Chickens in the rain

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Tallulah

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Hello everyone, I have 5 ex-bats and this is my first time keeping chickens. We have had the girls for 2 weeks now and today is their first full day of rain. My girls are soaked although they do have a separate shelter as well as a coop (the coop is a bit on the snug side - houses 6 max) but as they live in our cattery courtyard they have loads of space to free range. However they dont seem to want to shelter very much. They also have the cattery windows to shelter under as they open upwards. They look very bedraggled and because they are a bit oven ready (one especially) I'm concerned that they may get poorly. Normally they stay out till dusk and then get put to bed. Should I put them to bed earlier if the rain continues? Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks.
Marie
 
Hi, it's stil very warm so i wouldn't worry too much- if it was the middle of winter i would lock them up- they normally will seek shelter if they are cold or too wet. :)
regards, David :)
 
Hi Tallulah

Have just had exactly the same trouble with my ex batts today.

Rained so heavy that I just had to shoo them inside.
One refused point blank to go in, I eventually had to catch it and carry it in.
Also an oven ready one, when I put it down on the litter inside, for the first few minutes it was staggering sideways and couldn't stand upright.

10 minutes after it had recovered, but I made my mind up then that it was the last time I left them out in the rain.

Apart from that, I also read that ex batts have a habbit of drinking from puddle water and aparently that is not good for them.

So for me, I'm afraid i will be shutting them in when it rains, not the best way to start a life of freedom but better than what they are used to I suppose.

cheers

steve
 
-I think having lived all the time inside they have not had any experience in sheltering from the elements,if they have little feathering they will need watching in the sun or they could suffer nasty sunburn.Ros
 
I have 20 ex bats and it has been raining for almost 2 weeks straight, they have a cozy henhouse and half of the pen has a roof, and they still are out in the rain. They dont seem to mind it all...the only thing i noticed is that egg production has slowed down a little (im not sure if its the rain though)..we have red soil here and the white hens are not white anymore, but hey...they're free... :D
 
Agree with podstable, just they have no experience of such things and so they just don't know to go shelter.
 
well our four girls have had the option of free ranging or be undercover from the rain that we have had all day and all for of them have been roaming out in the garden in the rain. apart from about an hour ago when Gladys our Speckeldy decided to take cover under the shelf from the BBQ to shut her eyes for a bit whilst the others carried on roaming! Just brought them back into the run and coop there just now but they are still sitting out in the rain :?

Kim
 
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