There's a special kind of anxiety that comes with looking at your Wyandottes and wondering if they're ready for the big, bad outdoors. The question from one of our readers about whether their birds are feathered out enough for a 60-65 degree night is the kind of thing that keeps us all up at night. It's a cluck-tastic dilemma, really. You want to give them the world, or at least the run of the backyard, but you also don't want them shivering in their little fluffy pants. We've all been there, staring at the thermometer and then at the birds, trying to read their minds. It's a far cry from the pure joy of watching Six fluffy chicks have hatched—egg-cellent news from our feathered friends! or the quiet contentment of Tiny Marans Froment chicks are cluck-tastic, and currently napping!.
Let's be real: this is a game of fowl hide-and-seek where the prize is a good night's sleep for everyone involved. The practical answer isn't just about the temperature outside, but the temperature inside their coop. If they've been in a heated brooder, that's a shock to the system. We'd tell our reader to check their feather coverage, sure, but also to consider the wind. A drafty coop is the enemy of a good night's rest. We've seen it time and time again, and it reminds us of the chaos in Chickens Got Her Good! A Backyard Poultry Adventure, where things don't always go as planned. The key is to be confident but not reckless. If you're doubting it, that's your gut telling you to keep them inside for one more night.
Our honest take is that 60-65F is a very forgiving temperature for a fully feathered bird. The real question is whether they *are* fully feathered. Wyandottes are a bit slow to mature, and those fluff butts can be deceiving. You have to look at their wings and their bellies, not just their backs. If you have any doubt, err on the side of caution. It's not chickening out to wait a few more days; it's just good parenting. The cost of a few extra days inside is nothing compared to a sick bird.
The takeaway here is to trust your gut but verify your assumptions. Don't just assume they're ready because they look big. Give them a test night in the coop during the day to see how they react to the new space. Watch them. Are they huddling together, or are they exploring? That's your answer. And if they're not ready, that's okay. You're not failing them. You're just being a responsible, slightly paranoid, chicken parent. The moment they finally take to their perch outside and you hear that low, contented clucking, you'll know it was worth the wait.
