Deep litter method

[Kusanar]

I only have a 3 foot x 8 foot coop but only have 6 birds. I plan to keep 2 more birds for a total of 8. Can I still use the deep method or should I clean out more often because it is a little small? Newbie here and my girls are only 8 weeks old right now.

That coop is more than a little small. Please tell me they have a decent sized run...

 

[Flame80]

The run is a 8 foot x 16 foot walk in size.

 

[Flame80]

Is that run too small for 6-8 birds? I just made the coop large enough for them to roost and I have 3 nests built in there also. It is all above their run of 8x16 feet. Have I messed up?

 

[Kusanar]

The run is a 8 foot x 16 foot walk in size.

Is that run too small for 6-8 birds? I just made the coop large enough for them to roost and I have 3 nests built in there also. It is all above their run of 8x16 feet. Have I messed up?

That should be ok with 8. I was just hoping they weren't crammed together.

In that case, maybe do a poop board inside under the roosts to catch the night time poop and deep litter the rest.

 

[Flame80]

I do have poop boards under the wood chips everywhere. Hoping it would make it easier to clean. I learned that already by reading this forum before i even joined. Thank you for your help!

 

[MallardMama19]

Hey guys! Total chicken Newbie here with some floor questions. We bought your typical 'run of the mill, 'cheapish' feed store coop for our first year, it said walk in, but there is NO way your just gonna walk in unless you're the size of toddler. The the roosting area and nesting box seem small (its summer so they are actually sleeping on the beams of the coop. and they free range during the day, or placed in a 20' by 10' run with the ducks that we built separate when if we are not going to be home, that way they are protected.)
My question is: for the small coop I have wood shavings in the nesting box and on the poop tray. For deep litter method do I just keep adding to it until next spring when I clean in out for compost or should I clean it out more frequently since its so small?
The ground the coop was placed on was bare grass... (lets all laugh now- because now its just mud) should I be putting pine shavings on the bottom of this as well since its so small? I did shavings in the duck run 2 years ago, last year I did straw and it was much easier to clean in the spring. Winter will be here in about 3ish months and I want to make sure i'm set.

Have no fear, i'll be making a more sizable coop next year.... Thanks guys

 

[jvls1942]

If you have the time, clean it at least once a week .
some people do it daily when they feed the chickens.
it takes time for wood chips to become good compost.
so if you keep adding the daily cleanings to the compost pile you will be farther ahead with the composting.
Straw will compost quicker than wood chips..

 

[paintedChix]

Hey guys! Total chicken Newbie here with some floor questions. We bought your typical 'run of the mill, 'cheapish' feed store coop for our first year, it said walk in, but there is NO way your just gonna walk in unless you're the size of toddler. The the roosting area and nesting box seem small (its summer so they are actually sleeping on the beams of the coop. and they free range during the day, or placed in a 20' by 10' run with the ducks that we built separate when if we are not going to be home, that way they are protected.)
My question is: for the small coop I have wood shavings in the nesting box and on the poop tray. For deep litter method do I just keep adding to it until next spring when I clean in out for compost or should I clean it out more frequently since its so small?
The ground the coop was placed on was bare grass... (lets all laugh now- because now its just mud) should I be putting pine shavings on the bottom of this as well since its so small? I did shavings in the duck run 2 years ago, last year I did straw and it was much easier to clean in the spring. Winter will be here in about 3ish months and I want to make sure i'm set.

Have no fear, i'll be making a more sizable coop next year.... Thanks guys

If your "cheapish" feed store coop is like the ones around here, it's on a 2x2" wood base. Even if it's on a 2x4" base, I'd recommend that you raise it up on pavers, a cement foundation under the base only, cinder blocks or heavier wood if that is your preference. This will give you the clearance needed to do the deep litter in the run itself, allowing for several inches of different size/types of materials to be used for deep litter.

Depending on the size of the inside of the coop area (again, mainly the depth), you may not be able to do any real DLM in the coop portion itself. Just doing the "deep bedding" as most of these type coops aren't large enough to allow for DLM. Fairly certain DLM isn't possible on a poop tray. It isn't really designed to work that way. "Bedding" on the poop tray is used as a convenience to make cleaning it off easier (no or little poop stuck to the tray itself) - so that you can scoop or scrape the manure off of it. It's my understanding that some type of pelletized material works best or sand for the bedding in the poop trays. But understand, I've never dealt w/ one of these type coops with chickens - just the rabbit ones. I'm going off of what I've observed read from other posts and other folks in our area that use these types of small, "cheapish" feed store coops.

 

[ackie]

I dont wanna make my own thread but I didnt read back (so many pages!) so I apologize if this has been covered.

Thoughts on cardboard as deep litter bedding? I'm on a kick for trying to reduce our garbage output and we buy a ridiculous amount of stuff on amazon. I can remove tape and labels.

 

[jvls1942]

I suppose it would work for deep litter.
It will get soggy and disintegrate
I use cardboard for mulching between plants such as rhubarb and grapes or anything like that. between rows in the garden.. worms just love the stuff..
jiminwisc.....