Deicing Options

[spies04]

We have had a tremendous amount of ice and snow this year. While my chickens are kept inside of their coop during this weather, I need to find something to get the ice down. Is there any options for something to use similar to salt that is safe for my flock that I can use in their pen. thanks!

 

[BarnyardChaos]

I don't know of any product, but what I do is to shovel the snow in the feed and watering areas of their run. It doesn't have to be perfect, just thin it down. The base of the run is a pretty good layer of decomposing wood chips, straw and hay mixed with dirt and sand - so it's fairly porous and has good drainage, so ice buildup doesn't happen. Sunlight and the chickens' scratching activities do the rest. It's only snow-covered where I haven't shoveled.

 

[K0k0shka]

What I do is I collect bagged leaves in the fall (LOTS of them), then after a snowstorm I shovel what I can, and then spread dry leaves on the ground for the chickens to walk on. Mine refuse to set foot on snow, but they LOVE the dry leaves, even if there's some snow underneath. They entertain themselves by scratching around and churning the ground until everything is mixed in - leaves, run litter and some snow - and it's no big deal for them to step on anymore. I also have very loose run litter that drains well and doesn't freeze solid. It's a mix of wood chips and various yard waste collected throughout the year, depending on the season - raked stuff from the yard's spring cleanup, grass clippings from the summer's lawn mowings, dry leaves from the fall, etc. It doesn't get muddy or stay wet, which means that it doesn't freeze solid in winter either. So no ice. I'm in Boston and we can get brutal snowstorms and hard freezes sometimes, but I haven't had an ice problem in the run so far. Just lots of snow to shovel, but once I get down to the run litter, and throw fresh leaves on top, we're good.

 

[aart]

I sprinkle some sand using a large shaker on icy areas.
Sometimes spread a thin layer of pine shavings.
I also use coarse wood chippings in run and shovel most the snow off of parts of the run.
Feed and water(heated) always stay in the coop here.