Cleaning used coop question

[NancyNurseCxMama]

Thank you Nancy for all the info! And sharing your experience. My friends have had their chickens for a long time, their yard is on the small side and they need more room in the yard due to expanding family etc. Their birds were not sick or anything. Just old. I still wanted to clean the coop anyway so my birds could start "fresh" with their own bacteria and stuff. LOL!

One more gentle thing before I go: Apparently healthy birds can be carriers of disease. This is why we are often told to be careful when attending bird shows, fairs, and even going to visit chickens belonging to friends. I see you mentioned "biosecurity" in your first post so I guess you've read about such things already!
We're not sure exactly what happened to my sweet Rocky as the diagnosis of Marek's was not confirmed (the vet we took her to was obnoxious, told us pathology would "end up costing you $800") but to watch her become progressively paralyzed, dragging her little legs behind her and trying to come up to me by using her wings was so sad. I wouldn't wish that on anyone and if disinfecting a used coop could prevent such heartache it's what I would do.
So far my remaining six girls have shown no signs of illness whatsoever but they may very well be carriers of Marek's if that's what Rocky had.
That was why I scrubbed and disinfected everything. The vet from Cornell I spoke to said that if I got any more chicks that I should be sure they are vaccinated for Marek's, just in case. But for now, trying to reduce any viral load that might be present was all I could do for my sweet girls and even that might not be sufficient---they can still get it.
Best of luck with your new chicks---they are so much fun (and a bit of work, lol)!

 

[JustRambling]

One more gentle thing before I go: Apparently healthy birds can be carriers of disease. This is why we are often told to be careful when attending bird shows, fairs, and even going to visit chickens belonging to friends. I see you mentioned "biosecurity" in your first post so I guess you've read about such things already!
We're not sure exactly what happened to my sweet Rocky as the diagnosis of Marek's was not confirmed (the vet we took her to was obnoxious, told us pathology would "end up costing you $800") but to watch her become progressively paralyzed, dragging her little legs behind her and trying to come up to me by using her wings was so sad. I wouldn't wish that on anyone and if disinfecting a used coop could prevent such heartache it's what I would do.
So far my remaining six girls have shown no signs of illness whatsoever but they may very well be carriers of Marek's if that's what Rocky had.
That was why I scrubbed and disinfected everything. The vet from Cornell I spoke to said that if I got any more chicks that I should be sure they are vaccinated for Marek's, just in case. But for now, trying to reduce any viral load that might be present was all I could do for my sweet girls and even that might not be sufficient---they can still get it.
Best of luck with your new chicks---they are so much fun (and a bit of work, lol)!

Thank you for the warning. Thankfully, my husband and I are on the OCD side with "germs, bacteria, etc." We tend to be more on the overly cautious side rather than the other way. Still, this is all stuff that I will need to educate my husband and my 2 sons about so we can avoid as many problems as possible.

 

[aart]

Thankfully, my husband and I are on the OCD side with "germs, bacteria, etc."

You've gotten good advise on disinfecting the coop from Nancy....but don't go too far with the germ thing once you get your birds, over cleaning/treating can cause resistance to organisms and pests. Chickens are 'dirty'...dusty and there's always poop to deal with...keeping things dry and well ventilated is the number one defense against 'germs' and odors. Washing hands thoroughly with running water after tending the birds will keep the keepers healthy.