How to prepare a chicken coop for Winter

If you are worried about how your much-loved chickens will handle the winter months we have both good news and some advice. Firstly, chickens are hardy, far hardier than we give them credit for and they will acclimatise to the winter months without too much intervention from yourself. That said, there are some checks and precautions you can take to make sure you have prepared your chicken coop for winter as well as giving your chickens as much comfort as possible.

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Why should you prepare your coop for winter?

Just like your home, your chicken's coop will become their safe haven over the winter months. Ensuring that you have invested some time into making sure it is ready for the colder months will pay off in the long term. Anyone who values their brood as much loved family members will want to make sure that everything they need is prepared for winter to avoid their birds becoming unhappy or uncomfortable.

Benefits of thoroughly maintaining your chicken coop.

- Your bird's health is undoubtedly a priority over the winter months, and by investing some time late in autumn you can help ward off winter illnesses in your flock.
- Looking after your investment, you have likely invested both time and money into your pets and their home and not taking the time to run through some checks might end up costing you in the long run. We suggest a thorough coop check and maintenance session at least once a year.
- Egg production, one of my favourite perks of chicken keeping is the fresh eggs...I don't want to see this drop off any more than necessary in Winter.

How to prepare and protect your chicken coop in winter.

Here's our checklist for the things you should be looking closely for when preparing a chicken coop for winter in the U.K, once these are completed you can rest safe in the knowledge your bird should be as comfortable as possible throughout winter.


- Your coop will need emptying thoroughly, we think this is a great time to do a deep clean. The main purpose of this exercise is to check the wooden frame and panels for any damage or areas that might need some attention. If you spot any areas that appear damaged they may need repairing, this is especially important if the area will let rain and wind in.


- Taking the time to wash, dry and apply a water-based preservative if your coop is 2+ years old is highly recommended; our coops come pre-treated but after 2 winters this should be done annually. This process will ensure your chicken coop will last for years, preventing issues caused by weather is far better than having to spend money repairing it instead.


- Whilst it might seem counterproductive to allow ventilation it remains a critical element of your chicken's health. Our Chicken Coops all have ventilation holes positioned high in the coop to allow a natural flow of air above your chickens, when buying or building a coop you should check these are positioned so your birds won't get an icy flow of air whilst they are roosting. Even during winter, it is important fresh, dry air can move through the coop, if this isn't provided the air can become damp and the bedding mouldy.


- Provide extra bedding, this might seem fairly obvious but some extra, high-quality bedding wouldn't go amiss. It's also worth pointing out that Chickens will often be reluctant to walk on the frosted or snowy ground much below -7 degrees, and adding hay or straw to their run might help them to want to stretch their legs.

Final home comforts to think about for your chicken coop in winter.

Your chickens will naturally climatise to the colder months, they are hardy and well-equipped to handle frost and snow, but they will definitely appreciate you doing the following;


- Increasing their food, they'll be burning up more energy to keep warm, a nightly top-up before bed will help fire up their energy stores.


- Make sure their water supply remains frost free, they will need access to it even in the coldest months.

- Stockpile food and bedding so irrespective of supply, delivery services or any other outside factor you can feed them.

- Your birds will be spending more time huddled together but it's important to provide some entertainment when they do venture out, try hanging a cabbage or treat feeder from their run or fitting a perch that hangs and swings to give them something to keep them moving.

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from 87 reviews

Fits perfect well made

Shaun O'Rourke
Waterproof Rabbit Run Cover - Large
Waterproof Rabbit Run Cover - Large

Ordered mine 10 min ago can't wait to get it up and start using was wondering if the door can be reAnneversed x

Anne Graham
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Husbands allotment

Hi we haven’t used it yet it’s still in its box too cold yet for spending too much time up there

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Good rain cover!

Covers the hutch and keeps the guinea pigs dry.
Delivered quickly!

EmCove
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Waterproof Rabbit Run Cover - Large
Great product

Instructions aren’t the best and resorted to YouTube for detail on how to do the door but apart from that everything else is great. Had lots of cable ties unlike others so looks like they’ve listened and put more in.

Simon Stevens
Small Outdoor Galvanised Cage - Walk In Chicken Run
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Perfect replacement cover

Can't add much to my review title except that delivery was very fast. Very impressed by 'Feel Good' and sure to be back.

Richard Wells
Bike Home - Replacement Cover - BH01
Bike Home - Replacement Cover - BH01
A company that shines above others

So I purchased a BH3, their biggest motorcycle tent, so you can imagine the size of my motorcycle trike.
As mentioned I have a trike that sits at 5’6” wide and 9’ long. She fits in there perfectly with room to walk round her and clean etc, and being 6’4” tall I can stand comfortably in there to work on the bike no matter what the weather.
About two years in we hit a storm and I made the mistake of pinning the front down which with the storm acted like sandpaper on the canvas and ripped it, (totally my fault) and left my bike bare like a hooker loosing her skirt !!
Anyway bought a replacement cover and fitted it, however noticed it had bad stitching and was concerned about her revealing herself behind my back … the shock and horror, lol.
I contacted the company and explained the stitching and showed photos with a time stamp and they didn’t hesitate to help.
We chatted about the problem over email and I was assured a replacement would be here shortly. Now we have all heard of smoke and mirrors, but about 5 hours later I had a text message saying my replacement cover, covered under manufacturer warranty would be here next day.
This is the sort of customer service and care that makes me return and give word of mouth praise to my biker community.
Firstly I want to say thank you to the company for honouring their warranty and secondly I want to thank them for showing other makers how customer service should be like.
Will i return to them? Without a doubt, the BH3 is the biggest trike garage out there out of other makes, and the service you receive is second to none
I want to say I have no affiliation whatsoever with the company nor was I paid for my honest opinion on my product. I just want to make sure others save themselves hassle buying a different make with less quality materials and a poor customer service. Stay here you honestly won’t find better.

Rusty
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Trike Cover - Replacement Cover - BH03
Wooden cold frame

Finished cold frame is good quality for the price. Think there could be a little more detail in the assembly instructions in one or two places, as i could see some people really struggling with some of the detail. Company were really helpful in locating package when delivery went amiss - fault of couriers, who were impossible to get hold of. Due to excellent customer service of Feel Good uk wouldn't hesitate to recommend

Stephen Waters
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Wooden Cold Frame
Excellent Chicken Coop

Arrived quickly, good delivery and at a good price. Assembled on my own so took a good weekend to complete.
Couple of minor gripes: The netting isn’t quite wide enough to span between each roof spar which is annoying and the tabs on the door latches are only on one side which is the wrong side for my set-up.
That said, there was plenty of netting and cable ties and the final result is surprisingly sturdy.

Leigh Parsons
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Amazing product

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Impressed

Ordred a similar item several years ago and was surprised that the price had doubled. however the newer item is of superior quality and i am very pleased with it

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Great hutch

Yet another brilliant hutch and so easy to set up … I am rubbish at DIY but I managed to put this together in less than half an hour. My rabbit had eaten the steps down to run so had to replace last one but had it for 2 years. I prefer the material it’s made of this time.

john mclaren
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Looks great

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Rebecca Fuller
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Change cover

My name Anita, I gave a speech impediment and I need to change the cover I ordered from a BH03 to a BH01, can you please help with this, it is still in it’s wrapping, my phone number is [****]. Many thanks

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