3 1/2 month chicken walking around with mouth open

[srfjeld]

I have a 3 1/2 month old black cochin who has taken to walking around with her beak parted open on occasion. I immediately thought gape-worm and checked her throat a couple days ago but I couldn't see anything.

Is this a normal behavior? Should I be concerned?

Thank you!

 

[kidcody]

Does this happen even when its cooler out ?

 

[acarter26]

She may be hot. They'll open they're mouths and pant to cool off.

 

[cat1994]

It could just be b/c he is hot my girls do this to cool down, was it like he was panting kind of like a dog does but without the tough hanging out of course

 

[srfjeld]

I think you guys have hit the nail on the head! I'm in Portland, Oregon and we rarely get too hot but we've actually had a few days of high 80s and actually have had some humidity the last couple of days. My cochin is my most feathered girl, but I just noticed my 4/mo old SLW is also panting a bit and is holding her wings a bit away from her body. So, I guess my next question is, how do you cool them down? I misted inside their run a bit today, which they hated... I mostly did it b/c it seemed like a dust bowl. Doesn't water just wick off their feathers? I'm not too too worried b/c this heatwave won't last long. I just spoil my girls and hate seeing any sign of discomfort.

 

[lynniev45]

I put in a pan of water for them to get into. They cool off that way.

 

[Auscal]

"how to cool them down"

Make sure they have plenty of shade - "tree shade" is cooler than artifical shade. I have found that wetting down the dirt in the run fairly thoroughly seems to help - my girls seem to enjoy tucking down in the damp dirt.

 

[PartridgeRooster]

Quote:
I'm sorry for that terrible heat wave, lol. Your chickens will be fine. Mine survived through constant 100 degree days for a week with 70 percent humidity. I use water pans and wetting the dirt, along with shade and ventilation.

 

[7L Farm]

High in the 80's I wish its been triple digits forever here. But seems your chickens aren't use to much heat so their probably just panting to cool down.

 

[LoreenH]

Quote:
Our summer has been pretty mild this year, hasn't it. My girls have been panting and walking around with their wings out too. Last night I ran the sprinkler in the area of the yard where they hang out during the day so the ground will be damp and maybe a bit cooler for them. They are locked in the coop at night but have the run of the whole backyard during the day.

I just noticed you said the one doing it the most is black, 5 of my 6 are dark in color and they pant way more than my golden EE. I'm sure it's partly because of color. When my black & white cat lays in the sun the black part of his coat gets hot but the white part stays cool.