Poop, mud, and more poop!

[Kijani11]

I need some advice. Recently moved to my in-laws farm, and I absolutely hate our chicken coup/run. We have about 10-12 birds, and they have a large coup and their own yard that's fenced off (even though they jump over it for the grass on the other side). I'm in Canada and this year our winter has been very wet, there is no grass left in the run. We also have 5 ducks who live in the run. Basically the issue is the ground, it's absolutely covered in poop, and I guess has some straw under it with mud mixed in. When I step around I literally pick it up with my boot and can see an under layer, and the entire place stinks to high heaven. I am new to this and trying to manage the maintenance of it all (even being pregnant) because my in-laws are getting too old to care about doing anything. It's just a space full of poop and mud now, and I have no idea how that's supposed to get cleaned. Raking it sounds unreasonable as it would just be raking mud.. shoveling it would be just as hard and extremely heavy. I am at a loss.

 

[nuthatched]

I understand youre frustration but please edit your post, this is a family friendly site.
Can you get wood chips from a tree trimming company?

 

[rosemarythyme]

How was the drainage at the location before you added the birds?

What is the litter you're currently using? You mentioned straw, but when was it placed there? Has it been refreshed since?

How large is the run?

I would also recommend chunky wood chips in order to provide drainage and to help stabilize the soil. However that will only work if existing drainage in the location is good.

 

[linguini]

Like @nuthatched mentioned, if you can get free mulch from tree companies, that will be your best solution for now.

or you can get the pave stones from Home Depot to make a walk path for humans to walk through (for now! a quick solution). Pavers are relatively inexpensive, $2 each, and you just need to put them on some strategic spots. But if you don't solve the drainage problem, over time the pavers will sink into the mud.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/12-in-x-12-in-x-1-5-in-Pewter-Square-Concrete-Step-Stone-71200/100333077

 

[Kijani11]

How was the drainage at the location before you added the birds?

What is the litter you're currently using? You mentioned straw, but when was it placed there? Has it been refreshed since?

How large is the run?

I would also recommend chunky wood chips in order to provide drainage and to help stabilize the soil. However that will only work if existing drainage in the location is good.

I'm unsure of the drainage before the birds were added, they've been there for at least 5 years and I just moved in 4 months ago. The litter is only inside the coop, which isn't the problem. The outside run is usually patchy grass during the summer and hard soil, but at this time of year it's just mud. I don't think the straw was strategically placed there, there isn't much but there's enough to create a barrier between the second layer of mud under all the poop for it to pick up on a full boot. Nothing outside has ever been refreshed, and there is no adequate drainage that I can see. It all generally slopes down to a small pond the ducks use in the warmer months. My guess is the run is about 40 feet by 40 feet, it's not crazy big, but the chickens often leave and peck at the area around the barns. The wood chips are a good idea, I'll try and get some to at least create a usable path until the ground is thawed enough for us to install proper drainage this spring.

 

[aart]

The wood chips are a good idea, I'll try and get some to at least create a usable path until the ground is thawed enough for us to install proper drainage this spring.

Even with good drainage, you'll still need some bedding to ameliorate the poop.
Coarse wood chips will 'compost' the manure.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'm unsure of the drainage before the birds were added, they've been there for at least 5 years and I just moved in 4 months ago. The litter is only inside the coop, which isn't the problem. The outside run is usually patchy grass during the summer and hard soil, but at this time of year it's just mud. I don't think the straw was strategically placed there, there isn't much but there's enough to create a barrier between the second layer of mud under all the poop for it to pick up on a full boot. Nothing outside has ever been refreshed, and there is no adequate drainage that I can see. It all generally slopes down to a small pond the ducks use in the warmer months. My guess is the run is about 40 feet by 40 feet, it's not crazy big, but the chickens often leave and peck at the area around the barns. The wood chips are a good idea, I'll try and get some to at least create a usable path until the ground is thawed enough for us to install proper drainage this spring.

Ah okay, I was under the impression that you were there first and the birds were only recently added, so thanks for clarifying.

Definitely look into wood chips, and if there's room there to store a large pile, have an arborist dump a truckload. You want more than pathways, the entire run needs litter to help with the mud issue since that's not good for the birds either.

I just got a new pile of chips this year:

You can just dump it around the run, the birds will do the work in spreading it for you if you give them time. Freshly chipped run (just realized wording is confusing - to clarify, chips have been aged - if at all possible you want to age chips to avoid harmful mold growth by letting them sit, or skim chips off the surface layer and gradually add layers over time) in the foreground, with darker section in back awaiting chips. This run was a sticky, muddy, smelly mess 6, 7 years ago:

 

[Krugerrand]

Mu municipality lets people drop off tree branches for free. Then, the chips are available for free pickup to anybody who wants them. It would be easier if I had a pickup truck, but I have a tow hitch that I can use and fill oversized rubbermaids to get a decent haul in each trip.

 

[KyCoop]

Do you want grass or just be able to walk? My chicken yard was a mud pit last winter due to the girls eating all the grass , a drought and a wet winter. I did temporary fencing in small sections and sowed grass seed. It worked nicely but takes some time and work.

 

[Penpal]

I would first get a shovel and remove the poopy mess. It is wonderful compost. Go as deep as you think the "compost" is and move it to its own pile. This will be for your garden.

Then, put down whatever you want as litter for the run. You could start with pine needles if you can get them, and lay straw over that. If you can only get the straw then get straw bales and break it/them up in the run. When you can access some wood chips or bark chips put a layer down. If the chickens like to roost, put a couple of roosts in the run. They will sit on the roosts and their manure will drop into the same place all the time, making it easier for you to clean up and add to the compost pile.