NEED HELP! Bedding suggestions for this type of coop

[browndedra0816]

Help! I’m about to be moving into my forever home, I have 20 chickens I’ll be transporting to their new coop at my new house about 2 hours away.

This is a new coop & I’ve always used the ‘deep litter method’ with wood chips because my current coop has a sandy bottom & it is most effective for me.

I’m trying to see what the best & easiest method for bedding I can use in this new coop, in the pictures one of them shows a door that is used for clearing out bedding to add new, I want something not as dusty or as messy as wood chips. Any suggestions are welcome!

Also, I’m curious to know how everyone transports an entire flock, 2 hours away..
my thoughts are to use wire dog crates & move them in the evening time.

They will be free ranging once we move to new property, but I’m thinking 4/5 days locked in the coop to establish it as their new home.

All helpful comments or answers are very much appreciated!!

 

[OnlySympathy]

Help! I’m about to be moving into my forever home, I have 20 chickens I’ll be transporting to their new coop at my new house about 2 hours away.

This is a new coop & I’ve always used the ‘deep litter method’ with wood chips because my current coop has a sandy bottom & it is most effective for me.

I’m trying to see what the best & easiest method for bedding I can use in this new coop, in the pictures one of them shows a door that is used for clearing out bedding to add new, I want something not as dusty or as messy as wood chips. Any suggestions are welcome!

Also, I’m curious to know how everyone transports an entire flock, 2 hours away..
my thoughts are to use wire dog crates & move them in the evening time.

They will be free ranging once we move to new property, but I’m thinking 4/5 days locked in the coop to establish it as their new home.

All helpful comments or answers are very much appreciated!!

I would use either use pine pellets for horses or wood shavings, I know you said you didn’t like them but it works well and is cheap so I would still consider them with a larger coop like this. Either would work fine. I see very very very little ventilation though. That coop should have at minimum 20 square feet of ventilation open 24/7/365. The roosting bars also look way too close together and those ladder type roosts don’t work well in most cases.

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I don’t have bedding advice but I have traveled pretty extensively with chickens, often for 8 hours or more. Dog kennels are good and there is nothing wrong with doing it during the day. I would put old towels on the bottom of the kennels to keep them from sliding too much and keep cleanup as easy as possible (i.e. throw the towels out when you’re done). I also wouldn’t try to travel with water. It’s always a mess. Just give them some wet feed that is a little like a grits consistency. Not too much, just enough for a snack with a bit of hydration. They likely won’t eat but it’s good just in case it takes longer than you expect for your own peace of mind.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'd still use wood chips but in my case it's because it's the most cost efficient bedding (aka free). You don't mention how you plan on managing litter in the coop though, so hard to make more specific suggestions. Like hemp is a nice option especially if you want something to sift poop out of but it's probably the most expensive bedding choice as well.

x2 on the roosts as mentioned above. The top roosts are unusable because they're so close to the wall, and then every other board probably needs to come out or else birds will be pooping on each other.

 

[browndedra0816]

I would use either use pine pellets for horses or wood shavings, I know you said you didn’t like them but it works well and is cheap so I would still consider them with a larger coop like this. Either would work fine. I see very very very little ventilation though. That coop should have at minimum 20 square feet of ventilation open 24/7/365. The roosting bars also look way too close together and those ladder type roosts don’t work well in most cases.

We had to buy this prefab in a hurry! I’m so glad you said something. How would I go about adding some ventilation in here?? Just add some vents on either side up top? Or would putting hardware cloth over the windows for protection & opening them?

 

[Folly's place]

Transporting them in dog crates with old towels works very well, they will be fine for a couple of hours. Take dishes and a bag of feed along, for emergency delays, but maybe a bit of scratch on the towels while traveling. And don't let them overheat in there! If you have to stop in hot weather, make sure they aren't in a closed vehicle.
Yes, much more ventilation needed in that coop! Well secured hardware cloth where the windows are located, also open the upper ends of the walls and cover with hardware cloth. You don't show the exterior, best if there are good roof overhangs to protect openings from rain and snow in windy weather.
Consider 'awnings' of some sort, could be wood or window panes on hinges over window openings, to protect those openings from snow and rain. Like storm shutters in Florida?!
A large window opening with hardware cloth in the door, also good.
And change those roosts, reuse some of that lumber, and make them go across the long side of the coop, maybe two lengthwise, using 2" to 3" saplings, bark on. Chickens were jungle animals, roosting on tree branches, not dimensional lumber! If you set them up to be movable, cleaning is easier too.
Is there siding outside over that particle board? Hope so!
Our insurance company, and they were right, had our electrician install exterior grade wiring and outlets at our coop, not that interior stuff. This building has unsafe electrical wire, and outlet, and switch. Get it upgraded and inspected!!!
Mary

 

[paintedChix]

All points i was thinking of have been addressed.

But consider shredded paper for bedding. The materials themselves are usually free. Shredded paper consists of bills & junk mail w/ plastic windows removed, used copier paper slated for garbage, older worksheets & coloring sheets from children's projects, cardboard cartons, cardboard boxes, phone books, magazines & catalogs. Most printed items these days are made w/ soy based inks, so should be okay.

Honestly, paper products are no dustier than other products because most of the dust & mess is from the chickens themselves. That dust is dander, feathers, feces broken down to dust, more minutely shredded material from the chickens scratching & the chicken manure itself before breaking down.

In @gtaus article, he goes over how to get a shredder at much lower $$ & maybe you could find one at no cost.

