Chickens Hot & Won't Drink to Stay Cool

[lovemy6hens]

Our chickens are hot and won't drink. They walk around panting, holding their wings up. They have access to water in the coop, in the run, and on the patio when they're loose in the yard with us. They'll walk up to the waterer, look at it, and usually walk away panting without a drink. The waterer on the patio is the same as the one in the run. They also stand on their roost in the evening, panting with wings up, after they've wandered back in there on their own. They're around 7 months old, so this is their first experience with heat. We also have two-month-old baby chicks in a separate area. They have the same issue. I'm especially worried about them because they seem to have lost interest in the waterer in their brooder area as well. How do we get them to drink? The babies will drink water if I spill some around the waterer, but don't seem to want to drink from it. I'm happy to provide more details if someone can think of anything I'm missing. Are we supposed to teach them how to drink to stay cool?

 

[ChickenJerk]

Our chickens are hot and won't drink. They walk around panting, holding their wings up. They have access to water in the coop, in the run, and on the patio when they're loose in the yard with us. They'll walk up to the waterer, look at it, and usually walk away panting without a drink. The waterer on the patio is the same as the one in the run. They also stand on their roost in the evening, panting with wings up, after they've wandered back in their on their own. They're around 7 months old, so this is their first experience with heat. We also have two-month-old baby chicks in a separate area. They have the same issue. I'm especially worried about them because they seem to have lost interest in the waterer in their brooder area as well. How do we get them to drink? The babies will drink water if I spill some around the waterer, but don't seem to want to drink from it. I'm happy to provide more details if someone can think of anything I'm missing. Are we supposed to teach them how to drink to stay cool?

What is the water temperature? Try some ice in the water and see if they consume more.

What is the water quality? Has it decreased from being so warm or any other factors?

 

[lovemy6hens]

The water is usually from our kitchen tap unless we've been watering outside with the hose. The hose is on the east side of the house, so in the shade most of the day. I've always run the water outside for a few seconds before filling the waterer. I will try adding ice.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Our chickens are hot and won't drink. They walk around panting, holding their wings up. They have access to water in the coop, in the run, and on the patio when they're loose in the yard with us. They'll walk up to the waterer, look at it, and usually walk away panting without a drink.....

Chickens are very unlike human beings (we'll come back to this) and much of what applies to you or me doesn't apply to your chickens, first your chickens don't sweat or perspire to cool themselves, in fact they don't have sweat glands. Chickens mostly cool themselves through respiration, transpiration, radiation, and the blood circulated through their bare face, feet, wings, and legs. Feather footed and crested breeds may suffer more in hot weather than traditional breeds, the same is true for broiler or meat birds. Also chickens aren't as able to tolerate extremes in temperatures as you or I. A hen holding her wings out in a cupped position allows for more air flow over her skin and the cupped wings. The panting open beak indicate heat stress. It is vital for chickens to have shade. A shady area with moist ground helps but remember the more humidity there is in the air, the slower a hen can shed excess heat. Dust bathing helps chickens cool themselves. Drinking water does not have the same cooling effect on hens that it has on you or me. Cool loafing areas in deep shade should help your birds more.

(refer to the first sentence) Chickens don't have lungs in the same respect that you or I do, but instead a series of lung like air sacks. The panting behavior is designed to increase air flow into and out of the lungs or air sacks to help shed heat. Cool water, not warm, cold, or hot water or water setting in the Sun is best. But I have seen chickens in severe heat stress drink enough water to almost drown themselves but it didn't seem to do much to relive heat stress. They say that a chicken can't throw up, but they can sure shake or sling their heads' hard enough to fling excess water for quite a distance.

Years ago I watched my own free range chickens go from the barn or roost area to a free flowing limestone creek which was their only water source. The creek was only 150 feet from the barn and there were two or three large beech trees between the barn and the creek.

As each chicken went to drink I guess it traveled 200 yards because it traveled a switch back maze like route to the water by staying in the shade of the beech trees every step of the way. It didn't matter if the shady area was the size of your hand, the chickens still favored it by never walking in a Sunny patch.

 

[lovemy6hens]

Thank you for the detailed information on physiology and the anecdote of your chickens. I'm relieved to know drinking water is just a small part of staying cool. They have shade and places to dust bathe, but I will set up a dust bath area by the patio. I think they'd like that and, as you wrote, would definitely help. Thank you for the advice!