Please help! Poop solutions

[SummerTheAnimalGirl]

Hey y’all! Thanks for clicking. i was hoping I could get you guys help- here is the situation:
(NOTE, if you don’t wanna spend five minutes reading through my post, than pleas scroll down to the bottom to get a short version. Thank you!)



LONG VERSION
We got chickens for tick control. Right now they are free range, and doing wonderful. But the all the poop is driving us nuts! Poop on the porch, poop on the driveway, poop in the yard, poop on the furniture, poop on the cars, poop on our woodpile, poop on the bikes, poop on the lawnmower- it think you get the idea. There is poop EVERYWHERE! it is getting to be that we don’t even wanna be outside, and I even spray it off and collect it out of the yard every day! It is getting to be a epic poop battle, and it is starting to take away the joy of having chickens (for my parents, not for me. ) Do any of you have this problem? Is there any solution??

I was thinking of a chicken tractor- that way we could move it every week to a spot we need ticks cleared, and I would still let them free range for a couple hours a day, just when I can keep them off the yard. The only problem with this is- our land is pretty much all like this:

And we are concerned that a chicken tractor might be hard to move in thick long grass like this? What do you think?

If a chicken tractor won’t work, do you guys have any other solutions? Thanks you a lot for your help!! Really appreciate it.



SHORT VERSION:

Our chickens are free range, and they are pooping everywhere! We need a solution that will still allow them to eat the tick on our property, but not have to deal with all the poop. Any ideas? Thank you!




Kindly,
Summer

 

[Aunt Angus]

A chicken tractor is GENIUS!

And can I live there, too? Build me a tractor???

 

[Backyardhomestead921]

So , a chicken tractor would definitely be a good idea. But also electric fencing could be an idea for you.
Also if you could , just make a sorta movable big run clear a little bit out and then let the chickens scratch and peck in the other fenced in area. Also you could if possible fence off the stuff you don’t want the chickens on/ pooping on.

 

[perkolator]

If I had to move a chicken tractor in that terrain I’d likely build it on a trailer or at least add a trailer hitch to my build so it could be moved around with a motorized vehicle (riding mower/quad/farm truck etc)

 

[aart]

Our chickens are free range, and they are pooping everywhere!

Sorry, but yeah, number 2 reason my birds don't range.

 

[Ozarkoak]

Embrace the poop. Love the poop. Become one with the poop. We have the same situation but we are what you would call hillbillies. So meh a few rains and it will be dirt. I'm sorta goofin but anyway good luck with whatever you do in trying to solve the great poop crisis.

 

[Jaime918]

A chicken tractor is GENIUS!

And can I live there, too? Build me a tractor???

I'll join That view is gorgeous!

 

[imacowgirl2]

My first thought is electric fence. I'm thinking ahead to when our flock is older and pooping more, because we will eventually have the same issue... And I'm thinking I'm going to use electric fence to fence in a large area (our terrain is similarly difficult to yours only we are very wooded, so a chicken tractor absolutely won't work for me) for them to free range in. I was reading here on BYC last night that chickens don't tend to roam more than 300 yards (or something like that) from their coop when free ranging, and that if you fence a suitably large area, even though they *could* fly over, they don't tend to. I've observed this to some degree with mine... We have livestock fencing with 4" squares around our very large yard where the birds free range; the young pullets are still small enough that they can still squeeze through the squares, but it takes a bit of effort -- every once in awhile one goes through, but for the most part, they get to the fence and just turn around or go along it. The older pullet can no longer fit through the holes, so she doesn't go through at all...but neither has she tried to fly over (it is only 4ft tall, so they can easily fly over if they want).

 

[Aunt Angus]

I have electric netting with aviary netting over it (we have soooo many predators), which would work. Moving a large fence takes longer than moving a tractor, but it is pretty easy

 

[SummerTheAnimalGirl]

Thank you all so much for your help and encouragement! I appreciate so much. We also had another idea…we found motion activated sprinklers. You are supposed to put them where you don’t want them, (so lawn, porch, driveway ETC) and then they will turn on whenever your chickens activate them. My chickens Do not like the rain, and they HATE getting sprayed with the sprinklers, so we think this is a really good option. and then you just turn them off whenever you go into the yard. What do you all think? We are hoping they will eventually learn that they just don’t wanna go into the yard, so we won’t have to have the sprinklers on all the time. Is this a good option? Thanks all!