Poop board convert *warning-graphic/gross poop pictures*

[chicken cutie]

Ok so loving this thread but I do have a couple questions!
My coop is just basically the main floor an the nesting boxes an I am making roosting polls ( if that makes sense - I'm very new sorry lol- )
So on the main floor then I can just use the Sweet PDZ right!?
An what about my outside run? What's the best thing to use there?!
Thanks!
Rachael

 

[Tropical Chick]

I would use the PDZ in the coop under the nesting boxes on the floor. In my run (4x8) where the hens stay if it is inclement weather and early morning and late evening for safety I use a couple bags of dirt, couple bags of sand, about four bags of pine bark mulch nuggets (untreated) and they turn over it all into a nice mixture, like a deep litter method. I have a corrugated roof over the run so it stays fairly dry and does not stink. The hens kind of compost their own droppings. Every six months or so I pull out the old stuff with a garden rake and put new in or replenish it with new bags of dirt, sand and mulch. If I throw their fruit, veggies and treats in there, they will work all day turning it all over and under.

 

[aart]

Ok so loving this thread but I do have a couple questions!
My coop is just basically the main floor an the nesting boxes an I am making roosting polls ( if that makes sense - I'm very new sorry lol- )
So on the main floor then I can just use the Sweet PDZ right!?
An what about my outside run? What's the best thing to use there?!
Thanks!
Rachael

What you use in your run really depends on your climate, your specific site regarding drainage etc and your personal management intentions.
Lots of different materials and way to manage them.
Same goes with your coop. I think PDZ is a bit dear to use on the whole floor.
1/2"-1" of PDZ is perfect for my roost boards which are 24" x 10', it takes care of most the poop stink....and pine shaving work just fine on the floor....but my coop is 6' x 12' and I only swap out the shaving every 6 months.

 

[ange]

We are looking ways to keep,our coop from smelling. Ideas? Did someone say use PDA, never heard of it. How does it work.? Will straw, untreated mulch work, which is better of all. Looking for low maintenance and lot less smell

 

[jonalisa]

Sweet PDZ is a horse stall refresher. It is granulated like white sand. It counteracts the ammonia smell and keeps odors away. It is edible and compostable. It is sold at Tractor Supply for $10/25lb bag.
I use it exclusively on my poop board and mix it with the sand in my run. I have 9 12 week old chickens and no odor issues.

The poop board has about 3 inches of PDZ and I haven't needed to change it out or add more since I started it in May. I scoop with a kitty litter scoop and I am done.

 

[RJSorensen]

Everyone here is "Looking for low maintenance and lot less smell." And should someone devise a method that attained this lofty goal, well I am sure there is quite a pent up market for it. Until then you are more or less stuck with the Deep Litter method, PDZ, shavings, straw, hay, dried lawn clippings and other assorted methods of litter. It is called litter because it is just a big cat litter box for chickens. At least the cat is or was trained to use their litter. Chickens are such pigs that one needs to employ the whole bottom of their coop to contain the mess. It most always stinks, and most always in need of pitching it out.

It is, as always, pay me now or pay me latter. You just pick a management style and go with it until such a time as you decide to try something different. No right way, no wrong way. You just have to pick your way. The silver bullet for 'low maintenance and less smell' just does not exist at this time. I think we are doing a lot better than we collectively did ten, twenty, thirty years ago, but chicken poo is still chicken poo.

I think the poop board with PDZ in it, works best for me, at this time. I have read posts of folks whom are using fermented feed, who claim that it reduces the smell a great deal. I am going to give that a try as soon as I can. Anything that helps… well helps.

So if you are looking for someone to tell you what to do, you had just as well draw one of the above from a hat. Only you know your bird per square foot ratio, the size and style of your coop, where you live in regards to climate and humid conditions. Also ventilation sufficient for your bird load will factor in as well.

Read lots, reason it out for you, make your choice,

RJ

 

[Fabricator]

Thanks for sharing this!

 

[chick n goat ma]

What you use in your run really depends on your climate, your specific site regarding drainage etc and your personal management intentions.
Lots of different materials and way to manage them.
Same goes with your coop. I think PDZ is a bit dear to use on the whole floor.
1/2"-1" of PDZ is perfect for my roost boards which are 24" x 10', it takes care of most the poop stink....and pine shaving work just fine on the floor....but my coop is 6' x 12' and I only swap out the shaving every 6 months.

my coop is 6x4 houses 3 ladies and 2 Cocks atm but I want to get 2 more chickies... I use pine shavings on the floor and straw in the laying boxes. They all sleep on their perch. I have been cleaning out their poop under it every 3 or 4 days. Thinking a tray under the perch filled with1/2" PDZ would make it so much easier. Any more advice at appropriate care for living in tropical Florida climate (ie horribly hot and humid June thru' August, the rest of the year is tolerable to very good.)any advice from folks who know a lot more than this novice would be very much appreciated. If I could get away with changing the rest of the pine shavings every 6 months that would be wonderful

 

[Tropical Chick]

If your coop is only 6 x 4 then I would use the granulated PDZ and get rid of all the shavings. You never have to change out the PDZ, you just add to it. Just like cat litter. It clumps and is safe for the chicks. Sure, the upfront cost of PDZ may be a little high, but down the road and many days of dealing with chicken poop, you will be a happy mother hen! If you don't want to climb under their roosting perches to scoop the poop out, then slide cafeteria trays under them or donut shop donut trays to make it easier to slide them out, scoop them, and be done with it. You will never know how much easier it is to deal with the coop and smell until you try the PDZ. My three hens and I live in central Florida and my coop NEVER smells and the deep litter method in the run NEVER smells even in the most humid conditions of summer. I am very good about scooping poop every day in the coop though..........

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote: Since you asked for general care information, a 6X4 foot coop is too small for 5 chickens, and especially 7 chickens, unless they free range during the day. Technically, yes, people say that chickens only need 2-3 square feet per bird, but realistically that's miserably crowded -- especially with 2 cocks to continuously bother the hens. Most breeds need a 1:5 or greater ratio of males to females (there are a few exceptions). If you're going to have 2 cocks with 5 hens, which I have in an old flock that I inherited that came as a bonded family unit when it was 6 months old, the hens need to have hen saddles. I didn't know that the first year, and the poor hens had all the feathers on their backs and wings scratched out as the males tried to breed, and then without feathers they got wounds and then terribly sunburned, so they were constantly painful as the males continued to breed them. When I got the hen saddles, the skin was protected, so everything healed and the feathers grew back. They're 7 years old now, huge Croad Langshans, arthritic and on pain meds, but the hen saddles and free ranging has kept them comfortable and happy, even though there is still one more rooster than there should be. Here is the company that I bought my hen saddles (also called a hen apron) from: http://hensaver.org/ I would recommend getting the shoulder protectors also to go with them, as the shoulders get terribly injured without them.