Bit hot here at the moment

[chrismahon]

Well I wasn't expecting this. Just took the thermometer off the sunny window sill outside and it said 52. Now the weather forecast has issued a warning for thunderstorms with high winds (can exceed 130mph) coming in from Spain. The one we had last week dropped 40mm of rain in an hour apparently -like standing under the shower! Further North and a chap was telling the TV reporter about the golf ball sized hailstones that had wrecked his car -one had dented the windscreen.

Chickens are suffering and we need to make plans to fit mesh screens inside the coop access doors. 11.30pm last night and they were still panting with all the doors open (and the big coops have doors both ends). The pop-holes already have mesh inserts fitted. Fortunately all French door hinges are lift off -presumably because of the need to keep trimming doors suffering with the warpage due to heat and extremes of humidity. This makes fitting removable coop panels very easy, as long as I remember to buy the correct hinges, LH or RH.

We moved here because we thought the weather would be better than further North. In some respects it is as Winters are mild, but every other aspect is extreme. Apart from the language issues, the extreme climate is a real challenge. French TV is broadcast with subtitles, so I'm learning the language quite quickly (for me -slow to learn, fast to forget). The climate is another issue.

 

[Icemaiden]

Sounds as though you need not so much TNNs as TCNBs - Transylvanian Completely Naked Bodies
I can't imagine being permanently wrapped in a feather duvet in those conditions...

Does misting them with water help, by providing evaporative cooling?

 

[Marigold]

Perhaps chickens will evolve who do the opposite of those monkeys that live in very cold areas where they can immerse themselves in hot water geysers.
Is Bottom still with you? How's he holding up?

 

[chrismahon]

Bottom is like a Spring chicken Marigold. He has completely recovered from the Dordogne and, despite moulting, is picking fights with the other cockerels and treading his daughter. Still wants lots of cuddles though. He enjoyed watching the tennis with me yesterday afternoon.

Sunburn is an issue here Icemaiden. We are watering the runs to cool them down and have wind break material all around the enclosure we can raise to get some breeze through. All in all it is very complicated.

 

[dinosaw]

Sympathise with you Chris, 39C here tomorrow will already be 29C by 9am and apparently that is how it will be for the next two months. Had an extended stay in the Alentejo in Portugal last year when it hit 42 and it put me off buying a smallholding there completely, though I did notice that the Australorps our hosts had seemed to cope with the temperature relatively well. Given the temperature and the red mite problems you have been having, have you ever considered letting your birds roost outside Chris?, presuming that the area is secure against predators of course.

 

[MrsBiscuit]

Dinosaw - I'm sure you know this, but all other bits of Portugal are cooler than the Alentejo! Admittedly not that much until you go up North, but nevertheless it is much more bearable, as some areas have the coastal breeze, and other areas have the high mountains to ameliorate the temperatures. And the Algarve is more temperate, and not all of it is built up (eg the West Coast or Costa Vicentina) but I can understand it might not be quite what you are after.

Chris - It must be difficult looking after chooks in such extreme hot temperatures. I know in Portugal they use the old stone outbuildings wherever possible as these are naturally cool, but in many cases the birds are housed in new build block houses which must be like ovens. I understand in Australia the use of shade netting and misters on a timer are usual, waterers are obviously topped up frequently, ice blocks and things like watermelon are given to the birds, and they are brought indoors into a/c buildings in extreme conditions - not that there are many a/c houses in France I'm sure The other thing is to give them a moist/wet dust bath (mud bath??)

 

[chrismahon]

The traditional Poulaillers here are stone with an all mesh front on the top storey. So Winter they go down and Summer up. There are normal coops for sale in the town though. Its all down to trees for shade and wind shelter and orientation. When we got here I was told about the weather directions and built the enclosure to suit. Luckily the nest boxes were built on the right, which means they are cool in the morning. Its a fine line between success and failure here. Mobile coops are essential if wooden and I think plastic ones would melt.

I'm letting the young TNN's roost with the coop wide open Dinosaw and am leaning towards Summer coops with mesh on two sides. But we are looking for properties with large stone barns and trees on hills. They are few and far between. But moving all the birds into a stone barn for Summer seems the way to go. Unfortunately we haven't got a barn here. Our enclosure is sufficiently secure I think, but could be better. Stray hunting dogs is the big problem.

