Thank you!

@Blacks Gone Wild Vol.1 That's does not sound very nice. I wouldn't support someone with a sale by buying from a person/business who has their chickens in an environment where they can't move. There are plenty of other places to get poultry.

Where I live I have to let the hose run for a bit before the water is cool. At first it’s boiling hot!!!

We live in Houston Texas this last weekend it was so hot. We lost one of chickens, we thought we had protected them enough. We have dark shade , a cooling fan and shallow water pans.

Sorry for your loss! Im south of Houston as well and some of my chickens are quite old. A couple of them got too hot and Ive had to keep them inside for awhile. Now they go out but I bring them in during the hottest part of the day still. @@teresabell1014

@@SunshineCountryChickens where do you bring your chickens in ? I live off Edgebrook and I-45.

Thank you!!

Thank you!! :)

Thank you!!! :)

Thank you!!

I agree, misters for chickens can be wonderful!

Yes, we have 2 amberlinks. They are probably my favorite breed among my flock when I consider personality, egg production, adaptability, etc. Their medium dark brown eggs are so beautiful too!

Especially this week! Our first seasonally warm days this season!

also for winter do you cover up the screen openings or leave them open?

Every situation is different. I have experience with chickens in a hot dry climate, but I don't have humidity to deal with here. The way I manage my chickens in the heat is to provide plenty of shade, ventilation and airflow, and access to clean water to keep them hydrated. Cool or frozen fruit/veggies in addition to their regular feed makes them happy too.

I do have 2 amberlinks. I love them. Amberlinks are very productive layers with gentle personalities. My two lay almost every day and they are the sweetest and calmest of any of my chickens. They are not quite as heat tolerant as some of my other girls, but they are still absolutely one of my favorite types of laying hens. Amberlinks lay medium dark brown eggs. This time of year, I always have a big hat close by :)

@@reachinreverie8462 ... I've had three Amberlink chicks for 5 weeks now. They're growing rapidly! They are quite tame because I've moved them inside the house at night because we've had a longer, cooler spring than usual. Right now they're asleep in a cardboard brood box I set up next to my bed. During the day, they're outside in a coop. I love the coloring of your adults... can't wait to have a whole flock of them. I raised barred rocks on our Oregon farm when I was a girl. It's been over 50 years since I've had chicks, and in celebration I'm sure I'm already spoiling these girls. I have a rooster and two more hens on order for June. I want a rooster for several reasons, but mostly because I can (we're in a very rural area), and he'll hopefully warn them and scare off hawks and owls that are resident here. Exciting times!

What is the name of it ?! I’d like to get some...

Congratulations on your chicks! Bedding type can depend on a lot of things. Pine shavings are a good choice. They are cheap and very absorbent, however take a while to break down in compost. Chopped straw smells good and is light. It is more expensive than pine shavings. It needs to be cleaned more often though as it is less absorbent than pine shavings. It breaks down well in compost. I do not recommend hay. Hay is often used as a food source for other livestock. It is moist and can mold easily.

We use wood shavings with diatomaceous earth powder keeps the itch bugs away. & if you raise them with redwood shavings your chickens wont try to eat it & your coop will smell nice. When you wet it down in an area for them to keep cool it won’t give them itchy mites.

Congratulations on your chickens! They are a joy! My chickens prefer plain dirt to dust bathe in. They usually make their own dust bathing areas around the yard. They like to pick shady areas that are nice and cool. I put a sandbox in their run and they don't use it at all. Also, play sand can cause respiratory problems in chickens over time. I have hardy established plants in their free ranging areas. They will eat the leaves off of any yummy plants that are in their reach, so they can definitely destroy plants in your yard if you don't chicken proof their area. They have cleared out weeds and grass for me, but they have also killed several rose bushes, and have caused chaos anytime they sneak into my garden! What you feed your chickens will depend on their intended purpose and your resources. You would feed a meat chicken differently than you would feed a laying hen. I only have experience raising laying hens. For my layers, I personally would stick to starter feed until they are close to laying age so that they can develop properly. Providing treats can potentially lead to them being deficient somewhere in their diet when they are growing up and developing so fast. They might start waiting to be fed treats and not get enough of their balanced feed in their diet. They tend to grow up pickier and won't eat their feed. Instead of treats, I find that chicks go crazy over moistened starter crumbles every once in a while. I only start feeding food scraps and treats once the chickens are mature at laying age. I know there are people who make their own balanced feeds, and that works great for them. There are people out there who feed their chickens treats from day one and they never have problems. I'm not telling anyone what to do, but in my experience, the safest way I have found for beginners to raise chickens is to stick to their balanced starter feed (with no treats or scraps) for the first few months until they are mature enough to lay eggs. Once they start laying I switch them to a layer feed that has calcium and I begin to offer treats and our kitchen scraps. Good luck! Enjoy your chickies!

Those are great points! Our wall actually stays relatively cool, I don't know how! I do think in the summer it isn't ideal as far as airflow goes, but the idea for having a solid wall near the coop is to provide shelter from the elements. Where we live, we get extremely high winds. It doesn't rain much, but when it does it usually hails. This location keeps the girls as dry as possible. The wall isn't going anywhere, because we are renting, but I do think in the future when we move we will design something really special for them. I think they do fine in the run when they need to be in there for their safety, but they do prefer to free range of course. My girls love watermelon and spaghetti noodles too haha. I am so glad it's getting back into watermelon season again!

