I have a dirt run, do I need to add any other materials for in the ground?

[Sammy Sam]

I still need to add a lot of washers to secure all the hardware cloth, but it is all enclosed for them to explore.

There run is dirt/sand from my yard, should I add another material to the run or is the dirt/sand mix good enough for their run? Not sure how I’ll clean it either, maybe raking?

Picture of them under their coop. Today was actually nice enough for them to come outside, their first day. They adjusted to it really well too! I’ll bring them back in my house after I clean their indoor area.

 

[nuthatched]

Woodchips and leaves never fail to please.

 

[aart]

I use coarse wood chippings a couple few inches deep, never have to clean a thing because the chip decompose the poops.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Knowing your climate, materials available, and management plans would all help. The main 2 forms of litter you most commonly see on here are deep litter, which is what is mentioned above with the wood chips and leaves, and sand.

Deep litter works better in wet environments and may need minimal to infrequent clean outs. If you are a gardener this is a great way to get extra compost for the garden, as organic material breaks down into rich compost. Downside is not everyone has room for a pile of wood chips (or worse, can't source them for free), or space for 2 dozen bags of dried leaves.

Sand may be a better choice in dry climates as long as your management plan includes daily or frequent clean outs of poop.

 

[KyCoop]

In the fall I add a thick layer of pellets made into saw dust to help insulate the girls from the cold ground. As I clean and remove the dirty, soiled stuff over time I get back down to cool, bare dirt for the hot summer.

 

[RadEggs]

I just add leaf cover for entertainment, and turn over and replace the dirt once a month.

 

[ForFlocksSake]

Our ground is mostly sand. I don’t put anything in the run area.

 

[Sammy Sam]

We raked a couple of weeks ago, so I don’t have many leaves to add to the exposed run, but I’ll add what I can find. Is there a good brand of wood chips to buy, I love the mixture that aart posted a picture of.

 

[Sammy Sam]

Knowing your climate, materials available, and management plans would all help. The main 2 forms of litter you most commonly see on here are deep litter, which is what is mentioned above with the wood chips and leaves, and sand.

Deep litter works better in wet environments and may need minimal to infrequent clean outs. If you are a gardener this is a great way to get extra compost for the garden, as organic material breaks down into rich compost. Downside is not everyone has room for a pile of wood chips (or worse, can't source them for free), or space for 2 dozen bags of dried leaves.

Sand may be a better choice in dry climates as long as your management plan includes daily or frequent clean outs of poop.

We live in Jacksonville Florida and we can get daily downpours that only last a few minutes and then a lot of time no rain at all. So our climate is hot and humid. As far as cleaning; once in a while would be nice, but I can clean every day which I am doing now(seeing they’re still in my house). Planning on moving them outside this weekend. Materials available would be, leaves, branches and I can also buy(which I’ll need to do until nature can provide). In the fall we get a lot of leaves, but I raked a couple of weeks ago, so I don’t have many left. Our Live Oak trees drop a lot of branches, so investing in a small mulcher could work for us.

Our run will be exposed to the weather and right now the run does not have a roof. I plan on adding a roof soon, but the 3 sides will always be exposed to the weather.

 

[aart]

I love the mixture that aart posted a picture of.

Those came from a tree trimmer.....you can't buy them in bags from the garden center.
Can be hard to get a hold of and you'd need a pretty large spot to store the pile.
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