Is nothing OK?

[kansasgirlinutah]

Do I absolutely need to have any kind of litter in the coop? I have a linoleum floor there now, so fairly easy to sweep and clean up. What's wrong with "nothing" on the floor?

 

[KDailey]

The only thing I can think of is that the poop would build up faster since it's not "mixing" with the pine shavings and the surface would be slippery.

 

[Hennyhandler]

You have to have something on the floor because they will be spending time in there and will be pooing on the floor. It will get real messy and if it dries it will be a pain trying to scrape all of it out. The litter manages the poo. It keeps it dry which helps with flys and disease from spreading. It really is a lifesaver to have litter in there. You just put it down and they will mix it up for you and if you are going the deep litter method which most people do, you just add more litter to it every so often and once a year you clean it all out.

 

[kansasgirlinutah]

I was at the local farm store and asked them about the deep litter method and they said they had never heard of it. So I told them what it was and they said that only dirty, lazy people would do that and that's where alot of diseases come from. One person there said they use nothing and another person said they use pine shavings, but clean them out every month. I guess I can only try different methods and see which one I like best. I think I'm leaning towards sand at this point.

 

[Hennyhandler]

I don't see how it would be dirtier than not having anything on the floor at all to contain or control the level of poop that would accumulate but everyone has their way of what works for them and what doesn't. It is all a matter of opinion and what works with what you want and need.
It is up to you as to what you prefer but I though I would give you and idea of how the litter method works, at least in my case. I use pine shavings and I pour it all in there and they seem to throw it all around by themselves. I make sure that it is mixed in and nothing gets overly dirty. Add shavings as you go and then when spring comes around I spring clean. Scrub everything out and restart.
I hopes this helps you out a little.

 

[kansasgirlinutah]

Thank you for your replies. I appreciate your sharing you own methods with me. I know many here on BYC have stated that they use the deep litter method with no bad effects. Thanks again!

 

[teach1rusl]

Has nothing to do with deep litter or not for me, but vinyl flooring can be slippery. I don't want my chickens trying to hop down from the roost or next box and injuring a leg by slipping.

 

[ThinkingChickens]

A farm store which caters to large flocks of chickens may not appreciate the value of the deep litter method for a small backyard flock. I personally prefer sand, scooped each day as I have more for my compost pile. Regardless, if I asked a question and was spoken to like you described I probably wouldn't shop there again. Customer service would serve best to have an open dialogue with a customer, ask questions, offer personal insight and guidance and not refer to someone's methods as "dirty" unless they had personal knowledge of the practice. JMO

 

[ll]

Quote:
^ yes this ... and when I first introduced my birds to their coop I put the litter in an upside down U shape, thinking I could walk into the U part without walking on shavings --- nooo

the poop was smeared all over the linoleum where litter wasn't present.
Litter on top of the linoleum = much better & dryer & comfortable for them too.

 

[crazyhen]

I put in linoleum and then on top the wood chips. It stays dry for me and is easy to clean out . Gloria Jean