Covered run floor material? - sand is a big commitment

[CliffB]

It gives me somewhere to put all of those pine needles when i rake them up and since they contain a good bit of leaf matter they don't look quite neat enough for the flower beds so the coop is perfect. Oh and they are free.

 

[chick'n'weave]

CliffB...
I am intrigued with the pictures you shared. I like the idea of having the coop outside the run with the enclosed ramp as the access. Do you have any trouble getting your chicks to go up the ramp? Is that an automatic door on the ramp side? Have you had any trouble with predators?

 

[Mtn Laurel]

Thanks Mtn Laurel! I think that we'll go with that approach. We have plenty of grass clippings when the summer comes. It's also a good excuse to finish raking the lawn!

You have to be cautious with grass clippings as the girls like to eat them and - if it's long, stringy and tough grass - can lead to an impacted crop. We have a mulching lawnmower with a bagger so I have DH mow the lawn and then dump the bag on the ground and mow it up again. Only takes a second and the grass clippings get mulched down very fine.

If I have a patch of that long, stringy stuff - I call it "switch grass" but don't know the real name - I just put that in my regular compost pile instead of putting it in with the girls. No use taking the chance of an impacted crop. Everything else is fine and they really love leaves. A new pile of leaves keeps them occupied for two days or more!

 

[donrae]

I also use a deep litter. I'm in a rainy climate (PNW) so often add bales of straw scattered throughout the run to combat the mud. Everything organic on the property goes in the chicken coop or run, then that gets cleaned out once a year or so and put in the garden....then the garden produce helps feed the chickens....round and round! Deep litter also helps keep the birds entertained with the natural activity of scratching, and gives them areas to dust bathe as long as there is a dry spot.

 

[CliffB]

CliffB...
I am intrigued with the pictures you shared. I like the idea of having the coop outside the run with the enclosed ramp as the access. Do you have any trouble getting your chicks to go up the ramp? Is that an automatic door on the ramp side? Have you had any trouble with predators?

First Question. Not anymore. At first they did not really understand the concept. They would come down the ramp fairly consistently but going up was like herding cats. As you can see i added a flip up door at the bottom of the ramp. That is for training purposes. I would stuff all the chicks in the tunnel and close the flip door so that they couldn't come back into the run and eventually they would either wander up and find the coop or they would start to get cool and feel the heat emanating from the coop door which would draw them up the ramp and into the coop. This only took a few weeks and then they would run up into the coop take a few drinks of water and then run back down into the run to continue playing and scratching. I added a 5-6 week old silkie to the flock and it took a good solid 4-5 days of watching the others before it figured out how the process worked. Now it's doing fine also.

Second. On the bottom side it is completely manual. I am looking at creating a hooked pole or something to make lifting the door easier without having to go in and out of the coop every time. On the coop side it is a manual pulley system i rigged up with some paracord and a rope cleat. I just cannot stomach a $100-200 automatic coop door so for now i just have to do it manually.

Third. I didn't have any predator issues until about 2 weeks ago i had a marans that was acting very lethargic go missing one afternoon. Couldn't figure out what happened and since i didn't do a head count until the following morning that still remains a mystery. Now 3 days ago all of the chicks were hiding in a corner of the coop so i did a head count and it appears my new salmon faverolles was scooped up by a very large hawk that i have since seen lingering in the trees above the coop. I am one week away from having the money to buy a dog kennel canopy which will cover 75% of the run. They are always locked up during dark hours so i am not terribly worried about night predators and 75% of cover i feel will be adequate against hawks. Dogs and Cats i will just have to watch for and cross that bridge when i get there.

 

[Steve398]

You have to be cautious with grass clippings as the girls like to eat them and - if it's long, stringy and tough grass - can lead to an impacted crop. We have a mulching lawnmower with a bagger so I have DH mow the lawn and then dump the bag on the ground and mow it up again. Only takes a second and the grass clippings get mulched down very fine.

If I have a patch of that long, stringy stuff - I call it "switch grass" but don't know the real name - I just put that in my regular compost pile instead of putting it in with the girls. No use taking the chance of an impacted crop. Everything else is fine and they really love leaves. A new pile of leaves keeps them occupied for two days or more!

I have so much to learn! Thanks Mtn Laurel.

 

[Steve398]

I also use a deep litter. I'm in a rainy climate (PNW) so often add bales of straw scattered throughout the run to combat the mud. Everything organic on the property goes in the chicken coop or run, then that gets cleaned out once a year or so and put in the garden....then the garden produce helps feed the chickens....round and round! Deep litter also helps keep the birds entertained with the natural activity of scratching, and gives them areas to dust bathe as long as there is a dry spot.

Thanks donrae! Do you see any issues with starting this method now, in New England?

 

[Steve398]

Here's a picture of my run. The coop is in the garage. My daughter loves to let the girls out into the yard.

 

[Chuckcluck]

Just to add to the great sand, chips, straw debate...I am in CT and use sand in the covered run topped by a thin layer of straw. Once a week I rake out the straw and compost. Actually I just throw a flake of alfalfa I get from tractor supply in there. The hens tear it apart, eat the leaves and spread the straw out. Work great, no smell ever.

 

[donrae]

I'd go ahead and start now. Put down a big bale of shavings to start--your space isn't that large, so a bale will give you a nice layer. Maybe a few flakes of straw for good measure, then have the kiddos toss a few handfuls of corn or scratch in there and let the hens stir it up for you. I go pretty much by smell as to when I add material, smell or too much mud. Scatter more shavings or straw and just add as needed.