Bedding for the top of the tractor?

[dancingmama]

I have an A-frame tractor, with roosting area on top, along with a separate "nesting box" area.

I was thinking I'd put straw in the nesting box. But what should I use in the roosting area? When the ramp is lowered, there is a hole in the "floor," so I assume pine shavings will fall down onto the grass. Also, deep litter method is impossible cuz the floor to ceiling dimensions are small as it is. I'm planning on moving the tractor every day or two. What have others done?

Thanks!

 

[patandchickens]

Yes, that is the problem with designs that have the popdoor be a hole in the floor.

There is not much you can do about it, just put some shavings or whatever in there and some WILL fall out.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[WestKnollAmy]

You can put in 2x2's around the pop hole in the floor to hold some shavings in but the majority will still get kicked out or drug out so you will lose some but it may help. You can even make 3 sides 4" high and the one side they use the most keep it with a 2x2.
That's about the best I can suggest. Hope it helps.

 

[gryeyes]

My A-Frame "tractor" is never going to move from the spot where I built it.

So, my situation isn't the same as yours; however, I put 2x2s around 3 sides of the pop hole and a 1x2 on the fourth side, just as another poster suggested. I don't mind the pine shavings that fall (or are kicked) down into the pen beneath the "living quarters" because it eventually becomes part of the ground in that penned area.

I keep the shavings level about 3 to 4 inches deep in the Upstairs section. One cross bar in the middle works as a very low "roost" - but nobody stays in that coop at night except for one hen who likes to be alone, I guess. The pullets all use the A-Frame nest boxes, and everybody spends some time downstairs doing chicken-y things. I have shavings in the nest boxes, too.

My first time broody, Buffy, has appropriated the A-Frame upstairs for her own use. The other hen who usually sleeps there alone is now sharing those quarters.

And I have other coops, so it's definitely not similar to the OP's situation. But 3 or 4 inches of pine shavings can be maintained in the half of the tractor that doesn't have the pop door to the pen downstairs, and a couple inches in the "ramp door half." You might go through some bedding because of that, but it's still workable, I think.

The A-Frame coop was the first I built, and it taught me what I needed to do better for subsequent chicken housing. Specifically: make rectangular or square coops.

 

[dancingmama]

Great ideas, all -- thanks! I'll try the 2X2 idea, I like that. Our tractor coop is small, as is our city lot, and we'll keep only 3 hens in it (the city has a limit of 4 anyway). So moving it around the yard is really easy, and seems like the best option. But they are not out there yet, so we'll see!!!!