Can I put a towel over shavings?

[hens@reddirthill]

I did a search, but didn't find an answer to my ??

The chicks are starting to eat the shavings in their brooder - I've seen in the forum to put paper towels over them, but I don't usually keep those in the house. Is there any reason I couldn't just use a bath towel?

 

[Shogun99]

I wouldn't use a bath towel due to the mess and the fact that baby chix crap all over everything. I didn't even use shavings myself, but instead decided to go with newspaper which the chicks really seem to love. They peck at the corners and run all over it playfully and I haven't had one instance of leg problems or the other problems that many people post about here.

I know some people also use straw. I'm not going to do that until I move them to their full-time coop.

HOpe this helps!

 

[EllyMae]

I used shredded newspaper. They like to snuggle down in it. I tried a bath towel and it was gross.

 

[flakey chick]

What worked the best for me was an old pillowslip. It wicks the moisture away quickly so it dries out. Then the poo flakes off (into the compost) and I can run it through the washer for another turn in the brooder.

I would think a towel would absorb the moisture, but hold it in. Also the poo would get squished into the fibers and it would be a real pain to deal with afterwards.

 

[hens@reddirthill]

I can see the gross thing, DH probably won't like me throwing that towel in with his work clothes. I'll try the shredded newspapers, the ink won't bother them?

 

[flakey chick]

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I can't let them be around paper ever. They just love to eat it too much. They certaintly are old enough to know better by now, but boy do they go to town.

 

[flakey chick]

hens@reddirthill :

I can see the gross thing, DH probably won't like me throwing that towel in with his work clothes. I'll try the shredded newspapers, the ink won't bother them?

For most newspapers the ink is soy based so it really shouldn't be a problem if they eat a little of it. Mine just would eat as much as they could get their greedy little beaks on. Yours probably aren't as wierd as mine though.​

 

[hens@reddirthill]

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Mine just would eat as much as they could get their greedy little beaks on. Yours probably aren't as wierd as mine though.

Tee hee, you may be right, but we'll have to wait and see since ours just arrived yesterday. Then again, we have house guests coming today that don't know we're keeping chickens in the bathroom, eek!

 

[pips&peeps]

Yes, you can use towels.

In the past I bought those really cheap bar towels from walmart and used them until the chicks were a week or two old and just threw them away when I was done.

 

[cmom]

I used newspaper too. Every day I would roll up the top sheet of pooy paper. I put a shoebox lid in the brooder with some pine shavings it in they would all go into the shoebox lid and all I could see was a mass of fluff.

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