Weather...can you read that?

Just in case you can't see the weather blurb from my alert, let me:

The NOAA has removed our heat advisory.

You might think that's a good thing, right? Maybe, in some other climate. Down here, not so much. Down here, being a miserable hot as Hades kind of year and all, this means we have been moved to another level.

Unfortunately, it's not a better level :(

We are now under a 3 day (minimum) *Excessive Heat Warning* meaning the lovely 'real feel' temps we have been, ahem, enjoying, the past month or better are gone. Those 'real feel' temps are now THE actual temps...and our 'real feel' will be cruising upwards of 110-115 between 10am and 9pm for at least the next several days.

Nobody should have to live in those conditions :( Especially with a wicked humidity level to boot. It's like breathing warm bath water or doing every day tasks inside a steam sauna :(

The bad part isn't because you can't even walk to the barn without breaking a miserable sweat....it's because you sweat on the way there, but you AREN'T sweating on the way back! It zaps your natural waters that quick.

Not to offend my Southern buddies and all, but THIS is HOT. I don't care if you've live South your entire life...this weather I would not wish on the absolute worst person in the world. It's simply not fit for man nor beast of any kind.

WATER, folks. W. A. T. E. R. is worth a mere whisper of its weight in pure solid gold. Do not abandon your animals outside...
*move them to a shaded area with a serious breeze -- set up a fan for them to promote air flow even!
*give them a lot of water...add some apple cider vinegar or electrolytes to your chickens water (we add it to the goats as well...hmmm, wonder about adding some to the dogs?)
*check on them several times during these intense heat spells

We will be misting the chickens as well as the goats several times daily over the next many days. Check out what the signs of heat stroke are as well as how to treat and prevent it...for you as well as your pets and livestock.

»Signs of heat stress include heavy panting, glazed eyes, a rapid pulse, vomiting and unsteadiness as they walk or stand. Use cool water, not cold water, to treat an overheated animal, and call a veterinarian immediately.

Here's a great link to horses in summer... http://www.flfarmandfeed.com/heat.html

And a really good description of heat stress and signs, and the progression to heat stroke, as well as a link at the end to some treatment and prevention thoughts...http://www.medicinenet.com/heat_stroke/article.htm

Honestly folks, this isn't just the whine party of a northern girl stuck in the bath water of The South...this is serious business.