Bedding for brooding meat birds

[gkeesling]

This is the first time I've done Meaties. We have a group of us who have gone in and gotten 150 chicks. After 2 weeks they have gotten bigger than I thought they would so I'm going to move them out of their 4 individual brooder boxes and put them into my 16' stock trailer. My question is what type of bedding to use. I am thinking about using straw as I have bales of straw and it wouldn't cost me anything. Has any one used straw and would it be ok to use for 2 week old Cornish X chicks?

 

[Kittymomma]

I don't like straw. One problem is that it's hollow and can be a haven for mites. That probably wouldn't be too much of a concern for meaties, but what I really hate about straw the most is how it gets soggy and matted down with waste. The wet that accumulates underneath it can get moldy fast and it's just a matted mess to clean up. I'd be more inclined to get equine fresh or another pine pellet type stall bedding. I use it for brooding chicks after they hit the one week mark and it controls odor and dust (to a point) better then anything else I've used.

I get that free is good, one of my favorite things in fact, but I think you'd regret the straw.

 

[terri9630]

How big are the pellets in the pelleted bedding? I'd be concerned that the chicks would eat it thinking its food. We don't have any of the pelleted bedding around here to look at. I just use the shavings made for rabbits/small animals. They seem to be more absorbant than the larger flakes in the horse bedding.

 

[Jamie_Dog_Trainer]

Quote:
Funny, we live in the same area but I have had just the opposite experience with straw. i was using shavings in my brooder then later in my coop for my meaties. The shavings didn't wick moisture and they smelled bad after just a couple days in the coop. I switched to straw and have a much cleaner coop and chickens.

I clean my coop twice a month, I have 13 chickens, 12 of which are meaties (aka pooping machines) LOL. I let them bed with a thick layer of straw. I find it wicks moisure and will also evaporate quickly. The straw does get matted down right under the roosts but in the rest of the coop it stays nice and fluffy. When I clean I use a pitch fork and a garden rake and take the top layer off and under is nice and clean. I re-fluff it and VIOLA! nice clean straw again. Also it doesn't stink as much IMO as dirty shavings. About every 8 weeks I take ALL the straw out weather it looks dirty or not and sweep the flooring and make sure I don't have lots of bugs and any rodents. So far so good. I love the straw for bedding.

 

[Kittymomma]

Quote:
They do look a lot like food. I haven't had any problems with my chicks eating it, they'll pick it up sometimes but then just drop it. I hadn't considerd that the meaties might not figure it out. I've heard they're not really bright and like to eat so I suppose it may be a problem.

The pellets absorb more then the shavings and control odor better. When they get wet/soiled they break down into sawdust. They work so well that I'm using them in the litterboxes now too. Not only is the odor less, the darn foster kittens that like to ambush each other in there don't kick as much out onto the ground since it's heavier then the clay litter.

 

[Kittymomma]

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That's why I love this forum! It could be because mine free range in the field and track a good deal of mud back to the coop with them in addition to their regular mess. I never thought it made that much of a difference, but it's the only thing that comes to mind.

I don't like the shavings for the brooder and completely agree that they turn into a mess quickly, but the pine pellets have been great.