Best Brooder Bedding

[DuckDuckSook]

This topic has come up within another of my posts and I thought I'd put it out there to a wider audience. What bedding worked best for you in your brooder? I know a lot of people use the puppy pads with success, but I just worry about how eco-friendly those are in terms of waste. What has your experience been with towels, paper towels, straw, or wood chips? Or maybe even another material that I didn't list? Thanks!

 

[Miss Lydia]

Puppy pads, towels and after a few weeks large size horse bedding.

 

[CoriM]

I used towels and it worked out fine for me. I had a lot of old towels and I just changed them out a few times a day, shook food and poop off outside, and washed them. I did a LOT of wash for awhile, and my electric bill went up for a short time due to how much i used my dryer. But I thought it worked great for my ducklings.

 

[CluckNDoodle]

I use equine pine pellets from day 1 after hatch while I raise them indoors because they don't create nearly as much dust and they cut down on smell. I do put puppy pads underneath them but they aren't necessary. I just like to use them because it makes for very easy clean up when all I have to do is roll up the mess and put down fresh. This has worked for me with chicks, goslings, turkey poults, and peachicks. With quail I start them on puppy pads only.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Or maybe even another material that I didn't list?

Hi there.

My local feed store uses rice hulls in their brooders. I liked them as they were affordable and worked well in addition to being really compostable. I really like it in crowded chick situations but they worked pretty well for ducklings also.

Using a baking sheet with cooling rack to hold the water dish helped capture a lot of the excess spillage. I had to dump it a couple times per day but it was very helpful.

I didn't like the pellets as they were very heavy. They worked pretty well in my piggy litter box but got pricey for THAT use.

Happy adventures!

 

[Ratchnick]

Wood fuel pellets are the same same as the equine pellets. They might be cheaper, in my area they are less then $5 a bag. Probably cheaper then that in contiguous US. They are heavy.

 

[chickens really]

I use pine shavings without issues and I raise Call Ducks.

 

[casportpony]

Wood fuel pellets are the same same as the equine pellets. They might be cheaper, in my area they are less then $5 a bag. Probably cheaper then that in contiguous US. They are heavy.

I worry about what types of wood are in fuel pellets, some might be toxic to birds.

 

[casportpony]

What bedding worked best for you in your brooder?

I use towels when they are younger. When they get older, I use pine pellets.

 

[Ratchnick]

I worry about what types of wood are in fuel pellets, some might be toxic to birds.

Certaiy good to check, at my lowes it says they are pine on the bag.