Boy was it eye opening to look at new shredders! We'd had our old one for more than 12 years & it was a store brand. I missed a big copper/brass staple when I broke down a heavy duty box. It appears to have shifted the teeth. I can still use it, but.... noisy, doesn't shred as well, gets hot fast. I hit thrift stores & couldn't find a replacement. Hubs ordered one & I almost had a heart attack, but it works great. I do A LOT of shredding. I use shred in compost, garden beds for mulch (mixed w/ straw & leaves - otherwise mats down), chick brooders, stretch straw leaves & pine flakes in nest boxes, runs & coops.

Post in thread 'Using Shredded Paper for Coop Litter - As Good As Wood Chips?'

Apr 26, 2025

We use the deep litter method. Our level is currently about 5 inches above ground level.

I think you would call my chicken run composting system a deep litter method for the chicken run. I just dump all my leaves, grass clippings, weeds pulled from the garden, wood chips, and just about anything else organic into the chicken run. All my old coop dry deep bedding litter gets dumped into the chicken run for composting. The chicken run litter is full of life. My chickens are digging in that compost litter all day finding juicy worms and tasty bugs to eat. They are very happy...

• gtaus

• 

 

[paintedChix]

I didn't realize my link was from so deep into the thread.

Here is link to 1st page.

Thread 'Using Shredded Paper for Coop Litter - As Good As Wood Chips?' https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...or-coop-litter-as-good-as-wood-chips.1503415/

 

[gtaus]

I’m trying to see what the best & easiest method for bedding I can use in this new coop, in the pictures one of them shows a door that is used for clearing out bedding to add new, I want something not as dusty or as messy as wood chips. Any suggestions are welcome!

I see that you are a relatively new member with few posts. So, I hope to hear more from you as you get settled into your forever home. I think you have a great start on a fantastic chicken coop, just maybe a few changes for improvements as others have already suggested. No harm in considering the good advice from others. I find they are usually right.

I really liked that clean out panel. I wish I had built one of those into my chicken coop. In my case, I would have made the clean out panel to dump the chicken coop litter into the chicken run. But I never had laying hens before and had no idea of the value of using old coop litter as compost litter.

You already got some good comments to consider, but let me request that you add your geographic location to your member icon. I live in northern Minnesota, and what works for me might be different than someone living in southern California, for example. If you provide your geographic location, you will most probably get even better responses.

Anyways, I'll add a few comments to previous posts...

The roosting bars also look way too close together and those ladder type roosts don’t work well in most cases.

Yep, I thought of that too. From the picture, I can imagine the top chickens pooing the chickens on the next roost below. You want to make sure the spacing is adequate so that does not happen.

I don't think that top roost will get used, but if it does, it looks too close to the wall. You would end up with a very soiled wall board in no time. I'd certainly remove that top roost.

Depending on where you live, you might want to consider laying those 2X4 roosts flat. I live in a very cold winter climate, and having the 2X4's laid flat allows the chickens to tuck their feet into their body at night to keep warm and rest easy. That's why I mentioned to consider adding your geographic location to your icon. In the north country, I think laying those 2X4's flat is the best option.

I'd still use wood chips but in my case it's because it's the most cost efficient bedding (aka free).

I advocate for using any and all free material you can get. My favorite liter for the past few years is using shredded paper and cardboard. But I am not afraid to toss in and mix up some wood chips, dried grass, leaves, shavings, etc... Anything organic I can get for free and later compost works best for me.

Do you have lots of organics available to you on your new forever home location? Use what you have and then compost it and use it again!

x2 on the roosts as mentioned above. The top roosts are unusable because they're so close to the wall, and then every other board probably needs to come out or else birds will be pooping on each other.

Yeah, watch out for that.

We had to buy this prefab in a hurry! I’m so glad you said something. How would I go about adding some ventilation in here?? Just add some vents on either side up top? Or would putting hardware cloth over the windows for protection & opening them?

It looks like you have lots of windows. Can you just tack on some screen outside and leave some windows open? I only have two windows on my chicken coop, but they are on opposite sides, so I get good cross ventilation. Also, I have vents up in the roofline in the front and back. It's proven to be enough ventilation for me where I live. But I have more concerns about cold weather ventilation than ventilation concerns from heat.

But consider shredded paper for bedding. The materials themselves are usually free.

As mentioned, I shred almost all our paper products at home and toss them into the chicken coop as litter. The shredded paper itself is almost dust free, especially compared to the wood chips, leaves, dried grass, etc... that I have used in the past. Also, I compost all my old coop litter and the paper shreds compost faster than the other options.

Having said that, I have no problem tossing in other organics into the coop for litter as well. If it's free, I don't mind using it if I need more coop litter. BTW, the chickens don't care what I use for coop litter. I just try to keep it clean and fresh by cleaning it out twice a year. So far, that has worked for me, and I have never had to pay for coop litter in 5+ years of having a backyard flock.

As I get older, I appreciate the relative light weight of the paper shreds compared to wood chips, for example. I know you have a clean out panel, so it might not be a big deal for you, but I put my used litter into muck buckets and carry them out to my chicken run. The woodchips are much heavier than the paper shreds. I can carry a full muck bucket of paper sheds easily, but half a muck bucket full of wood chips is about all I care to lift. Again, I wish I had thought of a clean out panel like I see in one of your pictures. Very nice! Just shovel or broom out the old litter and put in the new stuff.

Will be looking forward to seeing more pictures when you get your chickens in the coop. It looks like you have a really nice setup started. Make it your own and let us know what works for you and your flock. Best wishes.