111 degrees! Washington Flock HELP!

[KahKaDoodleDo22]

Hi! I have a flock of 20 and it’s supposed to be between 100-111 degrees tomorrow for about 10 hours. My flock is so hot, they’re all in the house right now panting their little feathers. I have 6 broodie hens, I think I’ve broken all but 2 so that helps but I’m not sure what to do. I don’t want to lose any tomorrow. Anyone with flocks that have gone through this type of heat before?! Our humidity will be between 40-50 percent. High.

 

[Grandmas Coop]

@aart @penny1960
1. get electrolytes - Rooster Booster, Chick Quick start etc.....
2. get a fan going, they need air circulation

We have been chatting about this here:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-keep-chickens-cool-in-upcoming-heat-wave.1477756/

Also look at these
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/788391/keeping-chickens-cool-in-summer-heat

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/topic-of-the-week-keeping-chickens-cool-in-summer.1181934/

 

[pennyJo1960]

We are all going through this

 

[kurby22]

The above articles are good advice, I really like providing mine with the flat cooler ice packs. They love to lay on them when they get super hot, and they also love the ice cube treats. They get a mister, a fan, and ice cubes in their water with electrolytes. When they get super hot, I also fill a tub with cool water and make them stand in it. Good luck with the heat, that is brutal for that area :-/

 

[aart]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/

 

[gimmie birdies]

I have been freezing yogurt tubs filled with water and putting in one of the nest boxes, I have also been leaning a large board against the coop to take the brunt of the heat so the coop doesn't absorb it. I put more water tubs out so hens cannot bully other hens from drinking.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

So, the good news is that your humidity will actually drop as the heat increases, or it could be worse. As others have said - shade, airflow, electrolytes. If you have a shaded area where the birds can dig into the earth (world's largest heat sink!) even a few inches down, the ground temp should be about 80 degrees - which will help them tremendously.

Early morning, when you are 84-85 degrees and closer to 50% humidity, I would not be adding moisture to the air ala misters, etc. Our backyard birds, by and large, are a long way altered from wild rain forest chickens of the past - later when the temps do climb over 105 and the humidity drops below 20% , evaporative cooling solutions become more attractive.

 

[Swbertrand1]

+1 on the fans; get 'em going asap.

For the NC heat in the summers, we ran a water line feed off an existing underground line that feeds a garden hose bib to set up misters in one section of our run. We have a little underground box with lid where there's a cutoff valve to start the misters. The chickens, when VERY hot, will find their way to that mister to cool off.

I know that doesn't help today, but in the long run, our chickens have loved it!

 

[TJAnonymous]

You can also freeze a block of ice in a milk jug and then place that in front of your fan in the coop. It will help cool the air that blows in their direction.