Everyone knows rainy weather brings slippery surfaces and muddy feet, but did you know it can be a health risk for your poultry too?
Mud is often associated with skin diseases of the foot, but many poultry pathogens (agents that cause disease in poultry e.g. bacteria and viruses) can live in muddy puddles.
It is therefore really important that you try and keep your ranges dry.
Fill in deep holes with rubble, and top with bark chipping to raise the ground above the waterlevel. Dig drainage trenches so that pooling water has a route away from your pen. These don't have to be very big or deep, just enough to encourage the water to take the path of least resistance. Make sure you plan where you are diverting the water to, a surface drain would be ideal.
Think about planting inside your coop. Bushes and shrubs can help break up heavy waterlogged-prone soil and absorb some of the moisture. They are also great for harbouring delicious insects for your chickens to hunt. Be aware that you'll need to protect the trunk and roots with chicken wire or they are likely to be scratched until they are no more.