Chickens and extreme heat

Sunshine Flock

Crowing
Sep 27, 2017
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Northern California
We're in the midst of a heat wave here in California. The temperatures have been around 110° and sometimes higher.

I just came across an Instagram post by a woman whose hen may succumb to heat stress. She's doing everything she can: cool dips in a bucket, food soaked in water, a wet towel wrapped around the hen and then draped over a crate, cooling veggies, electrolytes. But the hen may not survive.

My little flock seems to be doing okay. I have five Welsummer hens and a Wellie rooster, and five month-old chicks. The mistake I made as a newbie to hatching out chicks was letting Gertrude sit on eggs during summer. Mid-May should have been my cutoff.

But the chicks are thriving. I do see them panting, but not as much as the full grown chickens. I don't feel my chickens would be doing so well had I kept them locked up in their yard all day, though. The key for their comfort is letting them spend the day under the back deck. It's about two feet tall underneath, with enough room for Henry to stand up and crow. The earth and gravel under there is very cooling, and everyone, including the cats, come out feeling cool to the touch on their undersides, like they're living inside a refrigerator.

Something else I do is water down the deck twice a day when the temperatures exceed 100°. It cleans it off and radiates cooling air so I'm comfortable, too. We don't have air conditioning, if you can believe that. It also breaks down their droppings quickly and minimizes flies. And it increases the natural air conditioning underneath.

We are so minimal on water usage and other resources that we can spare the extra water. It's a life saver and necessary. At the end of the day, around 4pm, I'll water down the hen house and yard for the chickens that wander over there and decide to hang out.

For next summer I'm going to build them their own deck that will extend off the back of the coop and inside the fencing. It'll be on the north side where there's some shade, but in this heat shade isn't enough to keep them safe. They need a deep, cooling shade.

How are your chickens doing in this heat? I think even when we give them cooling shade, they can still succumb to heat stroke. Do you give them special treats and supplements?

The hen house cools off just enough at night to not be a problem for them, but something else I intend to do is rebuild the roof (the coop is a converted shed) with a larger overhang. I've come across some roofing designs that may help decrease the heat during the day.

Any suggestions on roofing designs? Thank you.
 
I don't do anything but offer multiple pans of water and allow my birds to choose where to go. We also don't get as hot as you. Heat is a killer.

@aart has shown a sled that she puts ice in for her birds to stand in. Maybe she will share it here along with any good building advice I'm sure she has.
 
Post some pics of your setup..and what designs you've come up with so far.

I give a dose of Sav-a-Chick electrolytes/vitamins about once a week during heat waves.
it really seems to help....started this after they saved a heat stroked hen once.

BIG(9x14x2") chunks of ice last all day for wading, sitting, and sipping.
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I like the frozen fruit and cold water around brick. Brick soaks up water as the water evaporates it cools down the top layer.
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I also have a couple big shade trees which they love. I will be adding in one more tree in a month to help share chickens and our house.
 

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Depending on how hot it gets, how many hens you have and practicality, if it's really bad out, BRING THEM INSIDE! A day in the bathroom or basement won't hurt them nearly as much as high heat. If my girls are holding their wings out and panting, I let them come inside. I also soak the ground in their run so they can dig down to cooler soil and lay down, and make sure your birds have shade at EVERY HOUR! Mine had shade for most of the day but a few hours in the late afternoon, they didn't. If you notice your hens having green diarrhea, they're near stroke and bring them in. You can also use misters, but most birds hate them.
 
LOL, my girls would not come in, and there's 30 of them.
I have decks for them to get under, as well as the yard is 80% shaded. The coop is in 100% shade, I give them cool scrapes during the hot parts of the day. They just luv a cold slice of water melon (so do I). Extra cukes from the garden, they are loaded with water, cantaloupe, tomatoes, did I mention many water pans,,,
109*F here yesterday felt like 118!

Edit If you have a good cheap water source, one can use misters and a fan blown through the mist. Water is my highest cost resource,,,
 
I have a 5 gallon waterer from TSC. In the it test part of the day I put a frozen 2 liter soda bottle in it also lay some on the ground that they can stand or lay next to along with cat litter pans of water lots of them. I have noticed my feather leg chickens don't seem to like getting their feet wet.

I also keep one waterer with electrolytes in it.

Frozen watermelon rind is a big hit also.
 
My birds are in a run most of the time now, b/c they've torn up the lawn to eradicate the Jap beetles. But, in an extreme heat wave, I will let them out. They can find cooler temps in the woods than they can under their coop, in the coop or run. I like Aart's snow sled with the ice block. I may make an ice block and put some scratch grain or a can of corn in it. That would help the girls to get over their fear of standing in the water.
 
their fear of standing in the water
I remember the first time I used an ice water wader......my first summer and the birds were really suffering, I grabbed my most docile hen, holding wings her down, and put her feet in the water...she struggled for about 5 seconds then stopped 'cold' haha!....I swear I heard her heave a huge sigh of relief and she was in and out of that pan for the rest of the day...and was always the first to jump in when I set it out. She 'taught' all the other birds to stand in the tray to cool off.

I no longer put water in with the ice after watching a bird guzzle down a bunch of ice water then turn her head sideways and stagger off....'ice cream headache'.

The bigger the ice chunk the longer it will last. The larger the shallow pan/tray/dish the more stable it is(they won't tip it over when standing on the edge) and the more likely they will wade in it.

I also keep one waterer with electrolytes in it.
Not sure them having unlimited access to electrolytes is a good idea.
 

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