Deep Litter Method - Clarification Needed

[Kiki]

I'd love to see a pics of your Ameraucanas. I have two 2.5 weeks old girls. Well they better be girls!

 

[MWright936]

They are about 5-6 weeks old. My wife did a little research and said the one on the left may be more Easter Egger than Ameraucana. Also crossing our fingers these are all girls!

 

[Kiki]

They are about 5-6 weeks old. My wife did a little research and said the one on the left may be more Easter Egger than Ameraucana. Also crossing our fingers these are all girls!

They are cute!
I bought some that we sold as true Ameraucanas but I have too have been corrected. I have Easter Eggers too!

 

[aart]

You need more than just pine chips/shavings.

Here's a great description of contents and how to manage organic 'bedding' in a run or coop...and there's a great video of what it looks like.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1037998/muddy-run-help-please#post_16017992

 

[TalkALittle]

FWIW, I never have to turn my deep litter at all. I have 6 standard and 3 bantam hens in a 12'×8' covered pen. Sometimes I have might have to rake it even because they scratch a lot to one side or something, but I never rake or turn for anything other than that. I never have anything crusting over or attracting flies. The girls scratch around so much that just doesn't happen. When I add stuff to the run I just dump right it in the middle. The girls do all the spreading and turning for me.

 

[MWright936]

My coop is finally finished and the girls are enjoying it. Thank y'all for all the helpful advice. Have a Happy Independence Day!!

Matt

 

[TerryH]

Looks good, Matt! Very nice job of taking available information, forming a plan and the carrying it out!!

 

[Howard E]

Yep......looks much better now than where you were a couple weeks back.

The folks who build small commercial coops to sell should come look at yours and take lessons!

 

[Mims]

As mentioned above, I use wood chips/shavings, but also mostly grass hay, alfalfa (they eat the leafy parts) lawn clippings, dead plants from my yard and garden, twigs, pine needles and cones, dead leaves in the fall (tons and tons of them) and so on. I occasionally turn it, but for the most part, my chickens keep it turned for me. I'm in west Texas, with super hot temps, and I haven't found any problems using this method. It always smells fresh in there, and I have lovely compost a couple times a year.

Since yours is up off the ground, add a large scoop of dirt from your garden, or if you have a forest nearby, from the forest floor. It will add the needed microbes that break down the matter into compost. Add a little water if needed to keep it very slightly moist. If it completely dries out, it won't compost well. My coop is an open front double horse stall (before pic added below), and due to the heat, I have misters and fans going, and that keeps the ground moist enough for it to compost. It also has a couple leaks along the back wall when it rains, so that helps too. Hope that helps!

 

[kgb6days]

I turn mine over from the bottom every Saturday. I don't deep liter inside the coop =- just use pine shavings. I scrap all that out once a month or so and add it into the run, then turn it over. During the hot days I hose the run down a bit - just to keep it moist and give the girls some damp cooler dirt to dig into and lay in. It works well for us, and we're in the 90's for the past month. We have lots of shade, and I don't notice any heat coming up off the liter when I turn it. The girls have a great time picking through it when I turn it. Good luck
Kristy in NC