My Chicken Misting Project - Is it ok for them to be wet?

[dbounds10]

oh my run is already sand, so thats good. There have been no puddles from the mister, only damp sand that they like to scratch and lay in when its hot. I rake under the poo's and also run the roto tiller through it every couple weeks to keep it all turned up.

 

[BoltonChicken]

In the deep south the professional chicken producers only use fans. The air is already humid enough, no need to add more moisture to it. Moisture holds heat. Fans
evaporate moisture, which cools.
Chickens under shade with dirt floors and and good air circulation will need nothing else to survive down here. If you feel you must absolutely do something more then
put a fan on them.
The problem with misters is that they get the flooring, bedding and such wet, which is a disease producer in the heat.

Remember, they have been raising chickens for hundreds of years with good results in places much hotter than Mississippi and Texas without fans, ice water, and misters.

 

[cmom]

The birds have shade but I also have sprinklers which I turn on during the hottest part of the day in my chicken yards and my birds love to go and run around under the sprinklers and scratch in the damp soil. We have been in the upper 90's here too. The water that comes out is cool. I sometime join them.

 

[Attila the Hen]

Quote:
I was thinking about getting a mister, but they had sold out. I wondered if it was wise to have so much humidity in the air since chickens are prone to respiratory problems from humidity. I am still considering running one for short periods in one spot of the yard since they free range and may not even be interested. I put a fan on in the garage and off they went to conduct their busy lives.
I would like to hear more on this discussion. I think it's a good question.
thank you

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Mine stand in the rain. I don't see where misters are any different in them getting wet.

 

[la-pro]

I'll take a picture of what I'm doing tomorrow, it's too dark right now. I have an open-air coop, I hung a light, airy cotton blanket on the side that gets the most sun and point the mister at that, also go and soak the blanket down thoroughly a couple times a day when it's the hottest. The mist keeps the blanket wet and as the air blows through it, it cools the coop down significantly while the inside stays dry. Maybe you could hang a blanket on the sunny side of your run and point the mister at it?

 

[dbounds10]

My run is 216 sq feet, 12x18. I only have 6 chickens so there is a ton of room in the run. The 216 sq feet does not include the 24 sq feet that is under the coop itself which I have a small fan pointing into. They also like to lay under there in front of the fan. There is only mister line across 1 of the 18 ft walls of the outside run. I do not run any misters inside the coop so no worries about wet bedding or them being forced to sit in high humidity. They can easily escape the misters if they choose but so far during the hottest part of the day, they have been happily scratching the damp sand in that part of the run. I only run the misters during the hottest part of the day (noon-ish to about 6).

Tomorrow I will leave the misters off and see if the shade cloth we put up is keeping them from panting and dropping wings. I also plan to keep an eye on the sand to make sure it is not getting to wet and will let it dry out well. I understand chickens have been living a long time without special measures but I also understand I may have breeds that do not deal as well with the high heat and want to make sure they dont croak!

By the time we get to august and the temp is 107 in the shade I feel I need to have something waiting in the wings to assist them in getting through the days. Probably being over protective but I do care for them and dont want them to suffer in this nasty heat. I wish I could just bring them inside. We even thought about a window unit for the coop but it just would not be an easy project so, not going there.

Time will tell....keep the opinions and pictures of your set ups coming, love hearing about what everyone else is doing!

 

[featherbaby]

Quote:
Now THAT is a good idea! I wish I had a video of it !!!!!!!HA!!!!! I think I'd have to draw the line at 'scratching in the damp soil' though. That just doesn't appeal to me very much. HA!!!!!!

I got out in my pond today (otherwise known as the 'slime pit') to work on the newly planted water lilies and to release some comet goldfish. I decided that even if it did resemble 'cream of primordial soup" it was COOL and quiet, and I wanted to stay there forever and ever. Sigh! Back to reality. Bah!

 

[Horizon Structures]

Quote:
Yes, but chickens don't sweat so there is no moisture on them to evaporate and cool them. A breeze feels good, no doubt, and helps move humid air, but it probably isn't cooling chickens in the same way as if they were wet.

But yes, if the air is THAT humid, evaporating mist off the chickens will be more difficult!

 

[FlipFlopFarmer]

i am located in central louisiana. quite hot and very humid. my chickens seek out shade during the middle of the day, and i have a little spot that gets muddy often(because i overflow the horse trough frequently) and it is under a stack of old lumber and tin. my chickens will fan out thier wings and just plop right down in it. it is only about 2 inches of water, and it dries up about every 3 days or so. i deworm my chickens about every 4 months and add avian charge to thier water just incase they dont get something from the feed and free ranging, and so far i have happy healthy chickens. im sure by looking at ur misting set up, it is fine, and it looks like if your chickens didnt like it, they have plenty of area to avoid it. i am in the process of adding misters to the fans that are in a shaded area for my horses because they love the water and wind as well.