California - Northern

[lawatt]

indoors again after doing chicken-chores this morning, before it gets too hot -- swept up a bunch of fallen bay leaves & added them to the chickens' runs -- the leaves pouring out of the bucket *completely* freaked them out, but the bay adds a nice smell.

also am experimenting with compressed pine pellets (stable bedding) in their henhouses instead of shavings -- seems like it should work better to absorb all the various wastes, and might break down easier/faster? will see how it works -- the chickens were quite intrigued by the pellets, trying to eat them of course (they're too big for that to be terribly successful)...

and unexpected benefit of the bobcat hanging around, hence chickens spending FAR more time in their coops than they did all summer -- they are turning over their deep litter far more than before, and its breaking down much faster, & much finer particles -- last year's deep litter was like a mulch, but now it's really looking compost-y. and no smell at all! (except for the bay leaves, now)

 

[debs_flock]

We'll see this morning, I reset the trap last night. I know there was more than one and this first one was a teenager.

Deb 2 / raccoons 0

 

[Ali707]

indoors again after doing chicken-chores this morning, before it gets too hot -- swept up a bunch of fallen bay leaves & added them to the chickens' runs -- the leaves pouring out of the bucket *completely* freaked them out, but the bay adds a nice smell.

also am experimenting with compressed pine pellets (stable bedding) in their henhouses instead of shavings -- seems like it should work better to absorb all the various wastes, and might break down easier/faster? will see how it works -- the chickens were quite intrigued by the pellets, trying to eat them of course (they're too big for that to be terribly successful)...

and unexpected benefit of the bobcat hanging around, hence chickens spending FAR more time in their coops than they did all summer -- they are turning over their deep litter far more than before, and its breaking down much faster, & much finer particles -- last year's deep litter was like a mulch, but now it's really looking compost-y. and no smell at all! (except for the bay leaves, now)

I have been intrigued by this method of bedding in the coop/run. Did you use shavings to start with? Do you ever clean it out?

I used to use shavings but I would scrape it all out about once every two months and then start with new. Do you just leave it down and add on top of that?

I am trying the sand this time. So far it is okay. I am not positive about how much less smelly it is because since I am moving I haven't added any more sand and it seems to be disappearing. I do get a smell from them usually down wind. Not right at the coop, but over by my car which is down wind, I can smell the coop.

At the new place I will be adding more sand and more Sweet PDZ so hopefully that will make a difference.

 

[Hangtown Farms]

More Lewey photos

 

[debs_flock]

Awww Jason, he is adorable! You could do a handoff of HIM at PJ's....

 

[debs_flock]

Actually though, I'd kind of like to have a blue British Shorthair. I might even make a no litter box exception.

 

[lawatt]

I have been intrigued by this method of bedding in the coop/run. Did you use shavings to start with? Do you ever clean it out?

I used to use shavings but I would scrape it all out about once every two months and then start with new. Do you just leave it down and add on top of that?

I am trying the sand this time. So far it is okay. I am not positive about how much less smelly it is because since I am moving I haven't added any more sand and it seems to be disappearing. I do get a smell from them usually down wind. Not right at the coop, but over by my car which is down wind, I can smell the coop.

At the new place I will be adding more sand and more Sweet PDZ so hopefully that will make a difference.

i've been impressed by using deep litter -- started with shavings on top of dirt, and the chickens' henhouses are built up above the floor of the run, so periodically just sweep all the shavings (and now pine pellets) down onto the run floor on top of whatever's already there. occasionally add dead leaves, or grass straw after the weed-whackers came through in summer, or weeds i've pulled, or whatever. the chickens scratch through it all & keep it constantly turned over (esp. when they're locked up all the time, like now!), and it really has zero smell when its working properly. i took a bunch out in winter to use to mulch my fruit tree saplings, but otherwise, i've not cleaned it out since i started a year ago (this is in the main coop, the other two pens have just started this summer). it's nice and springy to walk on, and they've been excavating way down through the layers lately to get at the bugs that live down in the compost -- in places its about a foot thick at least.

no work, and no smell -- my kind of system.

 

[Hangtown Farms]

Actually though, I'd kind of like to have a blue British Shorthair. I might even make a no litter box exception.

thats cute

 

[lawatt]

Lewey is beyond cute. what a face!

oh and speaking of litter boxes, i also use the pine pellets/stable bedding as cat litter -- also has zero smell. that's what got me thinking of using it in the chicken coops too...

 

[Hangtown Farms]

I have been intrigued by this method of bedding in the coop/run. Did you use shavings to start with? Do you ever clean it out?

I used to use shavings but I would scrape it all out about once every two months and then start with new. Do you just leave it down and add on top of that?

I am trying the sand this time. So far it is okay. I am not positive about how much less smelly it is because since I am moving I haven't added any more sand and it seems to be disappearing. I do get a smell from them usually down wind. Not right at the coop, but over by my car which is down wind, I can smell the coop.

At the new place I will be adding more sand and more Sweet PDZ so hopefully that will make a difference.

i use sand in most my coops unless its a closed coop