Dust baths, pure dirt?

[OhZark Biddies]

My understanding is that charcoal briquettes have a lot of chemical additives....

No true ozarker would ever use briquettes ... those are for the city folks

I come from an area with a lot of charcoal kilns ... most were closed and consolidated in the 90s due to clean air concerns... but there is still a lot of charcoal production around...so we have a lot of options around here.

Anyway I always use "natural lump" charcoal (along with wood) rather than the briquettes... for the exact reasons you mention, but I do appreciate you mentioning it.

 

[FlyingNunFarm]

I have a restaurant bus tub in the coop for poor weather dust bathing. It’s thick enough they haven’t damaged it too bad and even my heavier birds don’t flip it over.
I have dirt in it. Some sand a little peat moss. They throw shavings in it.
To get dirt I literally dug a hole and filled a bucket. I put it in storage so it wouldn’t get wet and refresh the bus tub as needed. It’s lasted me 2 years. They do dirt bathe in the deep liter and yard as well. But some prefer the indoor tub.

 

[RWise]

I free range and the girls pick their place to dust. Once they have picked the place I add hard wood ash (note hard wood) and powdered sulfur to it.

 

[Aliamelody]

I have a question
Our garden dust always wet
Does it matter if my chickens take wet dust bath?!

 

[cake lady hen lover]

My understanding is that charcoal briquettes have a lot of chemical additives that would not be healthy for chickens. If you are burning wood in your grill, that ash would be acceptable, but I'm also guessing that any ash from a grill would be quite greasy. (might give the chooks a complex if they come out of the dust bath smelling like BBQ chicken!)

To OP: Is your run a walk in style? If so, have you considered converting to deep litter? My birds dust bathe in the DL on all but the wettest days.

My run is an 8' x 10' fortified cube (I've lost a lot of girls to predators), with 2 coops elevated above. The ground is chicken wire covered with sand for drainage. I guess I could put peat and ash (from firepit, no food) piled in a corner, but it wouldn't last long.
What is deep litter? Like in a hamster cage? Seems to me that would stay really wet after a rain.

 

[aart]

The ground is chicken wire covered with sand for drainage.

You might think about installing anti-dig apron and get the chicken wire off the ground so they can dig and bathe.
Good examples of anti-dig apron installation, tho I'd not recommend 1/2" HC (unless you have small rodents like rats)...go with 14ga 1x2 or 1x1, will hold up much longer and is easier to lay flat.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1110498/wire-around-coop#post_17093528
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/new-coop-project.1169916/page-2#post-18481208

What is deep litter? Seems to me that would stay really wet after a rain.

It's mix of dry(brown) plant materials..best thing ever, never have to clean up poops..rain doesn't matter.

 

[cake lady hen lover]

You might think about installing anti-dig apron and get the chicken wire off the ground so they can dig and bathe.
Good examples of anti-dig apron installation, tho I'd not recommend 1/2" HC (unless you have small rodents like rats)...go with 14ga 1x2 or 1x1, will hold up much longer and is easier to lay flat.
http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1110498/wire-around-coop#post_17093528
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/new-coop-project.1169916/page-2#post-18481208



It's mix of dry(brown) plant materials..best thing ever, never have to clean up poops..rain doesn't matter.

So I read somewhere that leaves and mulch don't drain well or dry out very fast, and that is why I put sand in the base of their run. However, there seems to be a layer of matted poop on top of the sand now, which draws fllies. I would love to put a deep layer of leaves, pine needles, grass clippings, or mulch in their run. Are all of these materials ok for them? Does it stay really messy wet? Thanks!

 

[FlyingNunFarm]

I honestly have awful drainage and deep litter still works better for me then anything else. I use pine shavings and shredded paper in the coop so I shovel it into the run. Grass clipping and dried leaves can be added as you have them.
I mix the poopy dry stuff from the coop in a bit but mostly the chickens handle it.

 

[LittleMissCountry]

So I read somewhere that leaves and mulch don't drain well or dry out very fast, and that is why I put sand in the base of their run. However, there seems to be a layer of matted poop on top of the sand now, which draws fllies. I would love to put a deep layer of leaves, pine needles, grass clippings, or mulch in their run. Are all of these materials ok for them? Does it stay really messy wet? Thanks!

I live in an area that gets a lot of rain. I do a semi deep litter. Every week or so I throw dried leaves, pine needles, and grass clippings in the run. They need to be dry when you put them in. The chickens will break it up within 24 hours, so you don't have to worry about it holding moisture. I don't clean poop out of the run...it just gets mixed in, but it doesn't smell. If they dig some deep holes, I will throw some dirt from the yard in there occasionally as well.
If you have wire on the ground, they won't be able to scratch and dig as well, unless you can build it up quite a bit. Mine dig holes that are a good 6 to 8 inches deep.

 

[RWise]

I have a question
Our garden dust always wet
Does it matter if my chickens take wet dust bath?!

That would be a mud bath,,, it does need to be dry to be effective,,,