Deep litter method?

[A.T. Hagan]

At my old place I used the deep litter method. When ever the manure build up was such that the birds weren't keeping it scratched into the litter any more I'd fork in another wheelbarrow load or two of leaves and stuff that I'd rake up from the property. A couple of times a year when I needed it I'd fork it all out to spread on the garden then start the process over again. I always kept at least several inches of organic material on the floor which was just dirt underneath. Worked well for me.

.....Alan.

 

[Mac in Wisco]

Here is a great article I ran across on coccidiosis. There are parts that talk about managing deep litter and its benefits.

http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/coccidiosis.html

 

[sharonross0624]

Help

When all of you are talking about deep litter method, are you talking about "inside" the coop or the actual run itself?
I have a 10x20 pen and the nest boxes are inside the pen, run and all.....I bought a portable shed and placed over the pen today to keep most of the rain out, I am wondering if I am doing this right......Any comments? Or Suggestions?

 

[eponagirl]

Excellent article, thanks!

 

[Delia]

I haven't posted in a while.
My chickens finally started laying eggs about 2 months ago. It turned out we did have a rooster - we thought so but there was no eggs and no crowing so we weren't sure - although the questionable one was always larger so we suspected. Just about the same time the first egg was laid the rooster started crowing. We returned the rooster to the farm and swapped him for a hen. The hen was supposed to be the same age roughly as ours but it was noticably smaller and had scruffy feathers. Anyway they are all doing well.

We are finishing up the winter coop and want to use the deep litter method. What do you use for the litter stuff? My husband wants to use bark mulch or wood chips or compost from a landscaping company because it would probably be less expensive than buying many packages of wood shavings.

Thanks,
Delia

 

[loriamarosa]

Quote:
Thank you for the link! It helps to hear that in some cases deep litter can actually be protective against cocci.

 

[Evernf]

Has anyone used Vingar in the water to stop oder in shavings

 

[sully]

Do you find that rats borrow in this to keep warm during the winter?