How do you keep your chickens cool in hot, humid weather?

Bellasmom

In the Brooder
10 Years
Apr 9, 2009
84
0
39
I have one that is a permanent resident in the henhouse!
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But it's hot in there so I am thinking of having dh put in more ventilation in the back so there will be some airflow. We have an A-frame house built into the coop that he thought he would put some square holes in and then I thought we would use chicken wire and screenwire over the holes. There are some round vents but not enough and he is going to square up the henhouse when he gets the chance but he doesn't have time yet so this would be a quick fix.

What do some of you do to keep the girls and guys comfy in the summer?
 
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Check out this article on open front poultry houses: http://www.nortoncreekpress.com/fresh_air_poultry_houses.html

My
chickens are housed in my garage and I keep the big door open until I shut it just before I go to bed. I have a 20 inch fan that I hang in the window of the regular door leading from outside. It helps bring in the cool night air. My bigger hens suffer the most in the hot weather.

Outside, during the day, they have lots of shade trees and bushes to hang out under. One year it was so hot I kept spraying the ground in their area with a water hose to help cool them where they walked plus I think it helps make the air a little cooler when the trees and bushes are wet.
 
Dh found 2 vents that he didn't use when he redid the eaves. He put one on the back and one in the side. This should help create some draft with the door and help vent out the house pretty well. I cover the coop when it rains to keep the henhouse dry but uncover it every morning. We've had so much rain.
 
I've heard multiple people post here about a shallow pan filled with water that they can stand in and also about cool treats such as watermelon. I thought those were great suggestions. Considering I've got my winter coat on today, we're still a ways away from the hot and humid weather.
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Don't use chicken wire, use hardware cloth if possible over your openings.

I have a fan that runs 24 hours a day it has been so warm. Someone also mentioned filling a shallow pan with water so they can walk in it to cool down. I use a large plastic plant saucer and put cold water in it 2x a day, they walk in it and sip the water. I also have 2 other watering stations that I change out with cool water during the day. I freeze water bottles and throw it in their holes. I fill their holes with water so they get damp and hopefully cool. I feed them ice cold watermelon. I bought a mister today to put into their future run extension. My husband says we have a window ac we can put in-don't know if he was kidding!

I have a chicken tractor that I built so they could run around a little. I only let them in it in the morning, it is just too hot even in the shade and their coop is cooler so I load them all up 2x a day when I can and transport them back and forth in a cat carrier! I must be quite a site!
 
On the ventilation, I put in 2 long windows that open from the top or bottom when I remodeled the shed into a coop. Built a large door that stays open (about 4x6') on the back of the coop that opens to the enclosed run that is screen on 1 side and roofed and I also cut 3 1'x2' openings in various places on one wall and screened those in with hardware cloth. I also left the eaves open and screened again with hardware cloth and finally left the gable open on one end to aid in air flow. Whew!
 
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How about a wall mounted, oscillating fan...............that's what I did! (for the coop)
More ventilation holes do not seem to help on those 'still', hot and humid days.............but a breeze in the coop should.
I am lucky to have electricity in the coop and on an outside wall of my barn........which is just 'feet' from the run.
I have a 20" box-fan that I put against the run fence, held in place with a bungee coed, which blows a breeze into the run.
The girls like to stand in front of it!!
 

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