Last week.......something happened here in the Sacramento Valley.....the afternoon temperatures climbed up to 110 degrees! For June......that's unheard of. So hot it was.......the dogs refused to go outside (smart!). The horses spent half of their day undercover of the fan cooled barn. The only animal dumb enough to be out there was..............me :-(
Chickens were roasting. Farmers were roasted.
Whenever there is major change in a chicken's environment ....the ladies will go bonkers. If it is moving them........or if it is feeding time table change.......or if it is a surprise heatwave of 110 degrees following a day that was 82 degrees. What were the effects of the heatwave? The egg production dropped 80%! My understanding is that the effects will last up to 10 days.
Perhaps the Chicken Union will demand air conditioned coops at the next Union Hall meeting.