/ Register

  1. If this is your first time on BYC, we suggest you start with one of these three options:
    Raising Chickens Chicken Coops Join BYC
    If you're already a member of our community, click here to login & click here to learn what's new!

cloth diapers as bedding?

Discussion in 'Raising Baby Chicks' started by LifeIsSchool, Mar 13, 2013.

Most Liked Posts
  1. Mar 13, 2013 #1
    LifeIsSchool

    LifeIsSchool New Egg

    3
    0
    7
    Mar 13, 2013
    Hello! I'm a total noob here, just got my first mini flock of 6 chicks yesterday.

    I've been using papertowels and/or newspaper as bedding to start, but I'm not loving it.

    I was wondering if anyone has used cloth diapers (prefolds) as bedding in the brooder. It seems like a decent solution to me, better than paper towels and reuseable, but I'm wondering what the drawbacks are that I'm not considering. I know the laundry, but I washed my kids' poop in my washing machine so I don't think chicken poop would be different? Am I wrong?
     
  3. Mar 13, 2013 #2
    Yay Chicks!

    Yay Chicks! Chillin' With My Peeps

    3,787
    36
    213
    Apr 15, 2010
    Forest Grove, OR
    I just used pine shavings from the beginning. Personally, I wouldn't want to do all that laundry. [​IMG]

    Oh! and [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Mar 13, 2013
  5. Mar 13, 2013 #3
    ChickensRDinos

    ChickensRDinos Chillin' With My Peeps

    2,242
    208
    208
    Aug 19, 2012
    Los Angeles
    x2

    I have always been pretty happy with pine shavings. Cloth diapers seem messy. I imagine the poop would stay on top and they would need to be washed very frequently. I find that I don't have to change the shavings all that often if you get a nice layer. Just lift the water and feeder up off the ground so that they don't kick the shavings in.
     
  7. Mar 13, 2013 #4
    cafarmgirl

    cafarmgirl Overrun With Chickens

    5,524
    546
    327
    Mar 24, 2009
    California, central valley
    X3. I've always used pine shavings right from day one. Stays nice and dry and makes a nice bed for babies to sleep in. I personally don't like anything that lets lots of poop sit around where all those little feet are just constantly walking through it. Shavings are always getting scratched around and stirred up so the poop gets covered up and dries out pretty quick.
     
  9. Mar 13, 2013 #5
    LifeIsSchool

    LifeIsSchool New Egg

    3
    0
    7
    Mar 13, 2013
    so if I use pine shavings, how often to I change it out?
     
  11. Mar 13, 2013 #6
    missnu01

    missnu01 Chillin' With My Peeps

    2,735
    117
    188
    Nov 16, 2012
    When it starts to look yucky or smell bad...don't let it go too long...but you don't have to change them all that often with chicks. Just make sure to stir them up really well if the chicks aren't doing a great job at it.
     
  13. Mar 16, 2013 #7
    LoveChickens123

    LoveChickens123 Chillin' With My Peeps

    3,077
    19
    188
    Aug 26, 2012
    On Taro-Lynn Farms with our animals
    i agree with Yay Chicks! and[​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Mar 16, 2013

BackYard Chickens is proudly sponsored by