Rachel Hurd Anger
Any suggestions for chicken and hurricane in Florida ? Leave them in the coop ? interlock them in the shed ? What ’s best for them?—Jeff , via Facebook
I bang this interrogation . Because my experience is raise crybaby in Kentucky , I broadly speaking focus on the severe weather most common to me : thunderstorms and snowstorms , though neither is as common now as they were back in my home plate state . But millions of people live along the East Coast in what ’s make out as hurricane alley . During my 2 - year least sandpiper living in Norfolk , Va. , I was able to receive a little spot of that severe East Coast weather condition and a couple nor’easters , though that was long before my chicken days .
Hurricane? Batten Down The Hatches
Jeff , I remember patently honest-to-goodness common common sense is your friend when it come to hurricane prep . count on exactly where you live , your personal experience with the military unit of winds , the amount of flooding common to your area , the damage your sphere has sustained , and your anticipation of what would happen to a coop or a shed under those atmospheric condition , you ’ll know exactly what to do .
If there ’s even one dear affair about hurricanes , it would be that you know they ’re coming well in onward motion . You have meter to either prepare or get out of Dodge . If your coop has windows , board them up just as you would on your plate , and if there ’s ventilation system open to the counseling of the oncoming violent storm , I would secure that , too .
If your coop is roving , it might be a good idea to move it to a more secure location — away from tree diagram and verbatim winds . If you have a stationary coop and you ’re not certain it ’s unafraid enough , a sturdier shed might be safer for your birds . However , if your hencoop is rock substantial , clit up those biddies and make trusted they have enough food and water in face you ’re not able to get to them until after the storm .
Tornado? Duck and Cover
Tornadoes are the most severe weather case in the Midwest and central part of the U.S. And what do we do when they come ? We hide in basements or in the most central locations of homes without basements . What we do with our chickens is another thing .
Due to the nature of the crack cocaine — its random touchdown and minute and almost healthy route of destruction — they’re harder to prepare for . Most of us — the luckiest of us — cover in our safe station for no grounds . A neighbor ’s downed tree might be the worst thing we see in the aftermath because total destruction is so uncommon .
spoilt - case scenario , if your henhouse is humble enough and both illumination and heavy enough , a tornado that hit at just the right spot and prison term can foot that coop right up off the ground . A heavier structure might be safer for your plenty in the event of a crack , but this is so improbable that I would n’t do it . I will include that I have not moved my birds due to severe weather . Gathering chicken takes time , and my family ’s safety comes first .
If grave weather is expected and you have enough time to organise , move a nomadic coop away from Tree and near a fence to block some of the wind if you could . you’re able to cover a fixed coop with a tarp to protect ventilation from jazz and the horizontal rain common with the weather that breeds tornadoes . When the threat of a tornado has passed , remove the tarpaulin so your volaille can breathe easy .
If severe atmospheric condition come on on the spur of the moment , as it sometimes does without much word of advice , always protect your class first , never your chickens . Grab your weather radio , blankets , books , piddle and bite , and get to your secure place . In the event of an emergency , when chickens think they sky is fall , they will take protection where they feel safest . That ’s unremarkably in the structure you ’ve made for them . Most often , just like you , they ’ll be fine .
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