keeping chickens cool in summer heat

[2manychickenz]

this is how we do it in Kentucky, lol..........

 

[six hens]

Hi, I live in Wisconsin and last summer we had temps near one hundred for two - three weeks so I let my hens out in the yard and they settled under four global yew bushes that are in my patio area. Of course I had to sit outside with them so I could watch for hawks..but we were lucky and didn't have a hawk problem during the hottest days. The density of the yews and the cool ground under them makes it a favorite spot for my hens to rest . I also put a fan in the coop which has three south facing windows that I have a screen on which is made of "hardware cloth" so I can keep the windows open during the night and not worry about preditors ripping through the screen.

 

[BunnyMomma]

My Sister in Law donated some nice patio market umbrellas to me, one of them is 9 feet across. My Hubby put it in the center post of my "Baby Doll" pens. There are 4 pens that are 10 x 10. The shade really helps.
I grew seedless grapes on the fence bordering my Salmon Faverolles, and they get shade all afternoon as well as June Bugs and grapes!

I also put out shallow containers of fresh water with about 2 inches of water for them to wade in and drink. I found those at the Dollar Tree and they are actually Oil Drain pans that are about 14 inches across and 3 inches deep. They work really well.

I place a fan in the coop where my Orp's are and the barn has ceiling fans and the two story roof helps to keep the downstairs about 10 degrees cooler that the outside temps. Also I go out and lightly mist the chickens with cool water if I see them getting too stressed.

I don't feed them any corn in the hottest months of the summer. That helps them to keep from generating too much internal heat from the carbohydrates in the corn.
I usually feed them cold watermelon and cantaloupes in the summer that I grow in my garden.

I also make them my "Chickie Gatorade" I have posted the recipe here before, but I will post it again here.
1 package of unsweetened Koolaid (they love orange, strawberry and black cherry)
1/4 cup of sugar
1 gallon of cold water
1 dash of salt

 

[JNB]

Bunny Momma.. thanks for the Chicken Gatorade post..... Ive been looking for that recipe Awesome

 

[mayberrymom]

Thanks for all of the wonderful tips! It has been so hot here in Idaho, 110, very unusual, especially for this early in the summer. Our girls have the entire backyard lawn, we have fenced off the deck to keep it clean. We have huge shade trees, and we have been turning on the sprinklers for them. I am surprised about the pool, I've always heard the old saying, "Madder than a wet hen!"

I guess a wet hen can be happy if it is too hot outside.

 

[pickitfarm]

this is how we do it in Kentucky, lol..........

What did it take to build and how does it work?

 

[carrieahoff]

We dip their feet in the pool for a little cool down!!! All inclusive chicken resort!!

 

[christine9]

this is how we do it in Kentucky, lol..........

Love this! Can't wait to try it out

 

[maligator2012]

I also use the frozen water bottle method and my girls love it!! Watermelon is a huge hit, I also give them some bowls of crushed ice...they love to grab chunks and run around with it....im not sure if it cools them off any but they love playing with the crushed ice and sitting near the cool metal bowl......

 

[oldchickenlady]

I put a wading pool in their pen, which is shaded by a tarp, filled it about 1/2 full of play sand and kept it damp with water. I also froze gallon milk jugs of water with electrolytes in them and put them upside down (with the top off the frozen jug) inside the waterers. During the worst heat last year I put about 3 frozen gallon milk jugs in the wading pool also. They learned to lay on the cool wet sand next to the frozen jugs. I didn't lose a chicken all summer and it got up to 114!!