New chicken mom

[Kmarts]

I want to do the deep litter method. I have one coop with wood bottom and one with a metal bottom. I understand what to do with my two coops. What do I need to do in my run? It has sand. Do I just scoop it out weekly or do I need to add some sort of composting materials?

 

[rosemarythyme]

You want deep litter in the coops? And not the run?

Deep litter doesn't really work without ground contact and moisture, so I think you have things switched around. Deep litter the run and sand (if you're willing to scoop more often) in the coops.

 

[Mrs. K]

I have a wooden floor in my coop. And I have natural sand in the run. It would be helpful, to indicate an area as to where you are, as that influences advice. We all tend to give advice from the viewpoint of our own coop and climate, but at least we can be aware if it is different.

So I am in a dryish climate, we get periods of deep snow, and bitter cold, and wide fluctuations of temperature. I have old waste hay available for free as we are ranchers.

I put a pretty deep layer of hay on the floor of the coop. Once a week, I throw scratch in there, and the girls will scratch and fluff the bedding, keeping manure clumps tore apart, keeping the bedding drier. I tend to do a complete pull out about every 3 months, give or take.

I also add a great deal of old hay to the run. In the fall I put it in there pretty deeply with the theory that the girls will eat the weed seed and I can use it as mulch in the garden in the spring. I still get a lot of weeds. But if I know a snow storm is coming, I will rake that hay into mini haystacks. Then after the snow, with a pitchfork I will flip that hay on top of the snow, and my girls will come right out. It keeps their feet, and any eggs cleaner too.

So not really the deep litter method, but it works for me.

Mrs K