bedding and cleaning questions

[tommysgirl]

This is what my coop looks like http://californiacoops.com/heartcoop.jpg My sweet husband built a run space that completely encloses it so it sits in a pen enclosed on all sides. The floor of the coop is half wood half wire mesh (under the roosts) The enclosure floor is dirt covered with pine shavings. What are the requirements for cleaning out the bedding in the enclosure...I clean inside the coop itself weekly. Do I just go by smell? The enclosure footprint is about 9x9 I have 7 pullets...so far you only notice it when you put your head inside the coop, there hasn't been a fly problem yet either. I am experienced with other livestock but this is my first experience with chickens and I wanted to make sure.

Also the dirt under the bedding is somewhat rocky with rocks about the size of plums but lots of scratchable dirt too. is there anything wrong with that?

Thanks!

 

[HEChicken]

I don't put bedding anywhere except in the coop so I'm not sure how to answer you on that one. I wouldn't think it would be necessary and they will enjoy scratching in the dirt to dust-bathe. You may notice they also eat some dirt as it provides them with minerals and grit.

Do they ever get a chance to get out and eat some greenery as well?

 

[tommysgirl]

Thanks...so if I don't use bedding in the run outside does that mean I just let the poo be? They have only been outside for a little over a week and it doesn't smell bad outside the coop. Can I expect then that that will continue to be the case? As far as getting the chance to get out for green food, yes they do, I have a mobile pen that they go into when I am out doing yard work. Thanks again

 

[HEChicken]

Hopefully someone else will weigh in on that as I don't have any experience of the poop building up or needing to do anything with it. At my old place, I didn't have a run. The chooks slept in the coop and had the run of the backyard during the day. The poop was so spread around that cleaning it up wasn't an option, and then when it rained, it washed it all in and fertilized the yard to produce lush, green grass for them. We moved two weeks ago and I put in a chicken yard that is 240 x 60 feet so again, they have so much land to move around on, that there isn't any collection of poop.

I do plan to put poop hammocks or trays under my roosts to make cleaning easier. The majority of any collection of poop will be under the roosts so if I have an easy way to collect that and add it to my compost, that will take care of most of the chores.

As I said, hopefully someone in a more similar situation to yours will weigh in and give you some advice.

 

[Ridgerunner]

There is a lot I don't know about your set-up or your situation. Your climate, your drainage and all that contribute. In general, if the run stays pretty dry it should not smell. It is practically impossible to keep a run dry when the weather sets in wet, but if it drains well, it should soon dry out. If you have it where rainwater runoff runs into the run and does not drain, you are going to have a problem.

In general, go by smell as far as if you need to do something or not. I personally don't like any type of bedding in the run because wood shavings, straw, leaves, or something like that can hold the moisture in, but you will find a lot of people on this forum that use bedding in the run. They may shovel or rake it out and replace it occasionally. My run is just dirt. If you have to put anything, sand is a great material to use.

But your main goal is to keep the run dry. A wet run can be an unhealthy run and it will stink. That 9' x 9' area should be big enough that the poop from 7 hens does not build up too bad. But if I read this right, the poop from the roost will drop through the screen into the run underneath. You may need to occasionally clean that out.

Good luck! If you are familiar with other animals, you'll get the hang of chickens pretty quickly.