This weekend is supposed to be in the 115 range. Your birds are not excited about this. Please make sure they have lots of shade and plenty of cool water to drink. Add some (open) frozen water bottles to their drinking water, also place one or two under their favorite shade bush/tree etc. Hose them down with cool water if they look stressed (which they probably will be) You can also feed them cool juicy veggies in the morning to help get them hydrated to begin with. Think cool melons, lettuce, cucumbers etc.
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Carol, it sounds like you're doing everything right and your birds are toughing through it just fine. This year has just been especially hard on everyone's animals. The free choice food should be fine. Try not to worry so much that you don't enjoy your birds! :)
My birds seem significantly less heat stressed with the ice baths to stand in. Even after the water bottles of ice melt, the water doesn't seem to get hot if it's in the shade. They just take turns standing in them. The water is only about 2 inches deep but it makes a huge difference.
Thank you all for the excellent information and tips, which have really helped me change things up a bit so that I can safeguard my chickens from the heat as much as possible. We also lost a chicken this past week, and it's heartbreaking. When we went to let them out of the coop in the morning (they free-range during the day), one of our Black Australorps was lying next to the waterer. She was already gone.
We're now using a free-standing mister--I believe it's called a Cobra Mister--that works really well. It has 2 misters on it, and my chickens love it. It is a simple and cheap way to get a misting system with no labor required. Here is a link to some pictures (or google "Free-standing cobra misters") so you can get an idea of what it looks like: http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&um=1&sa=...
That's the exact mister I picked up at Ace Hardware. I second it on it working really well. It's pretty inexpensive - I paid $11 for mine. I can move it around the yard as needed to keep it in the shade. Normally only have to move it once. Mine were a little afraid of it in the beginning but now sit or stand under it during the worst parts of the day. They are always covered in mist. Just make sure that you don't mist the food or it will mold.
our 4 muscovies are doing well. they have 4 'ponds'. one is the bottom of rabbit hutch, one is a shallow round pond from Lowe's, and two are 'tubs' they mix concrete in, shallow. they are all plastic, 3 black and 1 blue. their hutch is wire on all sides, they do not stay in it. they huddle under the lemon tree around the 2 ponds, getting in and out.
lately the 3 teenage ducklings have been getting out. last nite they ALL got out again, and didn't mess up the garden by eating it, but were over by the spa. Apparently they didn't get in the pool either. that's strange.
we change pond water every day, sometimes twice a day in the heat. we're thinking of letting them roam the yard, but they poop SO MUCH, and it stinks. but I wonder if they are getting out because it's too hot in their area or just cause they're teenagers and that's what teens do? lol
they have plenty of shade in their area.
The muscovies do much better in the heat than chickens. If they have plenty of shade in their area and they have shaded water that stays a reasonable temp then maybe they're just getting out to go exploring. Is it cooler where they're going by your spa than in their area?
I had to bring in one of my older hens yesterday afternoon for a bit. She was laying down and couldn't get up;panting really hard. I have the 'ER' set up in our master bath as janet suggested below. We just bought a mister system for the ceiling of the coop and ice blocks to place in front of the fans on the ground. Fed them a bunch of tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries and spinach this morning. What a great place for up-to-date sharing. Thanks everyone. =0)
I don't quite understand my chickens. I put up a mister in their favorite shady spot and now all they do is avoid it. You talk about hosing them down, but they run as fast as they can away from the water. I tried to entice them into the cool misters with some cantaloupe and they didn't even eat it! Will they eventually figure out how wonderful their new misters are?
my chickens avoid direct contact with the mist as well. so I moved the mister back so it isn't getting them wet, and use a fan to blow the wet, cool air on the shady area where they siesta... they seem happy (no panting, mostly happy chirping noises) and they move closer when it is hotter. occasionally they will stand in a shallow pan of water & ice that I set out in the afternoons. even though I move the mister and fan each day and turn it off around 6 pm, the ground isn't completely dry by morning.
Is the wet ground a problem? I'm considering trying a pressure regulator on the mister and see if that will allow a lower volume of water to make the mist.
dan straight > Kelly ListonJuly 10, 2009 at 3:08pm
i use a bucket for some water and put in blocks of ice i freeze. i also have a 6 and a 3 gallon watrer placed around the yard they have plenty of shade and a coop with a cooler, but they dont hang out in the coop during the day they still just hang out in the shade
Replies
We're now using a free-standing mister--I believe it's called a Cobra Mister--that works really well. It has 2 misters on it, and my chickens love it. It is a simple and cheap way to get a misting system with no labor required. Here is a link to some pictures (or google "Free-standing cobra misters") so you can get an idea of what it looks like:
http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&safe=off&um=1&sa=...
David
lately the 3 teenage ducklings have been getting out. last nite they ALL got out again, and didn't mess up the garden by eating it, but were over by the spa. Apparently they didn't get in the pool either. that's strange.
we change pond water every day, sometimes twice a day in the heat. we're thinking of letting them roam the yard, but they poop SO MUCH, and it stinks. but I wonder if they are getting out because it's too hot in their area or just cause they're teenagers and that's what teens do? lol
they have plenty of shade in their area.
we have no place inside the house to bring them.
Is the wet ground a problem? I'm considering trying a pressure regulator on the mister and see if that will allow a lower volume of water to make the mist.
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