Summer heatwave and egglaying

[silkielove83]

Hello fellow friends! Here in oz we have just gotten over heatwave after heatwave. We have 2 silkies that free roam our yard and go into a coop at night or to lay. Because of the heat we noticed they did pant in there so we installed a little desk fan into the corner to keep them cool. We have since seen a post on fb saying that a fan can actually be bad for their health and egg laying as it can dry out their "bits". Has anyone else heard of this and is it true?

 

[JuliaWesterbeek]

I live in a very hot country (32 degrees celsius regularly, day in and day out)... Our chickens also free range during the day and go in the coop for laying or during the night. If you want to put a fan in I wouldn't point it to the floor but to the wall or ceiling instead so it is not directly pointing at the chickens but still cooling the air, you should also keep it on a low/medium speed. Make sure your chickens have access to water 24/7, if you like you can also put a shallow bowl down for the chickens to cool their feet in. Putting ice in the water is also great for hot days, and providing shadow is something that is very effective. My chickens mostly stay under the shade of trees and plants!

Having a heat wave also has a plus side, you can wash your chickens or wet them with water to clean them and you won't need to completely dry them <-- saves you A LOT of time .

Good Luck!

 

[BlueBaby]

I live in the desert part of the USA, and it gets really hot here in the summer. I don't put a fan in my coop, but I do put in one of those timer misting systems in the far end of the run. They really seem to enjoy that.

 

[aldarita]

I also live in a very hot area and summers are murderous for my flock. I installed fans in their coops and used them 24/7 during the hot months. I have had no problem with them running all the time. My coops have good ventilation so there are plenty of windows to circulate the hot air, there is also lots of shade. In my opinion, I do not think there is a problem with the hens vents drying out, and the benefit of cooling off is worth a lot because of the stress caused by the heat.

You can see the 2 nine inch fans on each side of the coop. Last year I left the 2 doors opened all the time to get better ventilation.