never do this.... re:hay in coop

[andalusn]

Hay / straw has never really been a bedding medium for any contained animal as it does not really absorb any liquid and manure just sort of sits on i t unless it gets messy with water or pee (depends on the animal). It's more of a cover up type of thing. You have to use a good pitch fork to really get handle on it.

I will toss a new green flake of grass hay into the under cover run of my penned up chickens as they really enjoy messing it all around, eating the seed heads and just plain digging for whatever they can find. I guess it scratches good. I put fresh hay in my laying boxes once a month. All of the old gets scooped out and fresh laid in all fluffy. Takes me all of 10 mins tops. They spend the next day getting it just so for egg laying. For my hens it's more of an enrichment item than a necessity. I bed wiht a small amount of pine pellets on the hen house floor that I add water to and scoop that out of the hen house weekly. I don't get more than a drop in the bucket full compared to my horses

 

[downhome]

Quote:
little off topic, here in the frigid north known as michigan we are bound by law to provide our outdoor dogs both shelter and that the shelter be lined with staw. so not sure on the insulateing propertys but I do not belive that wood chips in the dog house would save you from the humane society or the court date.

though I dont think it really matters on the insulating propertys as the birds prefer the roost to the floor. except for the two sleeping in the nest boxs right now!

 

[Bear Foot Farm]

we are bound by law to provide our outdoor dogs both shelter and that the shelter be lined with staw

Straw is fine for dogs, since the sleep IN it and not above it on roosts.
They also don't defecate or urinate in their beds as chickens do​

 

[patandchickens]

If you find yourself again in a situation where hay or straw type bedding has gotten all matted down, the way to remove it easily is to get a rake into the far edge, right next to the wall, and ROLL IT UP like a rug, towards you. Ta da

Heave/roll it out the door, whole or in chunks, onto a tarp and drag it off to its final reward, and there ya go.

Pat

 

[Mervin]

Quote:
little off topic, here in the frigid north known as michigan we are bound by law to provide our outdoor dogs both shelter and that the shelter be lined with staw. so not sure on the insulateing propertys but I do not belive that wood chips in the dog house would save you from the humane society or the court date.

though I dont think it really matters on the insulating propertys as the birds prefer the roost to the floor. except for the two sleeping in the nest boxs right now!

Straw, not hay or chips, is probably best for insulation. In principle, it is similar to the difference b/t hair and fur. Human hair is solid and provides little insulation. Animal fur, on the other hand, is hollow and has an air space inside providing far better insulation. It's why many animals are able to sleep on the ground, on top of the snow, without freezing. Straw is hollow much like fur and provides somewhat better insulation. It is not particularly absorbent though and can harbor lice, mites, and other bugs.

 

[fostina1]

use a pitch fork. even if you wait a month to clean it, with it all matted together its really simple to clean with a pitch fork. all i ever have used is hay, i got a pony so i have a regular supply already.

 

[lilredchick]

What kind of flooring do you currently have in your coop? that makes a difference too. During the winter months I use straw, but I try to clean it out atleast once a week. In the summer I use shavings.
Another thing depends on the kind of hay you get. If you use a grass hay, it will be longer and stringy, they usually dont cut grass hay till it is atleast 2' high. If you get a alfalfa hay it will be shorter pieces
if you get it after the first cutting. And your birds may eat some of that cause 2nd, 3rd, 4th cutting tends to be more tender.

If you have a dirt floor in your coop you could cover it with something. Since we dont have alot of money, (like everyone now) we took a old trampoline (the bouncy part) and fastened it to the dirt floor.
It is really easy to clean!! I use a shop broom and sweep it all up. And if you spill water it still soaks into the ground. And whatever bedding you use, you can just sweep it out.

You can see in the above pic, the black at the bottom of the wall, that is the trampoline. Excuse the mess this coop is still a work in process.

Just an idea

 

[RAREROO]

Do any of you use wood chips in small uncovered runs or pens ? I so, does it dry well after it rains and they scratch it all up?

 

[ArizonaNessa]

I do rareroo and it does dry well BUT you have to remember I am in the desert so I would think in a real humid area it would not do so well. It does take a little while to dry out with turning and scratching and such.

 

[Gypsi]

Wow - LOVE the tarp idea for the floor. I can do that - I have scrap pond liner. Didn't plan a double door on the back for cleaning, but now would be the time I could add it.

On bedding, right now they have straw in the "little house". I have a neighbor that trims trees - I get a big pile of misc hardwood mulch for free every couple of years. I'm thinking straw in the nest boxes, hardwood mulch over pond liner in the main house. I have a 1 ft center floor slit that is covered with chicken wire and 1x2's set 1/2 inch apart, but I can lay pond liner over it in winter, to stop drafts, and just leave it open in summer when I'll be out to clean more often?

I do not see having the money to keep the lady birds in fresh pine mulch at pet store prices, and I don't think I would trust hardware store mulch around my birds....

Gypsi