Is Making my own Pine Chips Safe?

[jazzpurr]

Hello Group,

Now that my chickens are laying regularly and I am seeing
money accumulate from sales I wanted to cut
back on expenses by making my own pine chips for litter.

I chipped the equivalent of 2 bales yesterday and put it in the
Coop. The hens seemed to love it, lots of digging and moving it around.

But this morning my wife noticed how strong a smell of pine there
is. It actually affected her sinuses and she is worried about
the chickens.

Can too heavy a pine smell affect them?
Should the chips be dried?
If so...how long?

TIA

 

[Poulets De Cajun]

the heavy smell of pine is from the pine sap... store bought pine shavings are kiln dried to remove that sap and other impurities.

I wouldn't add fresh pine shavings, number one because as they roll around they will become sticky to which dust and dirt will stick. And number two, because the oils and such from the pine could cause resperatory problems.

 

[Chicabee19]

We did this and I got really sick from the mold that can grow on fresh chips. The great thing about purchased bedding is that it has been dried (often kiln dried).