posted 7 years ago
My flock was dealing with 100 degrees today. Yes, the panting means that they are hot, and they'll also hold their wings out from their bodies to help dissipate body heat. As long as they have shade, cool water, and the ability to scratch into cooler soil, they should be fine. I did have a couple of hens die from heat exhaustion last year when it got up to 110 for a week, but after that I installed a little sprinkler in their run and turn it on when it's above 90. They walk through the cool mud around it and drink from it, and that seems to help. No deaths since then.