Tropical weather in Virginia causing my chickens to pant

[bobbieschicks]

It has been so stinking hot here lately, 103F with heat index of 115F - which is really like saying it's 115F! And with humidity here just tack on another 20 degrees. I don't remember temperatures getting this hot last summer and certainly not last spring.

I went outside yesterday to check on my roasting chickens, even in the shade they were panting heavily. They look like thuds with their wings lifted and their mouths hanging open to breathe. I felt so sorry for them, but I wasn't sure what else to do for them. I sprinkle water on the ground near where they like to hang out and provide plenty of fresh water. They have areas of shade and it's shaded under their coop. I kept all the windows open at night to help with air flow. I'm considering putting a fan out near the coop today since they are calling for 100F with heat index of 110F and light winds.

This morning it's still rather cool at 76F but it's very sauna like - I went out to open up the coop doors and count to make sure we didn't loose any overnight. Everyone was accounted for and soaking wet! It guess it will help them later to stay cooler - but it's such a funny sight to see them all drenched from the dew.

 

[HEChicken]

We get high temps here too so I sympathize. One thing I've done in past years is to take an empty gallon milk container, fill it 3/4 full of water and put it in the freezer overnight. Next day in the early afternoon when it is starting to get really hot, I place the whole container in their water bowl (I use a 2-gallon rubber bowl for their water). This cools the water and being a gallon container, it keeps it cool through the early evening. They do seem to really appreciate this, and come running to get a cold drink of water when they see me bring it out. Other people have set up misters, or give the birds treats of frozen watermelon and grapes. I don't know how much a fan helps them. It feels good to us because we sweat and the fan moves the air against the droplets of sweat on our skin, cooling us. But since birds don't sweat, I'm not sure it helps them to feel cooler in the same way, unless you have a way of blowing it across water.

 

[bobbieschicks]

Those are some great ideas. I will mist them some tidy since they don't mind the wet. Think I'll place a bowl of ice water out for them to drink as well.

I do have some frozen veggies. I'll look to see what they can have.

 

[pawswhiskersnwings]

We are near Winchester VA and getting the same miserable heat. We also freeze gallon jugs and set them in a couple spots when super hot and i have even noticed them lay up against them and grad the water droplets as they run down the sides, i also hung the hose on the fence last year and set it to a very low mist and noticed them standing under it a few times, i set it really low , but im sure it felt good to them, we also set out a large square cake pan and filled it with water and they really enjoyed trampling thru it and just standing in the water...Good luck keeping your girls cool....

 

[Mtn Laurel]

A big YES on the fan. I'm in northern VA and it's nasty hot here, too. Put a large fan at the end of their run last night and they are loving it. They will roost on the ladder to their house - which is right in front of the fan - and extend their wings to cool off.

Good luck, it's brutal out there!

 

[bucky52]

here in orange va.it's stinking hot.i have five fans going.i have a box fan running full speed at each end of their run.i have a small fan running in the small coop.and two fans going in the large coop.water in four differents areas of their coop and run.they are stil panting.we are supposed to have a cool down coming this weekend.

 

[Tigertrea]

Mine have been panting during the hottest part of the day this week to (In Southern Ontario). I have been adding ice cubes to their small inside waterer and I have ice blocks (about 1.5 quarts) that I put in their large waterer outside. I also gave them watermelon...mainly because I had some tough, I didn't go out and get it special.

I am finding that they love to dig down to the cement pad in the coop, glad I have that! They spend the hottest part of the day in the coop...of course it is also the time there is little to no shade in their run. They don't seem to be in any real distress....just hot like the rest of us right now.

 

[Chickmama74]

I am also in VA and my chickens are doing the same thing, Panting is actually a way that they keep cool. I also put extra water in the cool and I have a tarp over the run so that even under the trees they have more shade to cool off. I am going to try putting some ice in their water tomorrow if it is hot like it was today.

 

[Natimus]

My girls have been panting alot too. We've been around the 110 mark the past week. I tried misters and a fan, but they don't like the misters. I made a mud hole in their favorite shady spot. They love it. I also keep plenty of ice in their water and give them frozen veggies as a treat. This seems to be working well for me. They are still laying normally and seem happy.

 

[bobbieschicks]

So I tried the frozen containers - they didn't do anything with them when they were frozen that I could see - but they loved it when I dumped the cool water out for them to drink off the ground. I tried misting them and they all ran like it was hail which is funny because when it torrential downpours naturally - they will stand around in it! I just soaked their run and watered as much of their outside area as possible - that they liked - everyone came running out to peck around for a bit. I left the fan running most of the day - once they figured out it wasn't a killer monster - they settled back down under the coop to cool off. I'll try the frozen veggies today - I tossed them some greens yesterday and they rushed on them like crazy. There was still some panting going on last night at 8:30pm, but this morning no one is panting yet.

Hoping it cools off soon - today it is VERY wet out there already.