I live in Arizona where it gets to be a 115 to a 120 in the summer time. We have Misters in the ceiling of the cage on one side set up on the timer with the grass. Underneath the misters or right behind it I have a fan that blows through the mist that'll take at least 10ﾟoff if it's in a shady area. Sometimes I'll cover the run to make sure it's shaded right there. Don't get one of the ground misters that hook to a hose. I made that mistake and then ended up with a chicken getting pneumonia and dying. You need to fine mist if you're going do it. The fine mess needs to come down from above and not at eye level otherwise it goes right into the lungs. Another thing is in that Pan of water that you put out for them put a brick in. There are some science behind it but they stand on the brick and the coolness pulls up into their feet. Sometimes we freeze 2 liter bottles with Water and they can snuggle up to it to keep cool. The main thing is the misters. It makes all the difference in the world when it's a 115 out. My gals don't even pant. They're very comfortable. I've never lost a chicken because of the heat.
I’m in AZ as well and we tried a mister on year and it brought an onslaught of flies even though the coops are clean! How do you control the flies with yours?
We trained our chickens from 3 to 5 weeks old with a code word in case they got out or they were heading into danger, like the road. We would introduce kitchen Scraps, 1 at a time, in our hand & say chirp, chirp and they would eventually come running for treats. So now if we need them to come to us for any reason, we can say chirp, chirp & they all come running.
One of my girl's favorite treats is basil, so on hot days I snip a bunch in the morning and stick it in the fridge to chill it really well and feed it to them cold. They love it even more then.
My chickens love the hose mister.. I live in Central Florida and it's always tough for my chickens in the summer. Over the years I've learned that providing lots of shade, clean fresh cold water, frozen food/treats, electrolytes and a mister on the hose really helps them to make it through the heat. Thanks for sharing your tips with us ❤
Yeah, wish I'd known before I lost my gorgeous rooster. Every 2 hours i throw in some ice cubes or cold water. I'm in Dallas it's been upwards of 107°.
I give them ice (got a big one every day) about four times per day. Watermelon once a day. Shade. Fans, dust baths, wet the ground and they like that a lot. It's been 90s for days now. Wears me out.
We freeze our watermelons and they destroy all of them in the summer.... we also give them big ice blocks to walk on and peck at ....that really helps as well
Great ideas! I put a little scoop of canned corn in cupcake pans and add water and freeze and make corn popsicles for my chickens. They love them and they store easy in ziplock bags after froze. Beautiful family God Bless.
We spray our shade cloth over the tractor that creates a mist kinda like a swamp cooler. The chickens initially run from the spray but eventually return to the cooler air and the damp floor.
We eat the Watermelon & leave some meat on the rind & clip them to the fence. They would peck at them there. Our friend has about 10 chickens & one of their kids threw a marshmallow & they said it was chicken football & pretty entertaining.
I live in Northern Michigan and we also had the high temps. In the morning I would mist down the the Chicken Runs and when my husband got home around 3:30 he would mist the Runs down. My chickens have to be in an enclosed run because of predators, so I need to provide all of their nutrition they could get if they could free range. So yes I am the one who does buy Melons and veggies just for the chickens. My main concern during these high temps have been my momma and her chicks who are in a separate coop downstairs in our walk out area, they did not benefit from the winds that we had, the wind is kind of blocked in in that area. So again with misting their area 2x a day cold water 2x a day and extra moisture dense foods were given while we were gone 9 hours a day. We also set up a camera on them in case they showed distress signs (my husband has an opportunity to come home if needed during work thank you Lord). All went well and hopefully in the next week or 2 we will be able to integrate them into the main flock (retail work schedule allowing).
Good tips! I use small kiddie pool for their feet, ice blocks in water and freeze chunks of fruit inside. They enjoy the pecking, the coolness and the tasty treat.
i am in Tx, i did all that but after a while one of them was suffering, so i had to put them in a big cage inside my house temporary while it's crazy hot outside 🤔
