Deep Litter in Run and How to Keep Clean

[MaggieRose2001]

Like 3KillerBs I just toss any food scraps directly on the floor. Even if I put them in a pan the chickens will drag them from the pan onto the floor anyhow.

I sometimes go back and pick up what they don't eat, depending on what it is. Anything that might attract flies or other pests I'd pick up. Other items get left in and will eventually break down and become part of the run litter - examples would be green leafy plants (as I throw in whole plants that are spent, i.e. cauliflower and cabbage once I've harvested the vegetable part) and corn cobs/husks.

Shouldn't be any need to remove hay/straw as they should compost down in the run but straw can mold, so if it turns out your environment is conducive to moldy straw I'd use a different material.

If you ever get mud/smells in established deep litter that was working fine previously, it's generally a lack of aeration so add in more wood chips instead of matter that tends to mat or compact down like grass, leaves, hay, etc.

I didn't know I could throw husks and such in there - I've been putting them in the trash. So pretty much anything that is organic goes to the run. I am definitely going to have to get used to this - it just seems like it would turn into a rubbish bin with flies. But I'll trust you guys and give it go.

 

[3KillerBs]

I didn't know I could throw husks and such in there - I've been putting them in the trash. So pretty much anything that is organic goes to the run. I am definitely going to have to get used to this - it just seems like it would turn into a rubbish bin with flies. But I'll trust you guys and give it go.

Corn cobs are one of their favorite treats. They don't eat the husks, but it works into the bedding as they scratch then to pieces.

 

[rosemarythyme]

We do deal with mold. I'm new to Maine, but it seems like the land never dries out.

Joke around here is that mold is the state flower. Plus my lot has a creek and a pond, so we have ground water just below the surface.

So far no mold issues in the run, but that's because I prioritize drainage (and I mostly provide feed inside the coop, where it stays dry and mold-free). As long as the water can flow through to the soil below (our soil inherently has good drainage) then the surface of the run litter stays fairly dry most of the time, so no mold forms.

I didn't know I could throw husks and such in there - I've been putting them in the trash. So pretty much anything that is organic goes to the run. I am definitely going to have to get used to this - it just seems like it would turn into a rubbish bin with flies. But I'll trust you guys and give it go.

It's a bit of experimentation... what might work great for me could be bad for you, or vice versa. Like some people happily toss fruit scraps in the run, but I don't (or I have to pick up anything left behind) because of fruit flies in the summer. But so far I've found that most leafy green plants can be safely left in there, as well as things that dry out well like the corn cobs and husks.

 

[Liznmike8]

Hi.

I am a new chicken owner and my chickens have been in their coop/run for a couple months now. I am wondering what do people put in their runs and how do you keep it clean? We have 10 laying hens - they all have names and my daughter bring chairs into the run and hold them a few times a week. Yes - we are one of those people who treat their animals like part of the family.

The run is on dirt/gravel and I put down some pine shavings and pellets that I bought for the coop but didn't like - I went with Koop Clean instead. I clean the coop on a daily basis, but after a few weeks the run starts to get poopy and the chickens feet start getting really dirty (especially the cochins). We live in Maine and it rains and snows a lot. It is a covered run and I plan on putting hay in there over the winter to help keep it warm.

Anyway - I just didn't know what most people do to keep the floor of the coop clean and the poopy feet at a minimum. I am doing deep litter in the coop and loving it - it is staying clean, doesn't smell. Is there a way to do deep litter in the run or is it better to haul out the bedding every month or so? I read where someone puts activated carbon/charcoal in the run to facilitate composting and raise the carbon. Does anyone have thoughts on that?

Thanks for your time.

I use Koop clean in the coop mainly for bedding, LOVE IT. On the floor of the coop and the run I use pine shavings. The run shavings compost quickly since the girls are always turning it over into the dirt floor. In the coop the shavings are deep bedding and there’s no smell at all (and they last longer than the Koop Clean) I think anyways.

 

[Ltvo]

Hi.

I am a new chicken owner and my chickens have been in their coop/run for a couple months now. I am wondering what do people put in their runs and how do you keep it clean? We have 10 laying hens - they all have names and my daughter bring chairs into the run and hold them a few times a week. Yes - we are one of those people who treat their animals like part of the family.

The run is on dirt/gravel and I put down some pine shavings and pellets that I bought for the coop but didn't like - I went with Koop Clean instead. I clean the coop on a daily basis, but after a few weeks the run starts to get poopy and the chickens feet start getting really dirty (especially the cochins). We live in Maine and it rains and snows a lot. It is a covered run and I plan on putting hay in there over the winter to help keep it warm.

Anyway - I just didn't know what most people do to keep the floor of the coop clean and the poopy feet at a minimum. I am doing deep litter in the coop and loving it - it is staying clean, doesn't smell. Is there a way to do deep litter in the run or is it better to haul out the bedding every month or so? I read where someone puts activated carbon/charcoal in the run to facilitate composting and raise the carbon. Does anyone have thoughts on that?

