Chopped Straw - Where do I find it?

[dbahan]

I just finished reading "Keep Chickens" by Barbara Kilarski. Great book. But in it she often refers to using chopped straw on the floor of the coop. That sounds like a great idea (maybe it won't get as matted as regular straw) but I have no idea where to get it. I asked at the Co-Op where I get my straw bales and they had no clue.
Also, I started using cedar shavings over a month ago in the henhouse and nesting boxes before I read that it was dangerous to hens. I really like using the shavings. Have I done them damage? And am I to assume correctly that pine shavings are OK?

 

[speckledhen]

I never could find chopped straw, either. Pine shavings is definitely the way to go! Absorbent, nice smelling, won't hurt their lungs, etc. I use a sprinkle of cedar under the straw in the nest boxes and occasionally under the roost, but only about 20% of my total shavings, so the smell isn't overpowering.

 

[silkiechicken]

No idea where to get chopped straw. As for cedar shavings, get some out and replace it with pine. It damages their airways which makes them more susceptible to respiratory problems.

 

[Picco]

I think I saw it at Tractor Supply Company a while back.

 

[muddler6]

I would also go with the wood shavings, mine like them, but as for "CHopped" straw, you could get a bale of straw and if you have a lawn mower with a bagger on it, use that to chop it and collect it (just take out the strings first) or get a machete and go to town on the bale until it is chopped up enough for you.

 

[blevisay]

passing straw through a blower (used for lawns) or a chipper shredder should do the trick

 

[peeps7]

I buy bales of straw to put down, I have an open coop so I can't really put shavings down or they'll mold.

 

[mirime]

Quote:
hehee

I was gonna ask this question too - thanks for the answer, muddler!

 

[pixiechick]

I've heard alot of nightmare crop issues from using straw. Would chopped straw not cause the same problems?

 

[Stumpy]

Straw of any kind is almost impossible to find here.