These chickens like snow! The eight remaining roosters have been out and about in some fairly wild weather, making their way through 6″ (15cm) blankets of snow, gusting winds and absolutely freezing cold. They always have the option of heading out of the little door in their half of the chickenhouse, or not. I’ve only kept it closed in the morning a couple of times, when the weather was ridiculously nasty. They’ve only stayed inside once by choice, on not such a bad day, which was a bit of a mystery (maybe snow had built up at their doorway that I didn’t notice). They still roam all over—chicken tracks just about everywhere in the barnyard snow—but tend to hang out on exposed ground, like around the small stand of trees in front of the farmhouse. So far, no frostbite and no frozen feet falling off. They’re pretty tough birds…
We just butchered 3 young roosters from this Spring’s hatch.
I cooked them in a pressure cooker hoping to get them tender.
Worked pretty well except for the drumsticks.
What’s going to become of your birds?
What breed is the one with the black feathers? He is a very handsome fellow.
Julie
He looks like one of my Delawares; a heritage, dual purpose breed that is somewhat rare in today’s chicken world. Not that they’re hard to find – they are just not real popular.
Our free ranging egg layers don’t seem to mind the snow too much either. Most days they range far and wide looking for patches of grass to eat or some exposed dirt to have a quick dust bath. I’ve seen them plowing through drifts up to their breast on their search for green. Tough birds indeed!
Those are beautiful birds. Funny, my California whites seem to hate snow. When I let them out these days they stay huddled under the tarp that protects the coop….
I love chickens and I love snow…your post is the first I’ve ever seen to put the two together! Wonderful shot, Kim
granny miller: What’s to become of them…? Good question. They’re gonna be like rubber now. I should’ve killed them around August, but they were small then. And we still have a supply of frozen White Rocks from the summer. I’ll figure something out… (BTW, I really enjoy your blog, it’s a split between all the practical stuff, and the political commentary… :)
Julie: That came up before, and I never did find out. They’re all supposed to be Frey’s Special Dual Purpose. I’ll look into it!
Thanks, this blog is a good resource for rural living.
Interesting, none of my chickens seem to like the snow, or will venture out of the barn into the white stuff. I have about 6 breeds, but none seem interested in getting their feet cold and wet!