Chicken Popsicles, Anyone tried this?

[Cowgrl4life]

Here's the finished product. Gotta wait til tomorrow to give it to them though, They were all asleep by the time I got home from work tonight. I think I'd like to set up a fan outside soon too. I'm thinking Ice in the water might be a good idea too.

I've done that with water bottles for rabbits before, hadn't crossed my mind for chickens.

 

[dchickenman]

What a slick idea! I always give my dogs ice cubes as treats on hot days, don't know why I never thought of something like that for the chickens

 

[crittersitter]

Great idea!!!!

 

[Dora'smom]

Let us know how they like it. It's not anywhere near hot yet in NW Oregon, but will probably be so in a month or two, and I'd like to try this.

 

[Cowgrl4life]

Gave them to them today, but I was in and out quickly for work so I didnt really get to see their reaction. No traces left of them though so I know they ate them. I'll make more tonight and try and watch them tomorrow now that they know what it is and see how they react

 

[DragonEggs]

This is SUCH a GREAT idea!

I'm gonna try little ice cube treats with cereal and milk.

 

[Buttercup Chillin]

What chicken wouldn't like grain any way they can get it.

But I pull all afternoon grain when it's past 90 degrees. Its been a 100 here lately. They get ice cubes in their water basins, they drink it and stand in it to cool off. If you have a chicken with heat exhaustion stand them in ice water to cool them off fast. They get ACV in their drinkers in the hen house, it could be my imagination, but it seems to help them handle the heat. They get chopped Cucs and carrot shreds, etc. from the frig or in frozen cubes. They get watermelon and cantalope and so do we. They get cool salad trimmings in the heat of the day.

I do give them grain 1st thing in the morning and when its time to go back to their yard in the evening. I have read so many times that grain heats them up when they digest it that in extreme heat I don't give it to them during the day. Last year I had one hen that had a problem with heat no matter what I did, I was always standing her in water. Some say naw, but I know when I eat oatmeal or corn meal it warms me up. A favorite winter food. This is summer.

Make sure they are cool in their nesting boxes, you don't want a bad surprise when gathering eggs. Yes, chickens can have heat strokes. Our nesting boxes are on the outside of the hen house, so we put hardware cloth on the backside with a door that flops down when I want them to have a screened back side. This way they don't overheat while laying their eggs in the afternoon.

 

[DragonEggs]

Well, I made my treats. Theyre a mix of honey comb cereal, special k cereal, corn flakes, oatmeal and dried apples crushes up and mushed in soy protein enriched milk tea. I put it in ice cube trays and filled them the rest of the way with water. They're in the freezer now and should be ready by the morning. I had so much fun making them that I made my own chicken chex mix with all the above dry ingredients, added some whole grain tortilla chips, popcorn, toast, eggshells, and just a dab of cocoa pebbles. The eggshells are to make sure no one else but the chickens eat them. In the morning I'll scramble up some eggs and add some of their normal feed to the mix. Who knew spoiling your chickens could be so much fun!

 

[FarmerJamie]

Glad to see the other frozen treats! I get five gallon buckets of spent grain from my beer brewing buddy and freeze it into 5-6 servings. I let it sit out for an hour or so before giving it to my girls, to loosen up the edges to get them interested. My top hen this afternoon decided the ice was a perfect seat, so she kept everyone away until she was cool enough to go ahead and eat.

 

[AlaskGirl]

What an eye opener! I enjoy reading about the heat-fighting strategies from Alaska. We get into the 80's but even so, my hens are shaded. It's fun to read your solutions, the block was beautiful! I'm already imagining the amount of snow shoveling I'll have to do this winter just so I can get to the coop.