How much bedding do you need?

[luckycluk]

That is a great idea… mixing in the newspaper. In fact, in my line of work, I need to shred a lot of paper, for the financial protection of our clients. I’m sure they would not mind our chickens pooping on the shreds, for extra, extra protection!
Great idea! Thanks!

That is what I do is use pine shavings and I use shredded paper that I shred. At our newspaper they give away the end rolled with aboute 3 inches on each roll that is newspaper without any ink. I sit n shred paper while I watch tv. . I have only been using boy 3 inches of bedding but I’m going to make it deeper.

 

[luckycluk]

Is it safe to use the natural cat litters? Like the ones made out of paper or other natural things.

 

[CrystalAnon]

Is it safe to use the natural cat litters? Like the ones made out of paper or other natural things.

I would assume so. Like the stuff I got my cat recently… it’s just pine shavings, in pellet form. I would hope they wouldn’t confuse it with pelleted feed, but I won’t be using that type of feed, so they prob wouldn’t have that association.

 

[PopoMyers]

We started out buying the pine flakes from TSC every week.

We switched to straw once we found a local supplier and now buy two bales every two months.

One bag of pine flakes from TSC was $6. The bales of straw are $6. You do the math.

Prices where you are, are way lower than here, and that's also at TSC. The shavings I bought last, for an 8 cu. ft. was $11, the smaller 6 cf was $8. Straw bales are way higher. Haven't bought any this year, yet.

 

[BDutch]

We’re in Central Florida. I wonder if the deep litter method would be okay for warm weather too.
We’ve had a pretty cool winter, so I’ll def keep it in mind next year, before we have cold fronts.

You don’t need bedding on the coop floor for the cold if it doesn’t get cold.

I don’t use bedding on the coop floor. Only in the nestboxes and under the roosts.
In the coop area I have a sand floor.
My chickens can go to the run asa the sun is up (automatic door). They rarely poop on the coop floor. The run is covered with netting and I keep the soil healthy and alive. I put lots autumn leaves in the run every autumn to compensate the nitrates. Bugs , beetles , flies , microbes and rainworms eat the poop.

If it’s is freezing cold for a longer period (like 2 years ago) I put straw on the coop floor.

 

[PopoMyers]

I put 2 bales of cedar in the fabricated steel shed.Rain proof and keeps em warm.works great for my 7 girls who are now 5 years old. I have 2 dog house and I have cedar in there where they lay their eggs.They roost on top of it.

Please don't use cedar. It is toxic to chickens. Pine or other woods are safe.

 

[NNYchick]

The best thing I ever did in my coop was add poop boards under the roost. I add a layer of PDZ and then I can scoop it like a cat box, I use 3 25 bags of sweet stall (pdz) a year. It Has drastically reduced the time I spend cleaning coop about 10 minutes a week and amount of shavings I go through I probably use 4 TSC large flake bales a year before the poop boards it was 2 a month, my coop is 24’ x 8’. My coop never smells because the poop is dried and pdz absorbs the ammonia.

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Go to Carolina Coop and watch their videos. I use their deep litter method and just removed the top layer and put in new hemp at 20 months.

same. i started with 6 inches of hemp bedding in a 4x8, 32sq.ft henhouse for 6 hens. The hemp remains perfect and since 06/05/21, the original hemp is still there! and I love how it slides through the kitty litter scooper i modified.

I started with my first 4 chicks in June 2022. I started with Pine flakes even though they seemed a bit large, I used them several weeks and I noticed a bad smell. Meanwhile I had read about hemp and decided to change. I havent used anything since. I do not mix paper with it. I have a small coop which is located inside my “fort Knox” run so I can leave their small chicken door open all the time. My hemp is about 4 + inches thick. Because my hens only sleep there now they do not keep it stirred much. So everyday or at least every 3 days max, I go in coop with a cat litter scooper and scoop poop off the top layer so that I can shift the hemp through the scoop and back into coop. I’m just left with poop which I put in a bucket. I then compost it. next I stir the hemp. Some chickens may do that part for you, mine don’t. Small pieces remain but it decays which is the purpose of deep litter. By scooping it, it keeps it clean and fresher. I’ve added a little hemp once first of Nov. and will prob add a little again in Feb ( depends on how much I scoop with the poo). You can add a stick handle to the kitty litter scooper if needed.
I have no smell.

I used leaves in my run until we ran out and then I cleaned that out and put some hemp in my run and they love it. They like to scatter it in run for me and they also lay in the deepest area when they rest in the afternoon. I will clean the run out in Spring and add new hemp with maybe some sand. Good luck! Have fun. I’m still waiting for my first eggs!

I do the Exact same thing with the hemp bedding. 6" in a 4x8 space. Located in CT, 5 hens, I am amazed how great a product it is. I still have the original hemp from 06/2021! I have added more and scoop a bunch too. so, i added hemp last winter (way too much, being a noob, thinking all that hemp was going to keep them warmer) and again this winter. This spring i may scoop it all out onto a tarp and pick out the poop the scooper didnt get and reuse. no smells or moisture EVER! its great. I grow peppermint and lavender and dry them in the fall time so i can add those to the bedding from time to time which I rarely feel i have to do. I guess i do it more for bug control(?)) This fall I saved piles of leaves and got lucky they remained dry left out in the open. I added them in the covered run in October and made a sort of, giant nest , lol. i rake every other day, fluffing their 'nest' if you will, lol. Oh, I'm carrying on and on....what was this topic we're discussing again? lol. Hemp Bedding for the win! For my lil' 5 hen setup anyway......

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

The best thing I ever did in my coop was add poop boards under the roost. I add a layer of PDZ and then I can scoop it like a cat box, I use 3 25 bags of sweet stall (pdz) a year. It Has drastically reduced the time I spend cleaning coop about 10 minutes a week and amount of shavings I go through I probably use 4 TSC large flake bales a year before the poop boards it was 2 a month, my coop is 24’ x 8’. My coop never smells because the poop is dried and pdz absorbs the ammonia.
View attachment 3392868

This has got to be the best setup. Man, my cat litter scooper would wiz right through there! Really Nice digs ya got there NNYchick!

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

My coop is 12x16 with a loft so it's BIG! I have an L-shaped roost so they only go on that at night. I put on my headlamp, mask, and disposable gloves and pick up the poop off the top of the bedding every morning. Takes 10 minutes tops. The ladies go in the coop just for egg laying and leave no poop during the day in there. I have about 8-10 inches of the pine shaving bedding. Makes it very cushy for them when they fly off the roost. No smell whatsoever in my coop/runs. I use a dog pooper scooper a couple times a day for the outdoor runs. I love my ladies...they're so spoiled. Lol!

I love to read it! I adore my chickens so much as well. Cant imagine life without em! Plus, they just started laying eggs again so they are like royalty to us, lol