Cleaning, is there a better way?

[horsefeathers09]

My birds are on dirt, I rake it every day but a rake just seems to spread most of it around. Now I'm using a pooper scooper, geez, there must be a better way to clean up than that! Is there a some fancy chicken rake that actually works! Also, is there a trick to keeping the wild birds from eating my feed? My yard is covered, but seems the sparrows get in even the teeniest hole.

 

[farmerlor]

My birds are on dirt in the coop but I also have pine shavings and DE in there on the floor. I only clean my coop every couple of months or so. The shavings go to the compost pile.

 

[consdrs]

I use a shovel and a small shrub rake they sell at walmart for 4 bucks. my run is very fluffy sandy dirt. I turn it with a huge claw rake once or twice a week. as for the wild birds eating your food... YIKES!! it's expensive to feed my 17 birds I can't imagine having to feed all the birds in my neighborhood!! I keep all my food in the coop and the water outside the coop.

Connie

 

[caralouise1974]

I just got a tip from some other hen keepers here in the UK, and that was to use some stuff called Aubiose http://www.aubiose.co.uk/ in the run on top of the bare dirt. It's a 100% hemp bedding for horses, and apparently it is becoming really popular over here for use with chickens.

As long as the run is covered, it stays good for months and the poo and odours seem to just sink into it! (Safer for the chooks than bark chippings, which can allegedly give off harmful mould spores if they get damp.)

I put some down today and despite some initial nervousness, they seem to like it - am keeping an eye out for crop issues over the next couple of days though as I think I caught one of them trying to eat some! Silly girls

(I'm sure once they get used to it they won't be seeing it as potential food anymore.)

Do you have anything similar available in the States?