Fluffy Butt Acres: Stories of our flock

[RoyalChick]

Yes, this!!! I also bag leaves and pine needles! I use them as a supplement to shavings, as neither are very absorbent. However, as you mention, they LOVE scratching through the leaves (dry ones that are bagged for use through the winter for coop & run) and wet/damp ones in the run for the possibility of creepy crawlies.

Personally, my favorite 'mix' for the coop is: 50% shavings (large flakes) 25% dry leaves & 25% pine needles (approx.) The shavings are absorbent, the leaves give loft & are entertainment for the chooks, and pine needles give a great scent (not toxic). Of course, this only works if you have plenty of free leaves & pine needles to rake up and store.

I also put leaves galore in the run when they are available, but mix in shavings as well (and pine needles) I do deep litter in the run and doing just leaves can result in a matted mess that is much more work to try to keep well mixed for proper microbial action to generate some heat & breakdown.

P.S. I bagged 25 large leaf bags of leaves & pine needles, plus 2 large garbage bins in the fall to use throughout the winter. Unfortunately, I use my last bag of leaves last week. So, no more until late spring

Very similar but less scientific. I ran out of space for the bags of dried leaves - am thinking of putting hooks in the rafters of the Chicken Palace so I can store them up there to dry out for winter use.

 

[LaFemmeKatia]

I'm afraid "according to the best of your knowledge" still won't hack it, especially on BYC where opinion rules and facts, if unsuportive of the posters argument, are inconvenient.

Ouch.

 

[RoyalChick]

The leaves get blown away by the fall/early winter winds...unless the chooks tear them up first....i need to get a pine tree going. Spruce needles are just too small for raking....but the cones...mixed into the chips..... I'm going to give this some thought.

White pine is ideal - they have lovely soft needles - I wish I had more of it!

 

[rural mouse]

Ooops. SHRA. I think you literally said everything I responded with!
Tax: Dotty looks like she is about to inhale the entire cup of chopped veggies and shrimp jackets.

View attachment 3012155

You had constructive ideas of how to implement those suggestions. Love the pic too

 

[rural mouse]

Very similar but less scientific. I ran out of space for the bags of dried leaves - am thinking of putting hooks in the rafters of the Chicken Palace so I can store them up there to dry out for winter use.

You may have adventuresome princesses trying to figure out how to get to them....

 

[BY Bob]

So DH is now not loving the idea of building a coop and run from scratch. Two of these might work to get us up and running quickly at the new place. Some modifications would be needed, if course.

Thoughts?
https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/producers-pride-extra-large-sentinel-chicken-coop-mfc-ls#

These seem pretty nice.

Others have said there is no roost photos and I agree with that. I would love to see pictures of the inside. I wonder why there are none.

How would you connect 2 of these? Side by side or end to end?

Understand this has a metal frame so some modifications will be a little harder than it would be with a wood frame. You have to be careful to not damage the strength of the structure by drilling into it too much for example.

The bottom slot for the coop door for the chickens will most assuredly fill with shavings and need to be cleaned out periodically.

Overall these seem like one of the better solutions so far.

 

[RoyalChick]

You may have adventuresome princesses trying to figure out how to get to them....

Perish the thought! But of course you are right, a Roadrunner will fly up there to lay her eggs almost certainly. I need to think of plan B. This year I had 3 bags in the back of my car which is really not the most convenient solution!

 

[rural mouse]

White pine is ideal - they have lovely soft needles - I wish I had more of it!

Lots of white pine in the state, none on my place...what I want is a ponderosa...trunk diameters get measured in feet. I'm going to experiment with my spruce cones and see if I can sprout seedlings. If so, then try the same thing off of ponderosa seeds (if I can find some) otherwise a hike in the woods will net me some white pine seeds

 

[rural mouse]

Perish the thought! But of course you are right, a Roadrunner will fly up there to lay her eggs almost certainly. I need to think of plan B. This year I had 3 bags in the back of my car which is really not the most convenient solution!

What about in the servant quarters?

 

[bgmathteach]

White pine is ideal - they have lovely soft needles - I wish I had more of it!

Did you know Chooks like to nibble on pine needles? When a branch falls in the wind with 'fresh' aka 'green' needles, I put it in the run and they nibble little bits off of it until there are just the nubbins left of the needles. It needs to either be a large enough branch that they can pull/twist bits off, or on smaller 'twigs' use a sturdy clamp to clamp it to something. Great enrichment for them...and Vit. C supplement as well!
(and no, have never had impacted nor slow crop from this. They really do break off little bits.)