Alternatives to wood shavings?

[rarebear]

there is something in play sand not good for chickens...silica maybe? Use river sand.

 

[iron chicken]

Well, the website says this stuff is only available in Texas and Louisiana. It looks nice though. I was searching the web and found this, does anybody use it?
http://www.permastall.com/#!rice-hull
Looked pretty nice to me.

I would not use these they will stick to the bottom of your shoes and be all your house.

 

[Gifa]

there is something in play sand not good for chickens...silica maybe? Use river sand.

All sand... no matter where it comes from... is silica...

 

[aldarita]

If you go with the Quickrete, you may want to read the bag first. I am making stepping stones right now with a sandy Mortar mix (similar to Quickrete) and it has a warning to flush/wash thoroughly if it gets on your skin, because when cement is mixed with water it creates calcium hydroxide. I don't know how safe this would be with your chickens feet and the dust getting in their eyes if they bathe in it. I just thought I might let you know.

Also, my coop is 4x10 and you really only need about two-three inches if using it on the floor inside the coop. Which, for me is about five buckets (5 gal). I get mine from a river near my house.

thanks a bunch for the warning, there are things that just skip your mind. I will carefully read the packaging

 

[Crisses]

there is something in play sand not good for chickens...silica maybe? Use river sand.

 

If there's something in the sand, the chick and chickens havent complained yet.... this is sand safe for human kids to play with and get covered in, so I don't know what would be a problem for chickens....

 

[Gickies4Us]

We are new to having chickens, in fact we will get ours next week after we get all of their supplies and have their new home ready. Our local farm store currently has chicks and they've been a tremendous help to us in our learning the care for new chicks. Anyway, in their brooders in the store, they do not use pine shavings. They use a type of compressed pellet. They said that the little chicks have the brooders sopping wet inside an hour with the shavings, these pellets are more absorbant and are easier to clean up and you use less of them. I can't remember the name of them off the top of my head, but we will be getting them as well when we pick up our chicks. I will repost to this thread when I get the name of them for you and I hope it will help.

 

[heavenlychick]

I use straw its 6 bucks for a huge bale one lasts my chickens months and I burn the used straw and make into compost pile.

 

[heavenlychick]

I have been using the pellets that you mention... they are no less of a mess then shavings and they absorb the drinking water right out of the watered... MAKES KEEPING UP WITH WATER A PAIN IN THE TAIL FEATHERS... just my opinion lol I have 7 10 day old chicks

 

[cassyopia]

probably stall dry wood pellets or pellet stove wood pellets, because you put them down on the floor of the run whole and as moisture gets on them the turn to sawdust and still keep a good absorbs rate. that is what I use on the floor of my coop and only have to change it out 2 times a year. this is in a 10 foot x 10 foot floor space coop with 15 chickens. it stays nice clean and warm. the chickens love to dust bathe in it and also scratch around in it when I toss some scratch in.

 

[cassyopia]

raise the water source up onto blocks it helps so they don't scratch all the pellets into the water.