Air conditioning units are very cheap here MrsBiscuit. Presume that's down to the sales volumes. Another problem though is French wiring. 3 phase with a maximum power of 3 KW per phase. That limits the size of any air conditioner. We have a stone house with slight damp, which is better than 99% of houses here. The damp evaporates and cools the place quite well. We are keeping them well watered -they drink a litre a day when it is hot. We have a rainwater storage tank to supply water for the runs, but it has to be applied with a watering can which is a difficult job in heat. But our setup remains temporary, so we can't do a lot more because we have to take it all down and move it when we buy somewhere.

 

[dinosaw]

Your right Mrs Biscuit, spent time in the Beiras which were cooler, the heat was the final nail in the coffin really as we already had misgivings about a few things,we were ultimately not quite brave enough to handle the complete change of life we had planned plus a change of language. It is interesting though that Portugal apparently has the lowest return rate for British expats, much lower than Spain or France.

Very difficult when you are living anywhere on a temporary basis Chris, I wonder if you could make your own canvas windbreakers like what you used to get on the beach to provide more shade and wind protection, at least then you could take them with you when you move. Any news on selling?

 

[chrismahon]

We have scaffolding cladding Dinosaw, which is the windbreak for the outer enclosure. It is pegged to a clothesline at about 4' high and then lifted from the bottom and pegged to let breeze though at low (chicken) level. Changed agent and marketing approach with the house. We have two properties here which we are watching. One is classed as 'sensible' being modern, with all the necessary land and established veg plot with a very large but leaky pond. The other is pretty, being traditional stone build, but needs a fair bit of work.

I have heard 50% of Brits moving to France move back after a year. Winters are harsh here and property is cheap for a reason -it's rubbish. The only thing you get is a bigger garden and less traffic and little crime. But the rate things grow here you can spend all your time just keeping the garden in shape. But things are changing. My friends village had a spate of burglaries -first time anything was stolen in the village since the Germans invaded! Turns out to be an Eastern European gang working out of Toulouse, which is 45 minutes away. Worrying as we are only an hour away and making things secure is a massive job.

 

[dinosaw]

The French are finally catching up then Chris, thieves from Newcastle and Middlesborough were at it in rural Northumberland and Teeside respectively during the early 90s, soft targets as people were less likely to lock up than in the city, left windows open when they went out etc. Problem with the migrant gangs is they need to steal far less to make it worth their while so are willing to take bigger risks for less reward.

 

[chrismahon]

I just read Icemaiden's post again. The bit about TCNB's was quite relevant. Elisa, who some of you may remember had a prolapse in Dordogneshire, decided to moult last week, which is good timing. But she moulted almost all her feathers in two days! So we had a little pink chicken running about with only her wing feathers to preserve her modesty. Now the new feathers are growing she looks a bit like a hedgehog -but she was still hot yesterday.
Temperature was 37 in the shade with a strong hot breeze from the Med. Fortunately the humidity here is very low because we are a long way from the coast, so it doesn't feel unbearable. However today is 37, but feels like 42 because the humidity is higher. The chickens struggled yesterday- see what happens today. If we are lucky we'll get a thunderstorm.

Just a quick edit to retract my last statement. We won't be lucky because they predict rainfall of 40-60mm in two hours (equivalent of a whole months rain) and hailstones between 2cm and 5cm diameter!

 

[dinosaw]

The way I always think of it when I see a chicken with its mouth open and wings raised is that it's the same as us going red in the face and sweating, probably not quite as bad for them as it looks to us, just hope she doesn't get sunburnt. I know some people feed their chickens partially frozen vegetables to keep them cool, don't know if it works or not. Only one thing you can do to protect yourself from that kind of weather Chris and that is to paint a union flag on top of your house to show it your not French .

 

[chrismahon]

When I've exhausted all the other options Dinosaw I'll try that! I've been concerned about sunburn, but so far none of them have been daft enough to get it. One thing I have noticed is the TNN's necks have gone white. They stay in shade for a few days and they lose all the colour in their necks. It doesn't affect the cockerels.

One advantage of the weather here, as I've mentioned before, is the option to 'cook' the red mite because wrapped in clear plastic, a coop will easily get to over 60 degrees in the sun. Another advantage is the dry air. I can strip and scrub a coop and the panels will be completely dried and ready to creosote in 2 hours. A day in the sun and the coop can be re-assembled and the birds go back in. I have just done the Bantam's coop in 3 days. No red mite in the roofing felt either.

It was still over 30 degrees at 8.00pm last night. The coop doors were left open and we still had to bring Basil, Bottom's son, into the 'sick bay' -a walk in shower room with only a North window and very solid stone walls. He was still panting at 10.00pm with the coop wide open. When we buy we will have a stone barn and the Orpingtons will go in there in Summer. In Winter the Leghorns will go in. The Wyandottes and TNN's are fine outside all year (so far).