It's HOT - Keep your birds feeling their best! - Page 7

I have put frozen bottles in the water also.  Then I took that silver bubble wrap insulation from  Home Depot or Lowes and made a sleeve cover for the water containers. You can also cover top.  If you have the big metal ones you can leave handle exposed.  I found this helps keep water cooler longer.

My girls also like to sit on damp sand.

in oregon, its only suppost to get up to 73 today where i live!

Try giving your birds cucumbers.....  They've got more electrolytes than Gatorade!   Too -- old wives tale alert -- feeding your birds cukes supposedly also results in bigger eggs.

I didn't see this but I used to use this trick to help combat texas summer heat.  Where I lived at the time there was very little breeze so cooling them off was important.

I had a large hackberry tree in my yard that grew over the coop and pen area.  So, to help cool it down, not only would I spray their sand down but I would also spray the leaves of the tree.  You could feel the difference in the area right around them.  Sometimes, since it is so dry I would have to do it twice to three times a day but it does work.

As far as the swamp cooler method, if you don't have burlap and you need them cool asap, cut a bath towel in strips and hang the strips all around the area.  They do help but not as efficiently as the burlap.

Another hot weather trick I have learned is that you can buy the dog waterers that take the 2 liter bottles.  You fill a few bottles with water and freeze them.  You put the frozen water bottle on the dog waterer and as it melts (which in 113 degree weather doesn't take as long as you would think) they will be supplied with nice cool water.  Make sure if you use this method that you tie your bottle to the fence as invariably you will get at least one that will figure out how to sit on top of it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimbo1989 

Doesanyone know wats the breed name for the hen in the ad

Not sure, but I think it may be a Marraduna Basque hen 

104 here and bad storm here in the shenandoah valley of virginia tonight ...chickens panting dogs too ..misters cool the air even if chickens do not want to get wet...any Virginia chicken lovers on here?

When my dogs get too hot they don't like eating and just chug water which doesn't hydrate them because of how fast they drink it. So I have found that stuffing the waterbowls full of icecubes helps. They drink slower and have cool water. Sometimes thwey eat the ice... Eating ice (or frozen watermelons for chickens since watermelon is mostly water) is great because it ACTUALLY hydrates rather then chugging water. For the rabbits I offer frozen water bottles for them to lay against and make sure they have lots of air motion.

Another trick we have for the rabbits is stone slabs. Ussually granite. These go in the back of the fridge overnight until morning. Then they go in the cages to give the rabbits a cool place to lay down. The granite holds the cold really nicely. Hope this helps someone!

Burlap is best because it lets air through while also holding the water.  You can often get them for free or cheap at a coffee roasting company if you have any near you.  You can also get burlap at garden centers. 

We've had 106 to 108 this week. Our nine-week-old pullets and cockerels seem to be doing OK in the shade. I put some ice cubes in their water reservoir twice a day and dampen half of their enclosure with the garden hose. I also give them cool treats in the afternoon, such as refrigerated ears of corn and apple cores (with plenty of apple left)  which really excites them. I tie the treats to a string that dangles them several inches from the ground. An ear of corn keeps them busy and happy for hours, even in this heat. They are far tougher than me!