Poultry Welfare During Heat Waves

Extreme heat events cause mass mortality and severe suffering in commercial poultry flocks, and climate change is making these events more frequent and severe.

Key Facts

Chickens are particularly vulnerable to heat stress due to limited thermoregulatory capacity
Heat-related mortality events killing hundreds of thousands of birds in single facilities have occurred
Heat stress causes panting, reduced feed intake, and cardiovascular failure in severe cases
Proper ventilation, cool water, electrolyte supplements, and shade reduce mortality significantly
Climate change is extending heat wave duration and frequency across major poultry producing regions

Welfare Considerations

Poultry heat stress welfare represents a converging crisis of climate change and intensive production vulnerability. Broiler chickens bred for rapid growth and large body mass have compromised thermoregulatory capacity that makes them acutely vulnerable to heat. Packed into large houses in warm climates, a single ventilation failure during a heat wave can cause the deaths of tens of thousands of birds from heat stroke — a massively painful, terrifying way to die. Climate adaptation requires investment in cooling infrastructure and genetic selection for heat tolerance.

What You Can Do

Support pork and poultry producers investing in climate-resilient housing and cooling systems
Advocate for climate adaptation requirements in farm animal welfare certification standards
Reduce consumption of intensively produced poultry while climate vulnerability goes unaddressed
Support research into heat-tolerant poultry breeds that maintain welfare under climate stress