Arizona Chickens

[BlueBaby]

It's 103 here today. The 4% humidity makes it feel like my eyes are filled with sand and crumbled Saltines. Is anyone else still in triple digit temps?

It's still better then last month was.

 

[Happy Novogens]

It's 103 here today. The 4% humidity makes it feel like my eyes are filled with sand and crumbled Saltines. Is anyone else still in triple digit temps?

We're reading just 98 right now. But my eyes are dry for sure.

 

[BlueBaby]

We're reading just 98 right now. But my eyes are dry for sure.

96 over here. Just finished a bowl of cherry ice cream. I left a little bit in the bowl for Buster to lick out. The dog has had his spoiling for the day.

 

[ChicksnMore]

Highest we hit here over the week was 100. Sounds like it's cooling a bit for the weekend? Hopefully!

 

[BlueBaby]

Highest we hit here over the week was 100. Sounds like it's cooling a bit for the weekend? Hopefully!

There's supposed to be high wind's tomorrow, that can increase the size of any fires if there is one near you.

 

[Reluctant_keeper]

Any AZ chicken people out there? I am looking for some advice on raising chicks in the desert. I'm in Mesa. Does it get too hot out here? I have four 20 day old chicks, 3 Buff Orps and 1 leghorn. Do we need to do anything special here

Hi! My family is right next to Cave Creek limits. When the daytime temp runs up to 95° and above, we kick in the misters (AeroMist). We've been running their cheapie system (150 psi) for 5 yrs but realized when we burned up pumps every 2 yrs that we probably need a better system. Will be installing a 300 psi system this spring. BUT it has helped them endure the daytime heat. We have lots of shade with our citrus trees too. However, if the temps do not drop below 85° by 21:00, we start bringing them in so they get a break from the heat and kennel them in our home to recover overnight. Leaving them out to try and pant thru the heat invites respiratory acidosis that quickly turns into pneumonia and death.

We do not turn out the chicks until they are 18 weeks and older just to make sure they get acclimated. This year, we did something different and purchased chicks in early June. They've been exclusively indoors but we were starting to put them outdoors in a run UNTIL a bobcat killed our mature hens recently. They still go outside but ONLY under supervision. Working on electrifying the tops of our block walls to see it that'll put an end to the predations.

 

[ChicksnMore]

Hi! My family is right next to Cave Creek limits. When the daytime temp runs up to 95° and above, we kick in the misters (AeroMist). We've been running their cheapie system (150 psi) for 5 yrs but realized when we burned up pumps every 2 yrs that we probably need a better system. Will be installing a 300 psi system this spring. BUT it has helped them endure the daytime heat. We have lots of shade with our citrus trees too. However, if the temps do not drop below 85° by 21:00, we start bringing them in so they get a break from the heat and kennel them in our home to recover overnight. Leaving them out to try and pant thru the heat invites respiratory acidosis that quickly turns into pneumonia and death.

We do not turn out the chicks until they are 18 weeks and older just to make sure they get acclimated. This year, we did something different and purchased chicks in early June. They've been exclusively indoors but we were starting to put them outdoors in a run UNTIL a bobcat killed our mature hens recently. They still go outside but ONLY under supervision. Working on electrifying the tops of our block walls to see it that'll put an end to the predations.

Saw you were asking in another thread for ideas. I hope the electrified walls help. I've had problems in the past with bobcats, coyotes and polecats of all things. I've never tried electric fencing but for me having dogs does the trick. Mine aren't specially trained to guard my birds but just having them works. They refresh the smell of themselves daily . They grew up with my birds and learned from day one that they're family. They stay outside a lot but get to come inside if we drop down to freezing, during excessive heat and for at least a little while each day. They're family after all. Even though they're not always with my birds, nothing ever messes with them, not even hawks. We had one bobcat try in the last 11-12 years that we've had our current dogs. Before that we lost 2 flocks trying to find a non-dog predator solution. The bobcat that tried with our current dogs came at night and did succeed at killing one chicken that roosted too close to the bars of the coop, but my dogs got the bobcat. They made such a commotion that I went to check and was able to call them off so the bobcat survived. It's never come back, and I'm willing to bet it avoids yards that smell of dog now.

I know dogs aren't for everyone, but boy they sure work miracles for keeping predators off of my property!

Good luck!

 

[BlueBaby]

Hi! My family is right next to Cave Creek limits. When the daytime temp runs up to 95° and above, we kick in the misters (AeroMist). We've been running their cheapie system (150 psi) for 5 yrs but realized when we burned up pumps every 2 yrs that we probably need a better system. Will be installing a 300 psi system this spring. BUT it has helped them endure the daytime heat. We have lots of shade with our citrus trees too. However, if the temps do not drop below 85° by 21:00, we start bringing them in so they get a break from the heat and kennel them in our home to recover overnight. Leaving them out to try and pant thru the heat invites respiratory acidosis that quickly turns into pneumonia and death.

We do not turn out the chicks until they are 18 weeks and older just to make sure they get acclimated. This year, we did something different and purchased chicks in early June. They've been exclusively indoors but we were starting to put them outdoors in a run UNTIL a bobcat killed our mature hens recently. They still go outside but ONLY under supervision. Working on electrifying the tops of our block walls to see it that'll put an end to the predations.

Hello and welcome to BYC, and to our Arizona state thread. I hope that you find a solution. I haven't noticed any bobcats around my place, but there are coyotes around and sometimes dogs are running loose. I don't free range my flock, and the coyotes do sometimes run through my yard. I have noticed some coyote poop near one end of my covered run, but my flock has been ok.

 

[BlueBaby]

When I went out there to top the water off and do a last check on them and for eggs, all the chickens and ducks were laying down together. It was picture perfect, but I didn't have my cell phone with me to take a picture. It was too windy out there to worry about going to get it in the house.

 

[CaroleW]

@CaroleW what about those new babies?

8 Bielefelder chicks
2 Bf/NN chicks
1 Roger/Cowgirl NN chick

We had electrical work/shutoff happening on Friday so I had incubator hooked up to generator waiting on 6 more to hatch - this was 2 days after hatch day as counted on the incubator. I didn't see any signs of movement or pipping on any of those 6 eggs so turned off incubator Friday early evening. When I cracked the eggs I found--
1 NN (never pipped) chick
3 Bf (never pipped) chicks from Bluebaby Bf eggs -- so all 8 left in incubator were actually fertile
1 of my Bf (never pipped) chicks -- all 4 of my Bf were actually fertile eggs
1 non-fertile Roger/Cowgirl egg

Sorry no update till now - my passwords/internet got messed up and then I was busy with chicks and more until now to try to fix anything. Also out of storage for pics on system I usually use so next fix is that (but not yet).