How to keep my hens cool in the hot summer

lilofthestars

Songster
9 Years
Oct 9, 2015
274
124
186
I have three hens now. I’m trying to keep them cool I bought a baby swimming pool put water in it. Put rocks that they could stand on and bricks where they can step up on. I even set them in there for a few minutes cause I know they cool off by their feet and legs. One of my young hens was breathing so heavy and her wings was expanding. I was a little bit worried For some reason. They just won’t go in the pool. Anybody have any ideas? Any help would be very much appreciated.
 

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I've also had trouble getting mine to use certain foot pools. They seem to like terra cotta saucers (like what you'd put under a planter) best. The terra cotta cools just like a brick would, and you can keep the water very shallow. Get the largest one you can find. I still need to encourage mine to use it.

This is the one I have.
 
I've also had trouble getting mine to use certain foot pools. They seem to like terra cotta saucers (like what you'd put under a planter) best. The terra cotta cools just like a brick would, and you can keep the water very shallow. Get the largest one you can find. I still need to encourage mine to use it.
This is what I use. That said, I only have one hen that really loves fully standing in it, the rest don't go any further than toe tips in the water.
 
Honestly, a couple of my girls get so hot that I just bring them into my basement. I know it's not ideal, and it stresses them out quite a bit, but I'm not really sure what the alternative is other than to watch them suffer and hope for the best. And we do ALL the cooling tricks (shade, fans, cool water, etc.) Chicken keeping in summer is so brutal.
 
We are super hot in central Texas. I will give my girls watermelon at the peak heat of the day. That seems to hydrate them well.

I also run my backyard sprinkler for 30-45 minutes before they are "scheduled to go to that yard". My hens free range and I bring their food and water trays around to the back yard when the house shadow covers about 1/2 of the yard. When they come in the back, they get their feet wet on the grass. They seem to love this.

I also trickle water in the shade by the coop at the end of the evening. I move all their feed and water to that area. They love pecking around the "stream" that I create for them until it is time to go to roost.

They will not touch kiddie pools are other things that I have tried to put water in for them, but they will willingly walk through/stand in the lawn and the stream I create as they pick at the watermelon I place around for them.

They quickly settle in and stop panting. :) :)
 

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