Arizona Chickens

Sure. Keep my posted. Several of my NNs carry the blue and green egg genes, and still have single combs. I also get some lovely buff barring in some of the boys, and also some feathered shanks. I always breed for favorable temperament, and divide my flock into egg layers vs. meat birds. The pretty colors are a bonus. Here are few of my cockerels/roosters:
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I'm in awe! They are beautiful!!! Can't wait till my gator is empty to get some eggs!
 
I just went out to check my gals and found almost all of them moved out to their attached (secure) run so I re-filled their two 2 gallon water founts with cold water and electrolytes, and refilled their wading pans. They're now wading in them like they were doing today in the afternoon. I thought they couldn't see well in the dark but they seem to be getting around pretty good albeit slower. There's a bright moon tonight and I left a battery powered lantern on the lowest setting in the coop so I think they have enough light to see what's what. Has anyone else's birds spent the night in a secured run during the summer like mine are doing? I don't think it'll hurt anything but I'm worried they might not get much sleep tonight. I wish there was more I could do but I can't think of much else. This is my first summer here with chickens and I'm surprised they've done as well as they have. I think this environment is tough on any poultry or livestock.
Some of mine have been sleeping in the run, the rest in the coop. The heat seems harder on the chicks but the chicks hang out right under the misters.
 
Some of mine have been sleeping in the run, the rest in the coop. The heat seems harder on the chicks but the chicks hang out right under the misters.
Thanks for letting me know. This is my first year raising chickens here so I didn't know if mine were losing it or not but it sounds like they're just trying to keep as cool as possible - can't blame 'em for that. Geeze we're probably going to be looking at these temperatures for quite a while yet. This summer I'm a lot more sensitive to the high temps, not for me but for my gals. I was a wreck when I had broilers at 6 weeks old and the temps were up around 95. I lost 8 of them and learned a very valuable lesson and that's not to raise them unless they'll reach the proper weight sometime between October and March. After that incident I'm always paranoid I'll come home and find birds with heat stroke. So far though the Barred Rocks and Leghorns haven't had any problems, I can tell they're a bit uncomfortable during the afternoon but I haven't noticed anymore than that. Hopefully this summer will come and go and we'll all get through it ok.
 
I have some welsummers that love eating ficus tree leaves, does anyone know if that is bad for them? Does anyone have good plants for their chickens to munch on that grows well here in the heat? I would love to have a chicken run garden.
 
I have some welsummers that love eating ficus tree leaves, does anyone know if that is bad for them? Does anyone have good plants for their chickens to munch on that grows well here in the heat? I would love to have a chicken run garden.

Blue Dwarf Kale and Swiss Chard. My birds can't get enough of either of them and they both grow really, really well in the heat.
 
Has anyone experienced reduced egg laying in the heat as of late? I was getting 21-22 eggs a day from 25 birds but the last two days I only got 15 and 16 respectively. I thought they'd slow down as soon as it got above 100 but they didn't, so I'm wondering if it's something that happens when the hot days go on for a long time or something.
 
Has anyone experienced reduced egg laying in the heat as of late? I was getting 21-22 eggs a day from 25 birds but the last two days I only got 15 and 16 respectively. I thought they'd slow down as soon as it got above 100 but they didn't, so I'm wondering if it's something that happens when the hot days go on for a long time or something.

Oh yeah! I was getting 3 dozen per day, dropped down as low as 18, and have been vacillating between 22-30. The egg size has also gotten smaller for several of my girls.
 

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