coop bedding

[luckyasablkcat]

I wanted to get some opinions. I have looked into the deep litter method, as well as the old fashioned pine shavings and regular cleanings. Someone suggested to me to use sand. That it cuts down on mites and I can sift the poop out as needed while leaving the good sand like the world's largest cat box. The coop will be 8x10, lifted slightly with a wood floor I plan to cover with some sort of waterproofing. Probably blackjack #57. I plan to place some sort of sheeting under the removable roosts for easy poop scraping. Anyway, is sand an option? I can't seem to find much on the topic. Ps. I live in Missouri, if that means anything.

 

[flyin-lowe]

I have a 6x8 with 9 hens. I got them 4 weeks ago and started with one compressed pack of pine shavings from Rural King. About every two weeks I rake up a bag of dried leaves etc. from my yard and throw in there. They love digging through the yard trash and so far no smell at all. The poop dries up really fast. I didn't like the idea of having to go out and scoop out the sand every day, I know come winter time I would get lazy. That's just me though. After 1 month mine is nowhere near needing cleaned or replaced. Just add to it every so often.