Keeping cool

[Stacyoung13]

Hi everyone, I live in Florida and it can get pretty hot and humid. Any suggestions on what I can do to help keep my flock cool and happy? This will be my first summer with chickens. I've got a box fan pulling a draft through the coop. Need ideas for the run. Thanx

 

[Adrien515]

i just supply shade and cold water in the run... Im in Texas. I have a boxfan in the coop too.

 

[Stacyoung13]

Thanx, I just want to make sure they don't over heat. Never thought I would care so much for chickens. But I love my babies.

 

[ashlierami]

Thanx, I just want to make sure they don't over heat. Never thought I would care so much for chickens. But I love my babies.

I keep ice water in the waterers or I feed them semi frozen fruit such as blueberries and strawberries.

 

[PennyM]

Mine also love frozen watermelon and I freeze water in plastic jugs and lay them around in the run. They will stand or lie by the jugs to cool off.

 

[chickendreams24]

I love frozen watermelon too! Tastes like a jolly rancher

 

[Stacyoung13]

I don't think my husband would let me feed my chickens watermelon, that's his favorite. But the jugs of ice I can do !

 

[cluckmomma]

Not sure if this is where to post this but I am in Texas and was wondering about getting chickens into a small children's plastic pool? Thoughts and tips welcome.

 

[aart]

My birds are confined with no great deep shade for last half of the day so I have to be vigilant during heat waves. I do have shade cloths up on run, which helps, but still not deep shade.

I put out large shallow pans of ice cubes late afternoon, they walk in and sit on them and sip the water as it slowly melts...used to add water but they would gorge on too much too fast, I have seen a chicken suffer from an 'ice cream headache'.

To help cool down the coop I also have a box fan in the east window of coop, where it's shady most the day, and turn it on late afternoon...blows cooler air into coop and pushes hot air out.

To determine heat stress levels I go by activity level, if panting and wing holding seems extreme, I throw out a few treats to see if everyone is moving well.

Electrolytes can really help.
Had hen suffer heat exhaustion/stroke one summer, she was standing stock still and let me walk right up to her(not at all normal for this bird). I determined she could not see out of one eye at all and the other was dicey. I started hydrating her with Qtip soaked in Sav-a-Chik solution held against the side of her beak, had to rub under her beak and the front of her neck to get her to swallow at first. Did this until she got too stressed, about 10 minutes, put her in a cage with a fan nearby to rest. Repeated this about every hour for half the day until she would drink out of a cup held in front of her. She recovered and I also gave the rest of the flock a dose of Sav-a-Chik solution in an open waterer(I use horizontal nipples on waterers), it really seemed to reduce the heat stress so now do that regularly when the heat waves are extreme and days long. Just a half gallons worth every couple days.

 

[cluckmomma]

My birds are confined with no great deep shade for last half of the day so I have to be vigilant during heat waves. I do have shade cloths up on run, which helps, but still not deep shade.

I put out large shallow pans of ice cubes late afternoon, they walk in and sit on them and sip the water as it slowly melts...used to add water but they would gorge on too much too fast, I have seen a chicken suffer from an 'ice cream headache'.

To help cool down the coop I also have a box fan in the east window of coop, where it's shady most the day, and turn it on late afternoon...blows cooler air into coop and pushes hot air out.

To determine heat stress levels I go by activity level, if panting and wing holding seems extreme, I throw out a few treats to see if everyone is moving well.

Electrolytes can really help.
Had hen suffer heat exhaustion/stroke one summer, she was standing stock still and let me walk right up to her(not at all normal for this bird). I determined she could not see out of one eye at all and the other was dicey. I started hydrating her with Qtip soaked in Sav-a-Chik solution held against the side of her beak, had to rub under her beak and the front of her neck to get her to swallow at first. Did this until she got too stressed, about 10 minutes, put her in a cage with a fan nearby to rest. Repeated this about every hour for half the day until she would drink out of a cup held in front of her. She recovered and I also gave the rest of the flock a dose of Sav-a-Chik solution in an open waterer(I use horizontal nipples on waterers), it really seemed to reduce the heat stress so now do that regularly when the heat waves are extreme and days long. Just a half gallons worth every couple days.

Thanks, I like the ice cube in shallow trays. I will definitely try this! I too have a fan in the coop. Never had a chick with heat exhaustion but good to know how to handle. I do keep the electrolytes on hand.