Thanks for your time.

In my coop I use deep bedding but in my 250sqft covered run, I use contractors sand. Hands down it’s the absolute best! I zip tied a piece of hard ware cloth to a pitch fork and use that like a kitty litter scooper to sift the sand from the now dried poop. It’s amazingly fast and easy and I’m done in 5 min or less

 

[jlk1]

Okay, so one more question for you all. Do you put food scraps in the run just directly on the floor? Do you go back and pick up whatever they don't eat? I have been giving them bits of chopped veggies from cooking - not really leftovers from meals. But I take them out in a pan and then pick up whatever they don't eat. I guess I am too much of a clean freak - I figure it would start to stink if I just left it out there. Is that what the whole composting is suppose to do is make it not stink? Would it be better if I left it there?

I put a large tractor tire on its side in my run as a feeder for scraps. I didn't like the look from our kitchen window of food scraps spread around the run. I toss turkey carcass, chicken bones, vegetable scraps, old bread, hidden leftovers from back of fridge shelves...I have 2 grass catcher bags of grass every time I mow and dump it in there too. When it looks like it is getting packed I toss a handful of scratch or feed in there and they mix it up. A lot of worms and bugs thrive in the compost and the chickens dig there everyday.
Any tire shop will most likely give you a tire as they cost them money to dispose of. If your lucky, maybe they will deliver and put it in your run for you, they are heavy. My only problem with mine is every so often I find a clutch of eggs laid in it.

 

[BecaHawaii]

Hi.

I am a new chicken owner and my chickens have been in their coop/run for a couple months now. I am wondering what do people put in their runs and how do you keep it clean? We have 10 laying hens - they all have names and my daughter bring chairs into the run and hold them a few times a week. Yes - we are one of those people who treat their animals like part of the family.

The run is on dirt/gravel and I put down some pine shavings and pellets that I bought for the coop but didn't like - I went with Koop Clean instead. I clean the coop on a daily basis, but after a few weeks the run starts to get poopy and the chickens feet start getting really dirty (especially the cochins). We live in Maine and it rains and snows a lot. It is a covered run and I plan on putting hay in there over the winter to help keep it warm.

Anyway - I just didn't know what most people do to keep the floor of the coop clean and the poopy feet at a minimum. I am doing deep litter in the coop and loving it - it is staying clean, doesn't smell. Is there a way to do deep litter in the run or is it better to haul out the bedding every month or so? I read where someone puts activated carbon/charcoal in the run to facilitate composting and raise the carbon. Does anyone have thoughts on that?

Thanks for your time.

We have a unique environment. We just keep adding dirt on top. We live on a lava bed so a lot of the dirt filters down through as they scratch. When my husband hears of newly dug-up areas we will bring buckets of it home and add that which has rocks and bugs and fun for them. If we don't have buckets I buy bags of local dirt.

 

[BecaHawaii]

We have a unique environment. We just keep adding dirt on top. We live on a lava bed so a lot of the dirt filters down through as they scratch. When my husband hears of newly dug-up areas we will bring buckets of it home and add that which has rocks and bugs and fun for them. If we don't have buckets I buy bags of local dirt.

Also, a covered 200sqft coop.

 

[CovidtimeQuail]

We have a unique environment. We just keep adding dirt on top. We live on a lava bed so a lot of the dirt filters down through as they scratch. When my husband hears of newly dug-up areas we will bring buckets of it home and add that which has rocks and bugs and fun for them. If we don't have buckets I buy bags of local dirt.

Ah, another Hawaii friend. I don't have a lava bed where I am, but I have the humidity and bugs.

The deep bedding ( / litter, as it's about halfway between both) system works wonders. My jealous gardening friends now want quail not for the eggs, but the mulch the deep bedding produces.

What works for me is raking dried leaves and cutting them up in a steel trash can with the electric grass trimmer. I then throw the smaller leaf and grass pieces into the run.

Between using both deep bedding quail compost and worm bins for the icky squishy food scraps, it's a miracle of sustainability.

 

[BecaHawaii]

Ah, another Hawaii friend. I don't have a lava bed where I am, but I have the humidity and bugs.

The deep bedding ( / litter, as it's about halfway between both) system works wonders. My jealous gardening friends now want quail not for the eggs, but the mulch the deep bedding produces.

What works for me is raking dried leaves and cutting them up in a steel trash can with the electric grass trimmer. I then throw the smaller leaf and grass pieces into the run.

Between using both deep bedding quail compost and worm bins for the icky squishy food scraps, it's a miracle of sustainability.

Maybe I should post on ND and sell garden dirt! LOL Hawaii has NO dirt. Especially my island.