The Pacific Northwest lives for summer. We thrive on beach days and BBQ’s, popsicles and family hikes. We live life to the fullest to take advantage of our short summer season. While we may enjoy soaking up the rays, many of our feathered friends do not.
Chickens typically do fine on their own in the winter because of their feathery down jacket that insulates and protects them from the elements. The time they really struggle is when it gets too hot. They don’t have sweat glands and are prone to heat stroke, so their ability to cool themselves is limited to the environment we provide for them.
Here is what to look out for and how to help:
Since they can’t sweat, panting helps remove hot moisture from their lungs. This loss of moisture cools them off but it also causes a new problem- loss of essential electrolytes. Depletion of electrolytes can cause many body systems to shut down. So, it is important to try and replenish the lost electrolytes. We suggest adding a probiotic and electrolyte mix to their water. Our favorite products for this are: Durvet Vitamin & Electrolytes and Hen Boost by Animal Health Solutions.
Chickens will also attempt to cool themselves by laying down with their wings spread out. This is an attempt to expose their skin to cooler air. Remember their feathers are designed for holding in heat so when the temperatures rise, they will try everything they can to expose as much skin as possible. Provide as much shade for your ladies as you can so they can stretch out on cooler ground. You can plant a nice shady bush in their run, or even provide something as simple as an umbrella for them to seek shelter under. This is also a great time to be sure they have access to a nice dust bath; chickens will scratch the surface of their run to get to the cooler dirt down below. A trick that works for cooling down the whole family adds fun to the run too: set up a sprinkler or mister so there is continual access to cooler temperatures.
Chickens will increase their water intake and vastly decrease their food consumption when they are too hot. A hot chicken will drink 4-5 times more water than normal and they may stop eating all together. It is essential to provide fresh, clean, cool water. We recommend having many shallow bowls out in the chicken run and refilling them often (this decreases how hot the water can become). Add ice and be sure to keep those electrolytes coming. A great way to encourage your hens to eat is to freeze their food. Cut up some fruit and veggies, add mealworms and dried grubs and make an ice bowl for them. Add some plain yogurt to increase their protein and probiotic levels. You can even add some frozen fruit to their water dishes and enjoy watching them “bob” for apples (be sure to remove apple seeds). Due to the increase in water consumption, you will likely have chickens that experience diarrhea, which of course leads to more electrolyte loss. Keep pumping them full of that electrolyte mix!
We hope you and your flock enjoy a beautiful Washington summer!