Summer heat to hot to handle for chicks?!?!?!

[OkChickenNerd]

I hoping it is just a freak incident but today I think the heat claimed my week old silver seabright... I found him laying in the corner appeared to be sleeping... I live in Oklahoma and this summer heat I think is just to hot for the little ones... which for me is hard to imagine... There temporary residence is in our travel trailer in a old rabbit cage. We placed fans in the window to keep it cooler... Temp inside is between 110 and 100 through the day and at night when the temp falls we put the heat lamp on them.

I just believe the heat is to much for them... But the others all seem fine... Does anyone have an idea of how to keep them cooler... I think they have even been getting in their waterer to get cooler. I replaced it with a quail size to keep them out of it.... did not want to risk any other water and wetness related issues.... Just trying to keep my little one at the right temp!!!

The heat claimed one of my RIR hens last week so heat was my first guess.

 

[AZBootsie]

Jugs of frozen water help.

 

[AZBootsie]

And not a freakish incident at all. Lots of chickens are dead due to the heat in AZ this year. I am sure the same is true for many southern states.

 

[OkChickenNerd]

Thanks for the jug tip! Do you just place the jug in the cage or do you put ice in their waterer?

 

[Fred's Hens]

Most chickens go into stress at 95F and anything over 100F can take their lives. A fan only moves the air, it doesn't cause the temperatures to drop, of course. Deep shade, moist ground and most chickens can take the heat. That is the best way I've found to prevent deaths in severe heat. At 110F, it is really a 911 situation.

Deep shade. Moist, dampened ground.

 

[okiedrifter]

I also live in Okla my chicks are in a chicken tractor on the ground I put a sprinkler on them during the hotest part of the day it cools the air they do love to play in it and their tractor has a little house in it where they can get in out of the "rain" if the want" I put I ice cubes in their water and change it several times a day....give them cold treats such as watermelon cubes,frozen or cold peas,tomatos or whatever leftover greens you have in your fridge ... no raw potato peelings..

 

[redsoxs]

During those hot-hot-hot days we had up until this week, I always made sure they had cold water to drink, gave them cold things to eat - frozen peas, watermelon, etc., and set up a mister for them. They would stand in the mist and soon - no more panting.

 

[Spoiled1_629]

I lost 8 chicks that were 2 1/2 weeks old yesterday to the heat, even with using cooling precautions. They had lots of shade, cool water and the run sprayed down. It was heartbreaking.

 

[OkChickenNerd]

I think the inch if rain we got today will help them a little bit... hopefully it marks the becoming of a cool wet autumn! !!!! My poor girls deserve it.... They lay in the shadow of the shed and a large oak most of the day where I mist the ground regularly.... I will have to try putting ice in the water and see if it helps!!!!!

As for those chicks in the trailer I will just have to try iced water for them, they can handle 100 but any higher and I can tell it was rough on them..... though today it was 80 and rainy and I had to stick the heat lamp on them like I do at night... wish the weather would cool and more rain would be great!!!!

 

[ChickDaze]

My chicks are just HOT during the day. It gets over a hundred around noon and feels about sixteen degrees higher. I have yet to have any die. They are about eight weeks and four months.