Are Cedar Kennel Shavings Ok For Nesting?

[irf1983]

They smell so strongly, i didn't know if the smell would put off the hens. What is the best store bought nesting material?

 

[Quack Shack]

No, cedar isn't OK for your birds and can lead to respiratory distress. I'd take it out pronto and use the untreated horse wood shavings you can get at the feedstore or even untreated dog bedding wood shavings will work. I use wood shavings and a cat poop scooper to daily lift out the poop and refresh the shavings as needed. Much more economical for me than hay or straw and I think it combats any lingering odor. Hope that helps.

 

[irf1983]

Yes it does help, thank you. Luckily I didn't put any shavings in yet. I was actually going to put it in my chicks run, but had second thoughts as soon as I opened the bag. Thanks again.

 

[Quack Shack]

Your spidey sense went off and it was right. If you are concerned about flies (they have been worse this year) then use sand. I read that on BYC and darn if it didn't work. Get the sanitized, filtered playbox sand so if your birds do eat it, they won't get worms from ingesting the sand.

 

[irf1983]

Quote:
Are you suggesting to use sand as a nesting material or in the bottom of the run?

 

[Quack Shack]

Oops, sorry for not being clear. Sand for the bottom of the run, shavings for inside the nesting boxes and anywhere that they roost. Mine sleep on a board so helps with the AM cleanup if I sprinkle some shavings there the evening before.

 

[irf1983]

Quote:
Thanks. Any thoughts on putting sod down in the run? The floor of my run now is wire mesh over dirt to keep predators out. I was thinking about putting sod down so they have a barrier between the mesh

 

[Quack Shack]

Stumped me there. I have a chainlink dog kennel so I don't worry about digging under it. On the outside of my perimeter fence I put barbed wire on the top and bottom to deter a mammal from digging. Is the sod to make it look better and to hide the wire? If so, I'd be inclined to use rock. The chicks won't be putting their head through eating the grass and it will discourage digging. Hope that helps.

 

[Tailfeathers]

Cedar is just fine. Won't hurt your birds at all. I use it all the time in the nesting boxes and on the floor. I would not recommend using them exclusively however. Personally, use about an 80/20 mix.

You don't have to take my word for this though. Just do a search on here for "cedar" and you will find a plethora of posts to read. Bottom-line: There has been no documented evidence of cedar being harmful to chickens.

God Bless,

 

[jnkir7]

i got cedar by accident had two sick chicks realized my mistake went back got different chips, lost two chicks. but the others are fine now cedar does make a difference