Concrete flooring, NEED ADVICE PLEASE HELP

[Buck Oakes]

Okay so I of course have Muscovies most people on this forum prob know that

Lol just kidding but yeah anyway, I free range my ducks like they go out at 8:30 and go up at about 5-8 whenever I feel like they've had enough time or whenever they feel like going up. Anyway I was wondering about making their floor concrete since they're only in there over night essentially

Should it be regular concrete or smooth concrete, they essentially have a huge dog kennel that I made into a coop by coating, rapping, shielding etc. all in chicken wire ( the top included of course) and so I don't have a permanent roof, I have boards that I put on top and then put a tarp on it ( again i only put that on when it's about to rain then take it off)

But they poop a lot!!! ( Of course because they're ducks ) and I can't clean it off the dirt so would it be such a bad idea to just do concrete, and of course I would add bedding in the colder months and they would only be in there at night so what should I do??

 

[elly21]

I have a small section in my run with concrete and was told to cover it or it could cause bumble foot. If you do put concrete you should cover it with straw or those rubber mats.

 

[Buck Oakes]

Okay, but what about smooth concrete, since it's not rough

 

[Orca5094]

The fact that it's rough is only part of the problem with concrete. Even smooth concrete is too hard of a surface for them to stand on, it will cause them foot problems in the future. I would strongly advise against it. Can you use pine shavings in their house instead? It's easy to pick up all the poops with some gloves every morning and top it off with more shavings as needed. Keeps them clean and comfortable at the same time.

Or like Elly21 said up there, you can use rubber mats instead of (or on top of) the concrete. They are easy to hose off and provide some cushion for their feet, versus standing on hard concrete all night.

 

[tmorgan46]

I also look at the economics of it. Not sure how deep your pockets are, but concrete can get on the pricey side. We picked up 3/4" 4'X6' stall mats at one of the local feed stores for roughly $50.00. That is a lot cheaper than a slab of concrete; unless you've got connections of course. They're very heavy, so they won't move around, they clean off much easier in my esitmation and santize just as easy. It's what I'd recommend.

Troy and Tina

 

[Buck Oakes]

Okay so no concrete, and this is just me, I don't want to use shavings because i don't like to use wood when I don't have to

 

[Buck Oakes]

Wel already bought the concrete XD I saved up for it

 

[needlessjunk]

I would use the cement and then use horse stall mats over it with bedding on top. Think of the cement as a base and build up a nice floor on top of it.

 

[Buck Oakes]

I mean like the dirt isn't that bad, maybe I should just buy new diet every now and then and layer it

 

[quackingdom]

What about sand for flooring? Have you considered that? Or sand as bedding on top of concrete?