Rain will it harm my chickens.

[RedJungleFowl]

So like all my chicks are feather out already but its already august i was thinking if it rains would they chicken get cold since its starting to blown cold air here.. And no they have never been in the rain before..

 

[sourland]

Provide shelter, and they should be fine. Chickens will forage in a light rain or drizzle but generally seek shelter in more heavy rain. If they become soaked and waterlogged, they can suffer from hypothermia.

 

[donrae]

I live in the Pacific Northwest, my chickens see a lot of rain. They have the option to be in the uncovered run or the coop, they choose about half and half unless it's really pouring. Make sure they can get somewhere dry if they choose, but don't keep them confined just because it's raining. Making sure they can get out of the wind is way more important.

 

[RedJungleFowl]

Ok thanks i though they would die if rain touches them.

 

[appps]

Ok thanks i though they would die if rain touches them.

I am hoping you are joking there??

Think of all your wild birds. There would be dead birds everywhere everytime it rained. They have some natural protection from rain with their feathers. You just don't want them getting very wet and then still being that way when they go to bed especially if its cold

When mine were younger and it was sprinkling I'd lock them back mid afternoon so they had a chance to dry off before bed. Now they are older they seem to work it out for themselves

Good luck!!

 

[RedJungleFowl]

I am hoping you are joking there??

Think of all your wild birds. There would be dead birds everywhere everytime it rained. They have some natural protection from rain with their feathers. You just don't want them getting very wet and then still being that way when they go to bed especially if its cold

When mine were younger and it was sprinkling I'd lock them back mid afternoon so they had a chance to dry off before bed. Now they are older they seem to work it out for themselves

Good luck!!

No i was't joking cause my cousin use to raise some chickens and it rain then like when they went to put the chickens to bed some died.

 

[bobbi-j]

No i was't joking cause my cousin use to raise some chickens and it rain then like when they went to put the chickens to bed some died.

There had to be some other factors at work there. Were they completely soaked? Able to get out of the wind? My guess would be they had gotten wet, didn't have shelter out of the wind and became hypothermic. Or they were unhealthy chickens to begin with and the wet and cold weakened them further somehow. Healthy chickens can get wet and survive. Most chickens will get out of the wet and cold on their own when they need to.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

There had to be some other factors at work there. Were they completely soaked? Able to get out of the wind? My guess would be they had gotten wet, didn't have shelter out of the wind and became hypothermic. Or they were unhealthy chickens to begin with and the wet and cold weakened them further somehow. Healthy chickens can get wet and survive. Most chickens will get out of the wet and cold on their own when they need to.

x3.

Simply provide shelter from wind and rain that they can choose to go into and they will take care of themselves. Chickens have oil glands that coat their feathers which offers natural protection, and I've seen them graze happily through drizzle.

A soaked bird can be a bad thing if it is really cold and they go to roost soaked to the bone, ie soaked down to the skin. (What we see as wet is usually just the top feathers shedding water with the under down still dry next to the skin.)

I live in the great Northwet too, and I a couple of times I have added some extra pine shavings and sometimes sprinkled it on top of them to help absorb the rain from their feathers if they got really, really soaked and went to roost being that wet. (I have a couple of fence jumpers who can get really soaked in cold rain.)

CRD can be brought on by environmental stress, so if a bird is suffering from that or a big overload of worms, getting cold and soaked could be a bad thing. But a normal healthy chicken who has a nice dry cozy coop to snuggle in and dry themselves off in the nesting material will take care of themselves just fine.

Lady of McCamley

 

[RedJungleFowl]

There had to be some other factors at work there. Were they completely soaked? Able to get out of the wind? My guess would be they had gotten wet, didn't have shelter out of the wind and became hypothermic. Or they were unhealthy chickens to begin with and the wet and cold weakened them further somehow. Healthy chickens can get wet and survive. Most chickens will get out of the wet and cold on their own when they need to.

Well the chickens were bought at a farm and were suppose to be kill the next day but some die already so they had to go buy somemore.

 

[Lady of McCamley]

Well the chickens were bought at a farm and were suppose to be kill the next day but some die already so they had to go buy somemore.

My guess is that they were commercial meat broilers. Those are more subject to stresses and far more delicate because they have been bred to go from chick to table in 8 weeks not to be hardy..or sensible..birds. A good soaking and then left wet over night could very well do them in.

Lady of McCamley