Deep litter method???

[Birdlover 13]

Depending on a few things, I might be willing to speak on behalf of the bricks. The two questions I'd have is about climate (how much rain and how wet is this site going to be) and rats.

If you live in a wet climate, the bricks will help elevate things a bit and give the water a place to go. What litter you have will be kept high and dry(er). The run is not small, but not large enough that it will not eventually turn into a wet, smelly mud hole on dirt if you live in a wet climate and especially so if the site is not really well drained. Bricks are no harder on their feet than concrete and birds have been kept on concrete for at least 100 years. The litter cushions and isolates their feet from it. They will still scratch around through and under the litter.

Second issue would be if you have rats. They can tunnel in and under dirt. They can't do so well on bricks.

Not saying to keep or get rid of them, just listing a couple pros to go along with the cons so you can decide which best fits your situation.

I live in South Africa and we have hot, dry summers and cooler winters with some rain and I havn't seen a rat near our garden since the people next door built a new house. ( The plot next door was empty, wild and overgrown)

I would take the bricks out except the ones the coop is sitting on top of. This will give you a nice dirt area to have them scratch around in. My run is 7' x 11.5' with 6 hens. I use the cut grass clipping from my lawn and the neighbors lawn in the run. I will spread out the green clippings and then turn them once a week. About every 6-8 weeks I will rake it clean and start over. Probably could go longer but just what I have been doing. My girls will free range almost every afternoon we get home from work and most weekends for the majority of the two days.

Pull the bricks and make your life easier.

I was thinking of maybe pulling out just one quarter or half the bricks.