Help! Chicken run floor rising

[crazyrooster118]

My chicken run began as grass and naturally my chickens ate it down to dirt and mud. I added a layer of pine shavings here and there, then tried a natural mulch/ wood chipping. Here and there I've thrown down straw during really wet weeks or when I've been short other material. I do rake up the floor when I add anything new (with the exception of some very cold weeks when the ground is frozen during winter). But I've noticed the floor level has risen about 4 to 6 inches from where we were last year. I'm Wondering if it's the mulch not breaking down entirely or perhaps the straw. What is YOUR go to product for your chicken run and preferably one that is 1) easy to clean, 2) breaks down or doesn't raise the floor level often. Thanks!

 

[Nupe]

You're doing it right with mulch, wood chips, shavings. You can use straw and grass clippings, pretty much any dry organic materials will help. It will break down and you'll have to remove some if it doesn't wash out with the rain. The good news is that stuff is gold for growing veggies. Dump it in the garden or use it to renew container soil.

 

[fightingbunny]

It sounds like the material has gotten compacted down at the bottom and that is why the "bottom" seems to be rising. Have you considered taking a rake/shovel and loosening the top few inches and removing that? It is probably incredibly rich good soil now