Cedar bedding material for nest boxes?

[kristenm1975]

I'm rather confused. After years of reading, here and elsewhere, that cedar shavings or chips can cause chickens respiratory distress and therefor not to use them, I picked up Gail Damerow's classic book on chicken care and was surprised to read that this is precisely what she recommends for the nest boxes. She advises this to help resist pests.

Having been inundated with mites two years ago while raising chickens, I'm determined to use every method I can find that is recommended to stop this before it starts.

If there are those of you who have followed Gail Damerow's school of thought, I'd love to hear your experiences, good or bad.

Thanks!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I use half cedar and half pine shavings in my nest boxes (and no shavings on the floor - see my sig. line). Works well.

 

[Cheapchicksfarm]

When I was growing up we raised Guinea Pigs and Pigeons on 100% cedar bedding they were perfectly fine and we never had one issue

 

[kristenm1975]

Thank you both for your responses. As I have my hens in a Catawba Converticoop and therefor have less room for them than a full size stationary coop, I think it makes sense to take a middle ground approach and use half cedar and half pine shavings in the nest boxes, due to slightly less ventilation. I am using Sweet PDZ exclusively to line the "upstairs" of their chicken tractor, in the area under their roost bar, and just scoop up the poops with a kitty litter scooper every three or four days. The odor is nil, ditto for the flies or other pests.

Counting down to the eggs, three or four weeks left.

 

[dominiques]

Is this what everyone uses in their nesting boxes; pine and/or ceddar shavings? What about straw? Thanks! And I was wondering about cedar too.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Is this what everyone uses in their nesting boxes; pine and/or ceddar shavings? What about straw? Thanks! And I was wondering about cedar too.

Straw can harbor mites in the middle of the tube of the straw.