Chicken coop is very muddy! help please UPDATE

[cajunlizz]

Quote:
Would you suggestion Pine Mulch ?

 

[Dustoff79]

That would be fine, keep away from Cypress or Cedar mulch. they will not decompose very fast, and the Cedar is not good for the Chickens. as the mulch breaks down, just add another layer. I currently use mulch from the local brush facility, and in areas away from my house the shavings from my horse stalls. works great.

 

[SundownWaterfowl]

Well, I just finished mucking the run. Looks 100% better now. Im going to get some sand this weekend for the run.
Thanks for those who helped!

 

[LauraSBale]

we have the same problem, the soil here is clay and its hard as a rock, and we built the new coop, when it rains, it stands all day, so i;m planning on putting sand down,.

at our old house, we were all sand if it rained, you wouldn't know it in a hour, it drained so fast, and it was great for the chicks to take there baths in.
what i had for free now i have to pay for

 

[cwc362]

I sometimes mow the field behind our house- I leave a strip in the middle and mow in to throw the long grasses and saplings and weeds against the row I left- When it dries it makes a great coarse hay which i throw in my chicken pen. I don't use the shorter lawn grass for the chickens because it packs and molds and mildews so easy. I use it in the compost and as mulch . I also pick up leaves and pine needles that people put on the side of the road in Plastic garbage bags. I always ask permission before I get them, That way I can ask if they have used any sprays or chemicals on them.I guess you call this the deep litter method. This works out well with me . Also where I feed and water in one end of the pen I have it partially covered so I don't keep it as deep so the feed and water don't get so much junk in it. I only have 19 chickens and my pen is not that big. Also 14 of my chickens are little banties . I really like to keep the leaves and hay deep in the pen and the chickens seem to love it to scratch in. Also I don't have much of a smell in there either. Wayne

 

[alpacatex08]

I used some stall mats in areas that were mud pits in the rain; wait until the soil is dry then set the mats on top of the ground. Once or twice a year you will probably have to lift up the mats when the ground is wet and replace them on top of the dry ground because each time it rains and you walk on them they get pushed down a little into the mud, but they do a great job of staying elevated on top of the wet ground and also draining the moisture, so no puddles. I found used stall mats cheaper on Craigslist, or watch for used ones at auctions or any sales.

 

[CentralKYRedneck]

We havent had any chance for our soil to dry this year in KY. It has been nothing but rain this year. I have resorted to using wood pallets on top of the ground so both me and my chickens can walk on dry ground.

 

[Stephanie-n-Hayden]

Yeah, KY has been so wet this year. We planted our garden then it rained for like 2 weeks straight without stopping. Needless to say, all the crops either drowned or got washed away. We had to replant. At the time our chickens were free-ranging. They are now in the coop and attached run, after our roo disapeared. so, we are having to deal with the mud too.

 

[brigid67]

I am having a terrible problem with mud in the run. i was wondering if anyone knows if I can use hazelnut shells on the floor of the run to help with the mud situation?

I can get hazelnut shells for cheap - otherwise I guess bark might work.

 

[Xtineart]

reading this with real interest as it's just moved into the rainy season here in Scotland. (the rainy season basically means August till June here) and my clay soil garden has already turned into one great big swamp. I've dug over and turned the 'grass' so some of the standing water and sludge can drain and aerate the soil as it's so clay thick even the worms dont live there anymore. I let my chicks free range from about 7am till it gets dark, but they have a good sized coop with an attached 2 metre fenced run to themselves at night. It's turned into a complete mud bath, chickens squishing about in nasty muck. I tried putting sand down before but it just washed away or stayed as wet sand, less muddy, but every bit as squishy as before. Half the run is covered with tarp for shelter from the sun/rain but the other half is open caged. I have no way of increasing drainage to the site as it's a small flat enclosed grass garden (5mtrx5mtr) with high fencing all round. Would woodchip be more likely to stay put and dryish than sand in that sort of closed run? I dont really want to tarp the lot as they need some daylight, lord knows we get precious little in the winter here as it is.