To hot for the Sin Bin?

[Margaid]

Right Flop Leghorn has gone broody again! Problem is I am out all day tomorrow and I'm concerned she may overheat. I was out today as well but had to leave her in the nest box as I damaged the drinker that goes in the run of the "Sin house". It doesn't seem to have leaked much so I put her in there this evening and I'll check the level and top it up in the morning. Oh boy did she make a fuss! The others had all gone to bed but she set them off too.

I don't know whether it would be better to leave her so that she can sit in the nest box (external plastic chick box on south east wall of hen house) or keep her shut in the small house (elevated house with attached run, sitting on a sheet of board so no cool grass). The little house stays relatively cool, and there is an external perching area which is always shaded by the roof, but I don't want to come home to baked hen. It was 29 degrees in the shade here.

So what do people think? A potentially hot nest box or the "sin house"? I'm out at 8.40 and back about 5 and there's no-one who can check on her.

 

[chrismahon]

Sin House Margaid. South East nest box is going to get very hot indeed and she probably won't leave it. Put a bowl of water out as well, just in case the drinker does leak. All ours now have two drinkers as it's 32 and no wind.

 

[Margaid]

She managed somehow yesterday Chris as I didn't have time to sort the drinker, but duct tape seems to have worked so she's been in the sin house all day. She was acting like something demented when I went into the enclosure this evening so I let her out. She rushed off to join the others but half an hour later was back in the nest box, so it's back to the sin house. The others have always had two 3 litre drinkers but I took your advice and put a bowl of water in for her as well.