Good tips that you use to keep chickens cool in the summer when it is 100°

[Sylvester017]

The problem here is probably that your coop has only the most minimal amount of top-level ventilation to allow heat to escape.

If I'm seeing your photos correctly, the coop itself is under a roof and thus can't be rained on. Thus I recommend that you replace those little louvered vents by removing the panel from the entire gable and putting in hardware cloth.

A well-ventilated coop is the same temperature inside as outside.

TY for your tips. We have a wire floor for summer and a solid floor tray for winter, we keep the pop door open year-round day AND night (we have a completely enclosed night-time run so we have the luxury of keeping the pop door wide open) and we keep the nestbox lid propped open and that provides a lot of ventilation/circulation (the lid is incredibly heavy so keeping it propped a bit doesn't worry us about predators opening it - we struggle sometimes ourselves just to lift the lid!!!). The vents at the top are large on both sides and left wide open year-round as well.

However, when temps rise to 115 degrees with a heat index of 122 sometimes it's just in our Creator's Hands what occurs. My uncle had an egg farm with 1000's of Leghorns but when a horrendous heatwave hit sadly all the ventilation and water sprinklers in the world didn't save 100's of birds. The birds were in shady outdoor roofed wire pens with circulating fans but in some heatwaves Mother Nature just gets the upper hand. Over my lifetime I lost two hens to heatstroke -- my dear uncle lost 100's

 

[3KillerBs]

I think those kind of extreme temperature changes are the most dangerous as they have not had a chance to build tolerance to it

I agree. I used to work in a factor with no heat and no AC. We had more heat illness problems in May when it suddenly got hot than we had in July even at the same temperatures.

I generally just leave them alone to nap and keep their bodies relaxed.

Yes. I don't even collect eggs in the hottest part of the day. I figure that I don't want them running round and getting excited in the heat.

The vents at the top are large on both sides and left wide open year-round as well.

I think we have a different definition of "large".

Unless the photos are completely deceiving, those vents are less than 1 square foot when multiple square feet would better allow the heat to move out of the coop.

 

[Sally PB]

I agree. I used to work in a factor with no heat and no AC. We had more heat illness problems in May when it suddenly got hot than we had in July even at the same temperatures.

Yes, I remember the same thing where I worked one winter/spring/summer.

Watching my own birds, I've noticed some interesting things. The 3 black Australorps seem to be fine in our current hot spell. They hunker down in the shady half of the run, scratch a depression in the dirt, and rest. (Our heat isn't like what @U_Stormcrow and @3KillerBs get. It's upper 80s, low 90s, and 70-80% RH.) Mash snack is made with cold water this time of year, and they sure do peck it down.

The Jubilee Orpington looks like fine, though she does some open mouth breathing as she toddles along; she's the poofiest looking girl of the bunch.

The two blue Australorps are the lightest in color. They have their wings held out a bit, pant a bit, and walk around instead of lying down and resting.

There is almost always a nice breeze blowing through the run. I like to sit there and relax after working up a sweat in the garden.

 

[jBabychickn]

I freeze 24 oz bottles and put 3in each 5 gal bucket waterer and I throw out a few frozen 2ltr bottles of water and replace them in the mid afternoon, they take turns laying up against them. I wash them off when time to go in the reserved part of deep freeze for them. I give watermelon, cold wet kale.

This is excellent! I’m gonna do this for sure

 

[townchicks]

Can a domestic chicken handle the same environment as their ancestors? Could it be like comparing a wolf to a Chihuahua? The breeds I have seem so much better adapted to cold temperatures. I wonder if some of their heat tolerance abilities have been bred out.

Not all though- I see their jungle instincts whenever I watch them slink into the forest. They definitely know where to find the cooler spots.

Yes, let's compare a wolf to a chihuahua. It won't come out like you think,lol. I learned, in my many years of studying about dogs, is that smaller dogs handle heat better than larger dogs, and vice versa, larger dogs handle cold better. I forget all the details in the study I read, but basically it had to do with heat transfer and body mass. The chi is much better equipped to handle heat, smaller body mass, short single coat, (no undercoat) large ears transfer heat away from the body. Wolves have larger body mass, longer, thicker coats, smaller ears. It isn't about wild versus domestic, in this case. Southern wolves have evolved with smaller bodies, shorter coats and larger ears. Transferring this to chickens, think about body type, jungle fowl, adapted to a hot humid climate have a much smaller, slimmer body than our modern chickens. In my own admittedly tiny sample, I have seen that my smaller, slimmer EEs, even with pea combs and no wattles, fare better on hot days than my larger, heavy bodied RIR and Java, even with their combs and wattles. Just guessing here, but I'm thinking slimmer bodied chickens with large combs may be better able to deal with heat, heavier breeds with smaller combs may be better in cold climates.

 

[HenHouse Henry]

It is 1:12 a.m. 81° feels like 89° as I take stylus in hand to write this.
I'm dreading the 100° temperature Sunday 6/12/22.
"I have to create and work with what I have on hand laying around the farm."
In Texas where I live, it is supposed to be 3° hotter than it was Saturday. I'm expecting the temperature humidity index to be more intense (115-119°) possibly. I will be checking on my birds every hour. Spread the chicken love. Add your experience (or ask questions) Thank you for tuning in.

I live in the Pacific Northwest and it rarely gets HOT, But last year we got over 100 for a few days. The chickens and we are not used to this. Nobody has AC here. When I went out and saw them panting (something I am not used to seeing), I went into action, First I put frozen 1-liter bottles of water in the drinking buckets, I put a sprinkler on the roof of the main coop and It cooled it down about 10 degrees. I checked them about once an hour. Also filled some gallon milk jugs and froze them, I put four of them together on the coop floor and they would lay around them. Everyone came out of it ok. They did a lot better with heat than I did, luckily we have a basement that stayed in the low 70s. Good luck all and stay cool, It's getting up to 69 today.

 

[Fthersnfur4fun]

C

feed watermelon
apples without core
cucumber
put ice in there water make sure they have shade

Can you give 6-8 week old chicks these too?

 

[Chicks in VA]

C

Can you give 6-8 week old chicks these too?

it has never hurt mine
i might just feed a small amount so there bodys will get used to it first

 

[Scots in France]

We had an early heatwave (usually July and August) in the South of France a couple of weeks ago with temperatures in the high 30's °C / 100°F range!
Two hens had just hatched chicks in the upstairs of the coop!
We covered the outside of the coop with an old white sheet including the propped wide open window, put old towels on the metal roof and wetted the sheet and towels with cold water.
Put icecubes in the drinkers a couple of times a day. And kept all the water containers full!
Soaked bread in water and put it in the fridge for a couple of hours before giving it to the flock during the hottest part of the day - usually 4 - 6pm.
We have plenty of trees and hedges for the chickens to keep in the shade!
We've been saving frozen prawn heads for high summer cool treats, just defrost them in water and let the chickens dook for them! Great fun, especially when the wee guys get their first taste!
We feed our flock soaked grains twice a day, so they keep hydrated!

 

[Evenflo09]

Thank you.
A fan is not po$$ible.

You can purchase solar fans for pretty cheap on Amazon if you don't have a power source.