Cooling off the Chickens?

[OreoH]

Hi everyone! I have six pullets who have moved to their coop a few days ago. The temperatures are really getting high and I'm a little out of ideas. They are panting, and laying down a lot. I have a frozen banana I will feed when it thaws out, frozen water bottles, a tiny wading pool, extra shade, and ice cubes in their water. I'm a little worried because they are peeping a lot. They are still eating their feed, which I am probably going to freeze. Are there any other ideas? Also, has anyone tried putting a bowl of ice cubes for them? Would it cool down the air around them?

 

[CluckerFamily]

Shade would help if the run has a roof or under a tree.
Fresh water 3-4 times a day on those hot days will help.
Some chickens make a hole in the ground from dust bathing and they will just lay in the cool ground.
I always have a watermelon in the fridge if there are hot days coming and put them out on hot days.
I open the windows and doors on the coop to allow more air flow (both have a hardware cloth screen attached)

 

[Cheeki]

I freeze plastic shoe boxes full of water and dump a couple into their watering pan. It takes a while to melt so provides them with cool water for quite a while. I also hose down the main roost area in the coop, provide old lawn furniture for extra shade and hose down the outside of the coop

 

[Charlenesmom]

I have a fan in my coop, I got it at Tractor Supply, so it’s heavy duty. I run it at night facing the roost bar so they get a breeze, and circulated air all night. I prop open the nest boxes to allow air to circulate while they are in there laying, so it’s not so hot and stuffy. I always buy watermelon and quarter it and put it out for them to enjoy, they love the taste and the extra water is good for them. They find their own cool spots, under my pool deck in the damp shade is a favorite, but I have also seen them dust bathing in the hot sun As long as they have shade and a place to dig and cool off they will be fine. One of my girls loves to be held in the cool pool, lol

 

[CluckerFamily]

Cucumbers work too if they are cool. Just slice them in half.
You can also use an ice cream pail, fill with different fruits and vegetables, fill with water and freeze. This will give you a treat ice block that will slowly melt on those hot days.

 

[IamRainey]

Here's another thread with lots of ideas. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/hot-chickens.1405323/#post-23068509

But right now, you could give them those bananas frozen. You could also go to the grocery store and get some bags of frozen fruit to give them in the hottest part of the day.

Yes, ice cubes in a pan will help them. I use aluminum pans that I get from Costco ready-to-eat-foods. They peck at the cubes, they can drink the cold water as it melts and they can even step in it.

And digging in is another way they cope.

Do provide any shade you can like a beach umbrella or whatever you have. I also use box fans.

 

[Parront]

Here is a photo of a metal roaster pan I use. The ice is gone in this pic.

 

[OreoH]

Does anyone bring their chickens inside when it gets dangerously hot?

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

I live in the SC Low country where it's easily over 100 on any given day with our horrid humidity and I just keep lots shade , fresh water and no barriers to block what little breeze is available. I've never lost a bird to heat but I do not keep birds that are cold hardy and we don't have dry heat here. I always had rocks, sikies, production breeds and now leghorns.

I do toss them water melon rinds and seedless cold grapes for summer treats. I've put a old cooler lid filled with water in there with them and have seen them in the shade stand in it and sit in it like a wading pool. They looked like ducks sitting in it. They do pant, wallow in the dirt and lay around more in the heat just like the dogs do but I have not had any heat stroke thankfully.

 

[IamRainey]

My chickens don't like a fan. They will all run into the coop and stay there away from the fan.

I think it's important not to subject the chickens to the blast of a fan. OTOH, I run 3 of them and I place them so there's a nice airflow but that the chickens can avoid as much of it as they wish. My fans are located outside of the run against the hardware cloth. I use small bungee cords to keep them from blowing or being tipped over.

When we get up to triple digits I also place a 5 pound ice block in front of one of the fans for cheap outdoor "air conditioning". A 5# block won't last all day but If I put it out as temps begin to rise, it will make it through the hottest part of the day. And we're fortunate that our temps drop with the sunlight. And I use an hourly weather forecast to help me plan how to make best use of the ice.