Chickens out during thunderstorm

[Paulinefrn]

So i am currently having a thunderstorm.. it's extremely close, one of the lightnings ended up in the garden. I am really worried for my chickens, i know that they are supposed to be able to manage themselves in the rain but the area where they are is flooded. Not a lot, maybe 2 inches. They have a coop above the ground and the inside usually stays dry, but they never go in there during the day (except for laying & the broodies). The lightning probably terrifies them, it's so close. Should i do anything? Bring them inside? I only have 3 hens atm so it wouldnt be a bother.

 

[Cyprus]

I'd bring them inside. I made the mistake of not doing that once with growout chicks and I lost all but 1.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

So i am currently having a thunderstorm.. it's extremely close, one of the lightnings ended up in the garden. I am really worried for my chickens, i know that they are supposed to be able to manage themselves in the rain but the area where they are is flooded. Not a lot, maybe 2 inches. They have a coop above the ground and the inside usually stays dry, but they never go in there during the day (except for laying & the broodies). The lightning probably terrifies them, it's so close. Should i do anything? Bring them inside? I only have 3 hens atm so it wouldnt be a bother.

I am really opposed to being hit by lightening myself, so I’d wait until the storm passes then go check on them. Mine will go into the coop during rough weather...

 

[Paulinefrn]

I went to get them i was careful, didnt run out in the open.

I'd bring them inside. I made the mistake of not doing that once with growout chicks and I lost all but 1.

Sorry about your chicks

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I went to get them i was careful, didnt run out in the open.

Sorry about your chicks View attachment 1824743

Awww, their bedraggled and wet feathers are adorable! Lucky girls to have you! Were they in the coop or run when you got there?

 

[Folly's place]

The older feathered out chickens are fine, but you might not be. I'm with MFE on this one!
Mary

 

[21hens-incharge]

With lightening that close no way would I go get the birds.

If it's them or me.......it's not worth risking getting hit myself.....just sayin.

 

[DanEP]

I really like my birds but would not risk lightning to get them out of the rain. I've never seen chickens that wouldn't get out of the rain if it gets rough they just hide under something or hit the coop.

 

[Paulinefrn]

I feel like i need to explain the situation here.. the rain was very strong, and although i said the flooding was only 2 inches in the run, i could tell it was rising. I live in an area that is extremely dry for half of the year, and in the last few months i rarely had to deal with rain. This means that the ground gets extremely dry and compact, so it's unable to absorb water. Also in the last few weeks we've had temperatures above 90 (33°C) (in a very humid climate, and very little wind). I do everything i can to keep them cool, but they are used to these types of temperatures. With the strong rain, the temperature cooled down to 77 (26°C), and with the water levels rising, i got really scared of them getting cold.
For the lightning, one of them did stike in the garden, but i mainly refered to it in my main post to show that it was a serious storm and not just a short shower. I didnt run out in the garden while the storm was right above my house, i waited for a bit for it to move out of the way, until i could hear at least 3 seconds between the lightning anf thunder (which i beleive is a km) but the rain was still very strong.
When i got there, there was at least 6 inches of water and two of them were outside (The black and the white one) and they could barely walk. I have no idea why, but they never go inside the coop when it rains. They were hiding under it but that didnt do much because of the flooding. I could've left the grey one as she's a broody but i was able to carry all three of them at the same time so i prefered to have all of them with me.
I guess i just want to make it clear that my actions were thought of.

 

[Paulinefrn]

For a moment i really didnt know what to do, and that was when the storm was right there. I think this is why i made a post on here, but i realise now it was pretty useless as i would've gone and get them anyways. I guess i was just scared and felt a bit powerless so i wanted to share the situation with other people. )