- Mar 22, 2009
- 5
- 0
- 7
Hi all I am a newbie here. Of course I have lots of questions.
I received a gift of 13 mixed breed chickens (11 laying hens, 1 older rooster and 1 year-old rooster). I don't know ages except the younger rooster. Since I got them about 6 weeks ago, 2 hens have died, but now all the living ones appear healthy.
Anyway, I am wondering about cleaning up their outdoor area since they are not free range and don't have a huge amount of space. Their indoor area is about 12'x12' and lined with thick wheat straw. Their outdoor space is kind of odd shaped, but about 200sq. ft. I let them out into our fenced yard for a few hours most, but not all days. What I'm wondering is, am I putting them at health risk by not giving them more outdoor space? They peck at the ground and I toss their treats in on their outdoor floor. Should I be feeding treats in a container so they aren't eating off the ground they've been pooping on? Should I be putting straw down in their outdoor area so that I can scoop it out with the waste periodically? Or putting straw down to absorb waste and leaving it in place? Or is that enough space so that it will decompose fast enough not to cause problems?
I received a gift of 13 mixed breed chickens (11 laying hens, 1 older rooster and 1 year-old rooster). I don't know ages except the younger rooster. Since I got them about 6 weeks ago, 2 hens have died, but now all the living ones appear healthy.
Anyway, I am wondering about cleaning up their outdoor area since they are not free range and don't have a huge amount of space. Their indoor area is about 12'x12' and lined with thick wheat straw. Their outdoor space is kind of odd shaped, but about 200sq. ft. I let them out into our fenced yard for a few hours most, but not all days. What I'm wondering is, am I putting them at health risk by not giving them more outdoor space? They peck at the ground and I toss their treats in on their outdoor floor. Should I be feeding treats in a container so they aren't eating off the ground they've been pooping on? Should I be putting straw down in their outdoor area so that I can scoop it out with the waste periodically? Or putting straw down to absorb waste and leaving it in place? Or is that enough space so that it will decompose fast enough not to cause problems?