I disagree. I keep horses, too, and I use pine pellets along with pine shavings and also, straw. We live in a damp climate and pine pellets can stay until they've soaked up humidity/animal waste twice. The first time they turn to a dry powder, and I only remove them when the powder becomes wet. The package recommends that you wet them down, but that's so that they don't last as long and you will buy more. I use "Equine Fresh". There are several products with different names, and I can buy this at 40 lbs for ~$5/package. Other products at different stores cost more. SHOP AROUND.
Horses produce a LOT more liquid waste than chickens do. I use a shovel to scrape it up. I am very fussy about not removing good pellets. I put one bag of pellets in my small coop a month ago about their (removable) roost, and I haven't had to replace it. When I get my full sized coop next year I plan to bed the bottom with pellets and cover with shavings. When the chicken poo is frozen it is super easy to remove and that's when I clean the coop in the winter.
Something else to consider at the bottom of your coop is rubber stall mats. My little ~ 4 x 4 coop is built on a wooden pallet. I cut an old 1/4" thick rubber mat to fit. It is a great insulator. I plan to floor my new coop with those, too, for the winter. To clean after my horses, who are not stalled in the summer, I pull them out in front of the barn and let the weather disinfect them. They are not slick like vinyl flooring, but I may put THAT in, too, just to protect the floor.
Horses produce a LOT more liquid waste than chickens do. I use a shovel to scrape it up. I am very fussy about not removing good pellets. I put one bag of pellets in my small coop a month ago about their (removable) roost, and I haven't had to replace it. When I get my full sized coop next year I plan to bed the bottom with pellets and cover with shavings. When the chicken poo is frozen it is super easy to remove and that's when I clean the coop in the winter.
Something else to consider at the bottom of your coop is rubber stall mats. My little ~ 4 x 4 coop is built on a wooden pallet. I cut an old 1/4" thick rubber mat to fit. It is a great insulator. I plan to floor my new coop with those, too, for the winter. To clean after my horses, who are not stalled in the summer, I pull them out in front of the barn and let the weather disinfect them. They are not slick like vinyl flooring, but I may put THAT in, too, just to protect the floor.
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