Dealing with POOP!

[kirak74]

Before I got my 13 hens, I had a naively idyllic vision of them freeranging within our large fenced in yard (almost an acre). I thought with that much space, the poop factor would be minimal. Wrong. SO.MUCH.POOP. And to make matters worse, they really seem to love to congregate on our deck and right in front of our front door. Please tell me what you all do to deal with the ewwww factor. Anything I can do to discourage them from those areas? They love their free range time, and I'd hate to limit them to their run, but again...so.much.poop.

 

[ChickNanny13]

You'll need to put up a barrier

Mine LOVED to hang out in the patio by the back door. I was picking up poop several times a day in the patio & even the yard....I have only a 10K sq ft property with a 1244 sq ft house but the yard's fenced in. The last set of 4 (2 RIR & 2 EE) dug so many holes in my yard, now I have 5 Wyandottes that stay in the Run/Coop (8 x 12 x 7).

I have learned that fermenting their food really cuts down on the poop, less stinky and alot firmer so easier cleaning PLUS no wasted feed & alot less used. An after thought, reading on BYC is the poop board with Sweet PDZ (as a litter), works great! Another plus for me has been DLM on the ground in the RC. It's been working out great.

 

[azygous]

Chickens and poop go together. I've had chickens ten years and a day doesn't go by that you can hear me saying to my chickens, "Boy, you guys sure do poop a lot!"

I keep the poop scooped in my sand run and clean out the overnight poop each morning in the coops (sand in there, too). You should see how well my plants and grass are doing with all the poop that has been spread all over everything that grows.

As for keeping the chickens away from certain areas, I recommend instead that you keep a hose hooked up with one of those nozzles on it where you can leave it on, keeping it handy to squirt off any poop where you're going to be walking and hanging out.

 

[lazy gardener]

Chickens and poop go together. I've had chickens ten years and a day doesn't go by that you can hear me saying to my chickens, "Boy, you guys sure do poop a lot!"

I keep the poop scooped in my sand run and clean out the overnight poop each morning in the coops (sand in there, too). You should see how well my plants and grass are doing with all the poop that has been spread all over everything that grows.

As for keeping the chickens away from certain areas, I recommend instead that you keep a hose hooked up with one of those nozzles on it where you can leave it on, keeping it handy to squirt off any poop where you're going to be walking and hanging out.

Do you spread that poo fresh, or compost it first?


I'd also use the hose to remind the chickens that I have my space, and they have theirs. Agreed with PP, FF is a great aid in improving poo quality. When I do poo patrol for the dog, I also scoop the chicken poo that happens to be in frequently trod areas. I also hose a lot of it into the ground, if I'm working with the hose at the time. DLM in coop and run are my management tools there.

My dog is also fond of recycling chicken poo! Never kiss a dog on the lips!

 

[kirak74]

What is DLM?

 

[weirdlywired]

What is DLM?

I have the same question!

 

[ChickenMammX4]

What is DLM?

Deep Litter Method. It's a bedding method using natural materials, we use straw, hay, grass clippings, leaves, pine needles and landscape weeds in our run. These materials, along with the poop and moisture breaks down into compost. We use it for our garden. There is no odor or flies. We clean our run out once a year. We add the materials as they become available throughout the year. If you do a search, you'll find a lot of information.