Poultry farmers must be alert to chick deaths in high-temperature weather

The tolerance of chicks to high temperatures is largely affected by humidity and ventilation. Chicks have a certain ability to adapt and adjust to temporary high temperatures, but in a prolonged high-temperature environment, the chick's thermoregulatory mechanism cannot resist it, and if a certain limit is exceeded, the chicks will die.

At high temperatures, chicks show open-mouth panting, move away from the heat source, become listless, have reduced appetite, drink more water, and their body temperature drops or rises, causing continuous deaths. Even if there is no mass mortality, the high heat affects the chicks' appetite, leading to starvation, stunting growth and development, and can also trigger other diseases.

Chickens that die from high temperatures generally show no obvious lesions; only an empty gastrointestinal tract, and lung congestion, blood stasis and edema may be seen. There are two reasons for creating a high-temperature environment for chicks: first, the outside temperature is too high, the humidity inside the coop is too great, ventilation is poor, and chick density is high. Second, the thermometer malfunctions, or the thermometer is hung in an improper position and height, so the temperature inside the coop cannot be judged correctly, resulting in excessive heating inside the coop or uneven heat distribution.