Im So TIRED!

[Iheartchicks<3:)]

I cleaned the coop today.. almost 3 wheelbarrows full of dirty shavings! I thought it was cleaner than it was

SO much dirty shavings.. i dont get it. It looks dry on top but underneath they are soaked!!! So it took me an hour of heavy labor and lots of stink eye looks from my rooster, and loud BOK BOK BOK's from my Shelly! But they seemed happy for it not to be so smelly.. i did even realize how bad it was! But now i just like a light layer of shavings.. maybe a half of an inch.. and an inch under the roosts! I also showed Shelly the waterer (they couldnt find it) and she drank a buch but rooster stayed in a puffy hissing heap on his roost! I gave then treats of cracked corn scratch from my hand (OWWWW!!!) and they enjoyed that.. I also cleaned out there poopy feeder and filled the treat pan! And opened up the windows and removed curtains for total ventilation.. Hopefully it will stay fresher now!! Any tips on how to keep it cleaner?

 

[GarlicEater]

There's stuff for "sweetening" horse stalls, maybe that?

What kind of waterers are you using? Any kind of open water seems to = poopy water and water just plain getting around.

"wet" foods will make things a bit gunky too it seems.

 

[pharmchickrnmom]

Sounds like you need more ventilation to keep it dryer in there. I am about to do my own clean out. Do you turn over the litter to keep it dry?? I use the deep litter method and kept it turned over all winter to keep it dry as well as adjusting my ventilation for air flow. Sounds like you also need to raise their feeder and waterer higher to keep them from pooping and kicking litter into both. I have a pvc feeder hung on my wall and for the winter I put in a concrete block with a cookie tin water heater and the waterer on top of that. I have little to no problems with stuff getting into either one. When the weather is warmer, I will put the hanging waterer back into the coop. Less mess, easy access. I also use food grade de in the coop to help keep it dry. I hope this helps.

 

[elmo]

I use poop trays under the roost and I clean these out daily. I tidy up in the coop for a few minutes every day because I'd rather do a little work every day, than face a big clean out once or twice a year. It's the same approach I take to housework indoors.

 

[annie3001]

I am with elmo, I clean the coop a bit each day, scooping out major big piles of poop, so when i do a one big clean a few times a year.
I just did the same thing and cleaned out about 2 garbage cans of worth of winter shavings/poops etc. Alot of work I know.

But when its all done, its so clean smelling, rewarding because, its done.

Now its time for spring!

 

[Newbie in Screamer Al]

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[kuntrygirl]

I'm with you. I have several coops and a couple of open air raised coops and I place hay on the wire floor to catch the poop. When I clean the coop, I have to pick up all of the hay and replace it with new hay. It's an all day job for me.

 

[rainierlass]

I use Stall-Dri in mine - it is food grade DE and clay mix - weekly I add a small amount of shavings - sprinkle the Stall Dri ~ do not buy the one with deoderizer in it ~ - I also have a poop-board under the roosts that gets cleaned off weekly- - very little poo in the shavings and stays really dry - my feeder and waterer are in the run.

 

[txliss]

Sweet pdz is the horse stall stuff. Frankly, shavings don't do well for me either - BUT bagged grass/leaves from the yard trimmings, and/or straw do GREAT. I do add a sprinkle of pdz occasionally, but I only scoop out the coop/run about 3xs a year. That being said, I must admit I only have 3 to 7 birds at a time... I'm sure if I had a bunch, I'd be doing a bunch more scooping, as well... LOL

 

[carrlr]

I used to have that problem. Now I used the Deep Litter Method with DE (diatomaceous earth) and things stay nice and dry for months.