Deep litter: how and what to do? (and what not to?)

Chicken_Ninja

In the Brooder
Feb 23, 2020
18
69
46
Lebanon
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Hello guys

So I have been seeing videos and reading a lot on the deep litter method and it seems very convenient especially to someone who can use lot of compost for the plantation.

I would appreciate your personal knowldge and experience with that, how to do it, what to do, and most importantly what can go wrong with it.

My coop is planned to be 8x13 ft and the run 26x10 ft. I am planning to protect the run from the rain too (zinc plates roof and fenced walls with nylon protection from the rain). The coop and run will be constructed over concrete. The location is dry, windy with hot summers and somehow cold winters (that includes a total of 20 days of frost).

Questions are something like:

  • Does this work for coop and run?

  • What is the initial depth of litter? How often you add new layers of litter? When to stop?

  • What material to use? ( I don't have lot of pine shaving supply but random types of wood shavings available), does green plants count as litter?

  • Do you need to add some moisture especially in my hot dry summer?

  • Do you keep a base from the previous bedding for the next one? I have read this would keep some of the good composting bacteria for the next bedding.

  • And one last question, is deep litter different than deep bedding?
Thanks folks!
 
I use deep litter for my meat birds, in the brooder.

I use pine shaving

Start with a two inch layer, when it looks or in my case smells, cover it with 1/2 to an inch. This can pile as high as you like with good ventilation. The bed will not stinky, but it is still hiding an ammonia bomb under there. Do NOT add moisture to the bedding, the byproduct of chickens is moist enough.

Change it when it is as deep as you want to deal with. I do it after two months, with meat bird chicks that is about 8".

Good luck
 

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