Chicken sore throat?

[Kimberly333]

I'm not sure if sore throat is the right word, but my hens (I have 4 of them) all seem to do this and they basically have their beak open, and their throat is moving up and down in a weird dehydrated way. I give them water, but they're not thirsty, and when they see food, they'll eat it, but then start moving their throats again with their beak open. This worries me and I haven't been able to figure out why.

 

[fifibreen]

Are they panting due to being warm/hot maybe?

 

[annelions]

They could be thirsty. From what I've read, chickens can't drink if they're too hot and/or the water's too warm. There are all sorts of things you can do to help your chickens cool off. Giving them ice water might help. A nice juicy watermelon might also be good. Depending on your setup, I also recommend turning the hose onto part of the chicken area. The water will create a cool area for the chickens to stand/wallow in. During the summer, my white chickens are very brown.

I also have a misting thing that attaches to my hose that I use on really hot days. It really helps cool off an area and the chickens learn to love it.