it's hot!!!!! help!

[Neil Grassbaugh]

Quote:
Tell me about the time that chickens or turkeys, suffering desperatley from the heat, willingly and by themselves with opportunity, got their feathers wet to cool down. Please. I would really like to hear about it.

 

[scooter147]

Never said that a chicken or a turkey got their feather's wet on purpose.
However, since my chickens are under my care and when it get's to 100 degrees in the shade with humidity to match and they are standing in the shade panting and with wings held out because they are simple miserable I am going to do what I can to help eliviate that misery.
And in my 40+ hears of rasing poulty getting them wet with the garden hose helps, plain and simple.
I don't use a fire hose or the strong pressure setting.
Like I said, once they get their shower the panting stops and their wings are down at their side.
Remember these are creatures just like domestic pigs, cows, horses, goats etc. that we have breed to "unnatural sizes" and have taken to environments that are not natural for them. So if a "unnatural" remedy is required to make them comfortable, so be it.

 

[sojeo]

I put a five gallon water cooler out behind the coop. It's sitting on a plastic lawn chair and below the spout is a little water dish (old pot). The pot sits in a large flat aluminum pan that is also filled with water. My chickens don't like to get wet, but they have to stand in the cold pan of water in order to get a drink. I'm not luggin water all the time either, 5 gallons last quite awhile.

 

[mdbokc]

I just started up my misters again. Even if humidity is high, they enjoy a 45 degree well water mist. Plus they have their foot baths.

 

[Ashmeade]

Pedialyte can assist too with heat hydrate and provide electrolytes

 

[muell112]

I put a lunch tray out in their run that I filled with water. They seem to like standing in it. I also put a fan in their window and put a wet towel over it. Finally, I gave them a little Gatorade because I read somewhere on this forum that all the panting can make them lose electrolytes. I will probably stop and pick up some pedialyte.

 

[lisahaschickens]

I had this issue a couple of weeks ago and we actually lost a couple of chickens to the heat (110+), so we got lots of great feedback from people on here and we figured out some good stuff ourselves to get the rest through the heat.

Please check this thread:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=221552

It's full of great info on every page.

 

[wildorchid053]

i am here in your area and i have been hosing them down.. i wet the run. under the coop and trap them in a corner of the run and wet them down too.. they are doing fine. in the morning they free range in the shade of the house for a couple of hours. all the dew on the grass is very cooling.. during the heat of the day they are in the run.. we have a shade cloth over it. and in the evening they are back out in the shade free ranging again. i tried the cold bottles but they wont' go near them.. hubby has put a few into about 5" of water.. they weren't impressed with that either.. so i hose them like a rain shower would from above.

 

[kcardella]

We have also had a very hot, humid summer down here in south Florida. We have regular afternoon rain showers, and the chickens will come out from the shade to stand in the rain. We have an open run surrounded by trees, and a coop with lots of ventilation and deep litter, which also seems to help. I also let them free-range when I am home, and they have lots of bushes to hang out under. I have not had to use the frozen water bottles, but I love the idea.

 

[fhdogs]

Quote:
I did one similar today... I have way too many blueberries that will go bad if we don't pick and use them. I put a few in each section of an ice tray along with some pellets, and mixed seed. Topped it off with water and froze them up.

Every once and awhile I've been trowing a few into the run, and everyone goes nuts for them!