Is anyone else getting a bit leery of what the rest of this summer is going to bring? I woke up this morning and my first thought is how am I going to get my girls through this day? They are calling for temps of 101 degrees and no rain or break in sight for the rest of the week. I went out to check on them yesterday afternoon and it was like the run was full of chicken puddles...lumps of panting feathers. I keep the water fresh and as cool as I can, I have a large fan in their coop and gave them melon rind as a cool treat. I can't let them free range because of predators and they just aren't old enough yet. Maryland just doesn't get this hot. Call it gobal warming or a stalled Bermuda high. Whatever it is it's beginning to scare me.
That's funny. I excited because it will ONLY be 101 out today. For MD that is crazy though... try making some mud for them to stand in, putting ice in their water, and a few ice packs in the shady areas for them to sit next to. The fan and melon rind are great. Frozen peas work well, too.
We are glad it's only getting to 106 here. Having lost two in the last two weeks to the high temps, here in AZ we can feel your pain. Lots of shade... layers of shade and sprinklers or misters.
You should try 95 degree weather with 100% humidity. For humans it ain't fun, but the chickens seem to tolerate the heat better with more humidity.
I'm glad to hear they can survive this. I have shade cloth over the run but I like the idea of layers of shade. I'll give that some thought. I didn't think about frozen peas. They would be the right size for a gobble up. I have tomatoes in the fridge now for them. What amazes me is that they lay all over each other in this heat, in piles. That would be the last thing I would think would feel good. Now if WE can survive. Air conditioner is down on half the house and four are getting a bad summer cold all at the same time. I think I'll go into hiding.
