stopped in one day and offered to take (for a price) the birds if we needed to rehome them.  The ducks also went to a different local farmer who added to their existing flock.  If only I were able to have some birds in the city… I would most certainly have 4-6 birds in my side yard… on day I'll be back on a property where I can have a flock, but until then its back to the Coop Co-Op.