Tips to beat the heat

[FirstTimeChikens]

I'm going to be moving my babies to the coop soon, hopefully permanently. They are about 4 weeks but will probably be 5 or 6 by the time we finish the coop. Should I give them electrolytes for the heat and stress? I will be gone when they probably first really settle in to the coop (maybe I will, maybe I won't, at 6 weeks I will be gone to Florida, but at 5 I wont), so won't be able to monitor them besides neighbors helping out and a coop camera. I plan on having fans out there to cool them off. I will have to home them to the coop by manually putting them in instead of locking them away in the coop for 3 days because its too hot. Are they too young for a kiddie pool and frozen watermelon? I also have probiotics I can add to their diet. I plan on having my neighbors put plenty of ice in their water too. Any tips? Thanks!

 

[igorsMistress]

A place to make a mud puddle daily is very helpful. Definitely not too young for a pool with ice but use blocks rather than cubes. Blocks take longer to melt and they can sip the cool water as it melts/stand in it. Only a tiny piece of melon if you give it, they need the nutrients from their feed. Definitely offer electrolytes but probiotics probably aren’t necessary and won’t really be helpful unless there are issues. Try a small amount of wet feed. They will like it and it will give them extra water. I like to mix the electrolyte water with a little feed sometimes too rather than put it in a waterer. You can make a small batch and there’s less waste. Whatever electrolytes they don’t drink should be thrown out after 24 hours.