Floor ideas for small spaces

[FunintheRun]

Hello, I'm brand new to this site and to raising ducks! I have 3 ducklings about 5/6 weeks old and have been learning and making adjustments as I go. I need some advice on their co-op and pen!

I have a small 2' x 3' coop next to a 4' x 8' wire pen/cage. They sleep in the coop, eat and drink in the pen, and forage/roam/swim in the yard almost the entire day. They're locked up in the pen for breakfast and about a half hour before bedtime and anytime I leave the house.

I use pine shavings in the coop and had the pen just sitting on grass until they mucked up the small space enough that I started a bit of shavings in their pen as well. I have read a littke about the deep litter method, but I'm either doing it wrong, or it's maybe not for me. I imagine that my ducks might enjoy a much larger coop and pen, but I figured we could get away with smaller with only 3 ducks and a decent sized yard.

Here are my questions:
1. Is there a less stinky option for the coop bedding?
2. With turning and fresh bedding layers daily, how often should I change bedding in such a small coop?
3. Since the ducks roam most of the day, could I build a platform under the pen I could just hose off instead of grass/bedding?

I'm LOVING these ducks, but I also have a bunch of kids and other critters to look after so I'm looking for simpler, less smelly, and easier to clean.

To anyone who read this far...THANK YOU!

 

[Floof]

Deep litter didn't work for me and ducks either. I've settled on just rotating their penned area. I toyed with the idea of keeping their night time quarters elevated with a wire floor but haven't gotten around to building and testing anything yet.

 

[LT71689]

So, your space is pretty small. A common recommendation is 4sqft PER bird for their coop and bigger for their pen, even if they get free yard time.

When you've got a bigger area, keeping their litter clean becomes easier because theyve got more space to spread out and not soak it so badly, you can actually scoop out soiled litter instead of changing the whole thing out which helps keep the smell down and make it last longer, and a larger box is easier for you to move around in as well. From what I've read, deep litter is really quite deep, like you'll end up with a foot or so of discarded bedding by the time its ready for a restart. You'd likely need a taller coop for that to work properly. It seems to be something you need to settle on before making any plans or purchases because it requires a specific set up that a lot of pre-built stuff isnt suited to. The lack of space as it gets deeper and potential for poor ventilation can make an undesirable result at best, dangerous at worst (thanks to mold and ammonia build up)

You could pave/deck over their pen floor but you risk foot issues due to the hard surface (even if they spend most of their day in the yard) You could collect leaves and grass cuttings to scatter in the pen as a cheap and easy ground saver, but if the pen doesnt move around it will likely eventually become just a dirt patch - they'll wind up packing the dirt down and grass just wont get a chance to grow back with the traffic and them digging around in it.

 

[416bigbore]

 

[Floof]

Oops just reread your response. Grass clippings work in the pen? I accept that the ground won't be pretty in a stationary pen. Do the grass clippings just help to keep it dry-ish?

I wouldn't recomend green grass clippings unless you do a VERY thin sprinkling. When I tried to put about an inch of grass clippings down in their pen in the spring it all got moldy and very heavy and hard to rake back out. Maybe if you dry them on a tarp in the sun first it would work better but I didn't try it.

 

[HollowOfWisps]

I use pine pellets in my coop and then have a metal cat litter scoop that I spot clean with once a day. There is no smell and it's always clean.

 

[TomCahalan]

Why have a separate coop? My coop is an octogon 7 feet across, 8 feet tall, and with a roof on top. All of the walls and door are hardware cloth. The whole thing is just a big cage. By combining your pen and coop into one big cage you effectively give your birds more space. By not having walls, you massively increase airflow and thus evaporation of water and ammonia.

You say that you live somewhere very cold, but I have seen people from subtropical areas say that. Just yesterday someone from the chilly (but not cold) part of Australia referred to his climate as very cold. Please put your location in your profile so that we can help you better. I live in Ohio and an enclosed coop is not required for my climate.

 

[LT71689]

Oops just reread your response. Grass clippings work in the pen? I accept that the ground won't be pretty in a stationary pen. Do the grass clippings just help to keep it dry-ish?

Once you get down to bare dirt and you know you cant try to re-grow the grass, you can toss grass or leaves in as a layer that you just scoop out and discard when they get mucky (or leave and let compost under a new layer in the same deep litter sense)

But as another poster indicated, it doesnt work for everybody. I think these things depend a lot on your climate and your pen positioning (are you living in washington where its constantly raining and your pen is never getting enough sunlight to dry and air out vs you're living in arizona where its hot and dry and airy all day every day) It could be a trial and error situation for sure.

I think for a lot of folks, they just accept the inevitability of the mud patch. Luckily duck poo is pretty loose and easy to spray away/mix into the dirt, but again giving them a bigger pen also means its more spread out and you've got less of a covering of poo to deal with as it washes away in the rain on its own

 

[LT71689]

Thank you for the reply. You're confirming what I knew all along deep inside. My ducks need more space. I wish I had done more research before getting them! I asked my husband to help me build something. He seemed reluctant (he though the ducks would be a little less maintenance) but he's willing to help.

So let's say a 4 sq. ft. per duck coop, and a bigger (walk in!) pen/run, can happen. Deep litter method would be more attainable in the coop, and what do you recommend for the pen?

Could I just spray off/down the poop? I've heard just about every flooring possible is bad for their feet or a lot of work or money or all of the above.

Thank you again!

The good news is ducks arent picky or need anything fancy. A properly ventilated plain box that shelters them from the wind and rain and predators is good enough. They dont roost, they dont need nesting boxes. Just a boring roof, floor, and four walls makes them happy, its a pretty easy build. Or if you want to be able to get in the coop too, some people just use sheds they cut some vents into.

Is there something in particular that hooked you on deep litter? I know some people swear by it while many others have tried and had trouble with it/didnt like it - just wondering what sold you on it.

 

[LT71689]

They would absolutely need a wind and rain/snow shelter. Merely surviving the winter isnt the same thing as actually being comfortable.