@@reachinreverie8462 I think.they already have somewhere extremely special. I love how much you care for them and think your set up is fab. I love watching our girls potter...I sit down and call it 'chicken tv'! Such funny animals! We have one of those electric timed doors and we didn't change time when clocks changed and our girls seemed like they were stomping about most cheesed off! So funny!!! Sometimes I get more sense out of them than the kids!

@@brokenh8911there are a lot of different ways to manage your flock and it really comes down to what is best for your routine, if your chickens are all hens,, a mixed flock,, or meat birds, and then you have to consider your budget. With my current set up and season in life, I am feeding my girls layer pellets as their primary feed and giving them kitchen scraps whenever available. I cook most meals from scratch so they end up getting quite a bit of odds and ends. Chickens can eat a wide variety of foods. I never give them raw potatoes, uncooked beans, or any sweets besides fruits. Other than that, they get all of my food waste as long as it hasn't spoilt.

@@reachinreverie8462 thank you so much I have three leg horns and they are so spoiled and I have been doing what you have texted me and they are the happiest chickens ever thank you so much for me and helping me with my hens

I prefer to use chopped straw. I think it breaks down the best when we compost it. It also smells nice and is comfortable for the girls. It works well if you maintain a clean coop and change out the bedding regularly. When it isn't available at the store, my backup is pine shavings. Pine shavings absorbs moisture better, it's cheaper, and you can go a little longer between coop cleanouts, but It also holds more odor and it takes a lot longer break down in the compost.

@@reachinreverie8462 ok thank you:)

When I water the bushes and trees they love to walk in the puddles. They will also sometimes walk into a big rubber water pan that we have for them. They love to cool down by standing in some water, as long as they have areas where they can be dry too :)

@@reachinreverie8462 thanks so much.ill try things if we get hot enough here in UK!

I do feed corn as a treat in the winter, yes. We avoid it in the warmer months. :)

@@reachinreverie8462 thankyou..we have hot spells here in central Virginia..have a safe & blessed day🙏🙏

Year round, their main food source is a complete balanced Layer Pellet chicken feed. I also add Strike III probiotic pellets mixed into their feed. Their treats and snacks change with the seasons, but they get most of our food scraps, fresh fruits and veggies, alfalfa hay, and dried bugs. We only provide chicken scratch and corn in cool or cold weather.

Thanks 👍

We only have hens, she is a brahma :)

Odette (White with black neck and tail) is a Brahma Dua (Black and white striped) is a Dominique Ceniza (Grey) is a Sapphire Gem Yasha (Black) is an Australorp Molly and Mary (Cream) are Amberlinks Myrtle, Pip, and Ariel (Red) are Rhode Island Reds

I am located in africa do you sell any fertilised egg i need 120 fertilised egg

@@reactionkings92 Sorry, I only have female hens, no roosters, so no fertilized eggs. We don't sell our eggs.

At the end of this video I briefly talk about why I choose to not wet my chickens. I understand that everyone has different circumstances and live in different climates around the world, so I don't want to say that my way of helping to keep my hens cool in hot weather is the best or right way for everyone. I hope that my video can help others to make their own choices for caring for their poultry, by offering options. That said, if you wash your chickens (like if they have parasites, or maybe they got into something really gross and you want to wash it off) I'd research how to best wash and dry them. I personally, have never washed one of my chickens. Typical chicken feathers (when dry) can help insulate them, keeping them cooler in hot weather and warmer in cold weather. They position their feathers to trap a layer of air between the feather and their skin which can make them more comfortable and help them regulate their body temperature to an extent. This is where we help them by keeping them hydrated, offering them shade, areas to dust bathe, offering evaporative cooling etc, to offer more comfort. When you wash a chicken, you reduce their ability to self regulate their own temperature when wet, and you should completely dry them afterwards before returning to their environment. Washing if done incorrectly can do more harm than good.

​@@reachinreverie8462 Thanks for this detailed reply. I live in Pakistan, the weather here right now is very hot (about 40 degree celsius) and it makes me worried that my chickens have started breathing with their mouths open. I have provided them with water but they don't drink it as much so I was just wondering if I could give them a shower to cool them down. I guess that is not a good idea! I am feeding them cool vegetables like chopped cucumbers and spinach. they seem to enjoy that.

@@mzorkea I completely understand. Our summers rise to around 115F or 46C on some days. Giving them cool treats is a great idea, and offering them plenty of areas of deep shade where they can stay out of the sun. Try wetting some of the ground to lower the ground Temperature and to cool the air close to the ground. You could also try water misters, they help a little without soaking the chickens feathers, as long as they have enough room to get away from the mist if they've had enough. My girls like playing in puddles too. They walk into the water puddles which cools their feet without soaking the whole birds. I have a shallow water trough for them (it's a rubber bucket meant for feeding pigs). The chickens will step into the water which is just a few inches deep, which helps a little.

I do not recommend hay as a bedding. Hay is typically used as a feed supplement for some animals. It has moisture and can mold pretty fast. An alternative is chopped straw. It's comfortable and smells nice, however can be pricey and may not be ideal in really wet climates. Pine shavings are cheaper and more absorbent, and tend to stay drier for longer in my experience, although it breaks down slower than straw in compost. Their are pros and cons to everything and it depends on your budget, management style, how often you plan to clean your setup, your climate etc. What works for one person may not work for others.

The leaves of tomatoes are not good for them, being a nightshade. They can have some tomatoes fruit as food scraps or as a treat. The main portion of their diet is always layer pellets and tomatoes are only fed as a treat when tomatoes are in season. Tomatoes are an inflammatory food which are not all that great for humans either but they are delicious. Moderation is key.