How can I help them stay cool in a hot climate?

[Chickens like to peck me]

also a shade cloth and freez some ice and put it in their water

 

[Teila]

We are currently experiencing 95F days also .. some of the above I will repeat but we combat the heat with ...

* Lots of shade in the run. An elevated coop also provides shade.

*My gals to not like water but do do like laying in the damp dirt, so we use a mister. This serves a dual purpose in that it also keeps the vegetation in the run cool and water pooling on it, drops onto the chickens as well as keeping the dirt damp and cooling the breeze.

* Definitely watermelon!!

* Frozen vegetables in a bowl of iced water...not only is it cool, bobbing for the vegetables takes their mind off the heat!

* 2 x water containers in case one gets knocked over.

Note: Our run is fully covered plus shade cloth plus palm shade. In the run we have large potted ferns with stones in the top of the pots to stop the girls digging in them. They do jump up and peck leaves off the ferns so we keep a supply of 'replacement' ferns in the shade house ... so ferns get swapped out of run in to shade house to recover and recovered shade house ferns go in the run.

 

[Teila]

1.you can add apple cider vinegar to their water once or twice a week
2.Give them mud holes. While it may make them dirty they will enjoy it and keep them cool!
3. Give them lots of fruits and veggies. Just make sure that they can have them before feeding

Just wanted to mention here that the majority of the research I have done advises against ACV in the water during times of extreme heat.

Without going in to great detail, I believe that during extreme heat the ACV will inhibit calcium absorption. It is recommended to also not give heat stressed chickens ACV in an attempt to give them a boost; if heat stressed, it will do more harm than good.

JMHO based on my research.

 

[lissalischicks]

Here are some of the stuff I do... hope it helps.

I don't know what type of waterer you use but I get extra bottles/jar part, fill it with water and freeze it. The next morning, fill the rest and put it out. Usually it will stay cold for the majority of the day. I also freeze soda bottles and put it on the ground and when it's hot some of the girls sit around the frozen bottles.

i know some people hang large frozen water bottles in their run to help cool it down a bit.

Mint herb is a natural product that helps cooling so sometimes I put pieces of mint in the water. You just have to replace the water everyday.

I freeze grapes and blueberries and give them as treats to cool them down as well. Watermelon is a good idea just know you will have real watery poop.

We have sand in the coop so at night a set the sand a but then cover it with more sand. The girls will dig into the sand and when they get to the cool sand they sit and dust bathe in it as well.

At night a leave a small fan on so their coop as air filtering through.

My girls never took to the kiddie pool but I did get a large horse tub that was only about 3 inches high. I put a couple of bricks in it and cover it with water. On hot days they would stand on the brick (but not in the water) and to cool off.

I always give water with vitamin and electrolytes as well.

 

[Cathy Carr]

X2 on the shade cloth, they aren't very expensive I got a 70% shade cloth on amazon that was 8x10 for around 19US delivered.

edit-Also I let the grass in the run get about 3 foot tall that they enjoy hiding in under the trees as well during summer.
edit#2- My neighbor thinks my tall run grass attracts rats and even offered to mow my lawn twice last year so there can be secondary benefits! I know it was wastefull food shoveling from my hanging feeder so no longer am restocking it with food in their coop.

Long grass is unfortunately a no-no for us as we have several venomous snakes here, plus pythons. So I need to keep the grass short as I am always on the lookout for any snakes getting into the enclosure.

 

[Cathy Carr]

Here are some of the stuff I do... hope it helps.

I don't know what type of waterer you use but I get extra bottles/jar part, fill it with water and freeze it. The next morning, fill the rest and put it out. Usually it will stay cold for the majority of the day. I also freeze soda bottles and put it on the ground and when it's hot some of the girls sit around the frozen bottles.

i know some people hang large frozen water bottles in their run to help cool it down a bit.

Mint herb is a natural product that helps cooling so sometimes I put pieces of mint in the water. You just have to replace the water everyday.

I freeze grapes and blueberries and give them as treats to cool them down as well. Watermelon is a good idea just know you will have real watery poop.

We have sand in the coop so at night a set the sand a but then cover it with more sand. The girls will dig into the sand and when they get to the cool sand they sit and dust bathe in it as well.

At night a leave a small fan on so their coop as air filtering through.

My girls never took to the kiddie pool but I did get a large horse tub that was only about 3 inches high. I put a couple of bricks in it and cover it with water. On hot days they would stand on the brick (but not in the water) and to cool off.

I always give water with vitamin and electrolytes as well.

Yes, I tried the little scallop shell type kiddie pool a couple of days ago, but they had no interest. I am also doing the half frozen water dispenser thing and that is working well. I'll try the frozen fruit thing as well. Alan has set me up a garden sprinkler in there now so I am wetting all the leaf litter under one of the big bushes, and they are seeming to like this as it is shady and stays cool for them. TY.

 

[AllenK RGV]

Long grass is unfortunately a no-no for us as we have several venomous snakes here, plus pythons. So I need to keep the grass short as I am always on the lookout for any snakes getting into the enclosure.

Oh yeah we have venomous snakes as well. Just not in concentrations that bother me too much as long as I am not feeding the rats there isn't much reason for them to show up. Hence I no longer feed inside the coop. I feed out front so I can see my chicken more and in a convienient location for my cats rat patrol.