hay? straw? shavings?

[joejoe2312]

Hi All,
Well it was to ask the question, as I'm new to chickens

I've got my two ladies on hay in their nest box & shavings on the floor of the coop,
any input would be great

 

[Patricia Jane]

Nice looking girls. I use pine shavings for coop and nests. I find it easier to clean and the pine smells fresh and clean but I think it's a matter of personal preference. We all use what works best for us.

. Have fun and enjoy. They are lots of fun and addicting.

 

[joejoe2312]

gee thanks

my guys not that into them ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, tho he does enjoy the eggs,,

 

[MuckyPuppy]

Hi,

I have no clue what you should use as my chickens are still eggs.

but just want to say that both of your chicks are lovely, nice lacing.

Also,

 

[joejoe2312]

thankyou,
hope u get some nice chicks soon

& I hope you post some piccys as soon as

 

[duckinnut]

I use pine on the coop floor,deep litter method(DLM) and in the boxes mostly pine shavings and a little bit of hay.It kind of keeps everything together,often the hen is doing u-turns in the box and kicks out the pine the hay limits some of that and makes a nice little cup forvthem to sit in.

and be weary of the chicken math it tends to get real feathery real quick. You wake up one morning and say "How is it that I have 17 chickens? How did that happen?"

 

[woodmort]

Try this thread https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?pid=6734871#p6734871

 

[NYC feather fam]

A woman at the feed store told me that is was not good to use hay but rather I should use straw. She said the hay is too soft and retains moisture so it would be prone to growing aspergillus and other kinds of mold and stuff.......I figured this would be bad. We use pine shavings year round and then in the winter layer it with straw so that they can kind of nest down in that and keep warm. I've also heard you can pile bails of straw around the coop in the winter to retain warmth.

Has anyone else heard the same thing about hay? I was considering using dried grass from the lawnmower but not sure if I would run into the same moisture problem. Oh, btw, I scattered some peat moss I had lying around in their run this winter just to freshen things up a little bit what with all the extra mud from the melted snow and the LOVED it. They had their dust bath in the middle of winter. I thought they might have been poisoned at first cause they were lying in it completely relaxed and serene. It was pretty cool to watch.

 

[hcppam]

Sand on the floor, SOoooooo easy to keep clean.

 

[hudsonhousechicks]

I use rice hulls for the floor of the coop. It's great makes a great addition to the compost pile when it's time to clean it out. I like it better than pine shavings for that reason. I like to use straw for the nest boxes but I refuse to buy a large bale since I only have two small nest boxes that take such a small amount of the straw. I sometimes relent and buy a small little bit of shavings from a pet store for the boxes. If you can get rice hulls give it a whirl. Good stuff.