Thanks for the informative post, spatcher. I mix a small bit of DE in with my chickens morning yogurt/oatmeal conconction (they mob me if I don't bring any out). If I need to give medications other than injectibles I also use this concoction (or just very watery oatmeal) as I know they are getting their dosage versus putting it in water...they have a number of places to acquire water when free ranging. My flock also wavers on how much of their crumble they eat in the summer, sometimes its very little at all; so putting supplements in this food source isn't always very effective. Mind you, the dosage of any meds/supplements in this manner is very small.
Other ways I use DE:
Sprinkled over the top of my droppings pit after scraping the droppings off the screen every other day; it keeps things bone dry and void of smell. Mixed in with shavings in the rest of the coop. Additionally, I use a DE whitewash mix on my 2x4 roosts and have found that it makes them much easier to clean off. I have also sprinkled it in their dusting areas, but find that unless I mix it in with a bit of the dirt they will then avoid dusting in that spot.
