Is a dust bath necessary if you have a deep litter coop?

[gtaus]

They don’t need a dust bath in the coop, certainly not with DE in it. See? I already made that mistake, so now you don’t have to. DE will coat everything in the coop in thin gray dust. Everything. That no doubt includes the lining of your chickens’ respiratory tracts.

This is why I ask questions. I don't want to repeat mistakes of others. I make enough of my own.

 

[gtaus]

Are the wood chips inside your coop?
Does your coop have a dirt floor?
How many birds do you have?

The wood chips are inside my 6X12 coop, which is elevated about 16 inches on an old boat trailer frame, and I have 10 eleven week old chicks.

I use plain potting soil or topsoil, or extra dirt from my yard or garden beds, mixed with a little sand and also some fire pit ash when I have it available.

That is what I'm going to use, but the dust bath will be inside the coop. I expect that for up to almost 5 months of the year the birds will be basically inside the coop instead of outside in the frozen snow. So I want them to use a dust bath inside the coop. That's my thinking, anyway.

 

[gtaus]

Having the dust bath inside, even in shavings will cause dust to whir up, dunno how that works in deep litter, but I'm guessing it's quite dry at the top at least? A sand bath under roof outside would be preferable both to the coop condition and to the hens.

Yes, I think an outside covered dust bath would be a better option, but as I said, I expect my birds to be living in the coop for as much as 5 months a year during our long winters here in northern Minnesota. If the bath is inside the coop, at least I can monitor it. Outside, it might be buried under 4 feet of snow, covered or not.

 

[AquaDuck]

Yes, I think an outside covered dust bath would be a better option, but as I said, I expect my birds to be living in the coop for as much as 5 months a year during our long winters here in northern Minnesota. If the bath is inside the coop, at least I can monitor it. Outside, it might be buried under 4 feet of snow, covered or not.

Living far north, I know what you mean... I have a separate "winter coop" for the chickens and it has an inside sand bath. Even with a roof and two covered sides, the run occasionally gets filled with snow. You can make a sand box with a bottom and put it in the coop during winter. It'll be movable so you can maintain the deep litter, and they'll have free access to grit. Win-win!

 

[DallasLoneStar]

You will easily know if it is being used... they throw dust (sand/soil/whatever) EVERYWHERE!

 

[gtaus]

I have a separate "winter coop" for the chickens...

I considered that option, but instead I built my 6X12 coop on an old boat trailer frame, the idea being that I can hitch it up to the pickup and move it whenever, wherever, I want. At least, that's the idea.

The dust bath I made for the coop is a cement mixing tub filled with sand/dirt/etc.... So it could also be moved outside with a cover. The tub does not have holes for drainage if left outside uncovered.

 

[CindyinSD]

Yes, I think an outside covered dust bath would be a better option, but as I said, I expect my birds to be living in the coop for as much as 5 months a year during our long winters here in northern Minnesota. If the bath is inside the coop, at least I can monitor it. Outside, it might be buried under 4 feet of snow, covered or not.

You should come and join the “Surviving Minnesota” discussion. I’m in SD, but they’re nice to me anyway. Here’s a link: https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/surviving-minnesota.1052702/page-3962#post-21562600

 

[gtaus]

You should come and join the “Surviving Minnesota” discussion.

Thanks. I'll check it out.

 

[BReeder!]

My birds are not free range. They are dust bathing in the wood chips litter inside the coop. So I was thinking I should provide something better for the girls.

Do they get outside at all? They'll create dust baths right in the dirt. You need to look out for them, because the dust baths are like pot holes.
In our case, we try to provide a dust bath still with wood ash and sand. I may add some DE. I just dump it all into the center of an old tire that's laying in their run. The tire does a nice job of containing the dust for a while.

 

[joycorbin]

Actually wood ash is great bug control they love it I have no floor in 2 coops they do dust bathes any place they want

Is this the same ash from a fire pit?