Newbie Cleaning Confusion

[crittergarden]

I'm new and I haven't even built a coop yet. Been trying to read up before I start.

I'm uncertain about pests. I read that to keep mites, lice, fleas, mice, and rats at bay, you need to keep the coop clean.

And I read that deep litter requires cleanout only 2-4 times a year.

Which way do I go?
Anybody got pest troubles from deep litter???

I am a gardener, so I'm very interested in the composting. I feel deep litter would be best, but I do NOT want to end up with mites, lice, fleas, mice, and rats!

 

[chicklover16]

I don't suggest the deep litter method because it isn't healthy for your hens feet, letting them walk around in all that poop can give them foot infections and all sorts of other problems. It also gives ample oppurtunity for bugs/mites to lodge in your coop.

 

[Lothiriel]

I use the deep bedding system and haven't had any problems in my 7 years of using it. No lice, no mites, no mice, no rats, no feet problems. The bedding is excellent, and when I clean the coop I put it all directly on our garden.
You should read this article by one of our members discussing the deep litter method. https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/...e-easiest-way-to-deal-with-chicken-litter-dlm

 

[crittergarden]

Thanks for the link LOthiriel - do you use shavings or straw?

Surely you put the poop on your garden OFF season, right?

Chicklover, I hear you,too. Weighing my options....

 

[bj taylor]

i'm using the deep litter method. i'm new. chicks (now 7 wks) have been on it for 4 wks. i haven't had any problem so far. i don't let the poop build up under their feet. i sprinkle litter over existing bedding about once a wk. it's dry. no odor.

 

[Lothiriel]

Thanks for the link LOthiriel - do you use shavings or straw?

Surely you put the poop on your garden OFF season, right?

Chicklover, I hear you,too. Weighing my options....

I use straw. And yes, the poop goes on the garden off season!

 

[snoggle]

I don't suggest the deep litter method because it isn't healthy for your hens feet, letting them walk around in all that poop can give them foot infections and all sorts of other problems. It also gives ample oppurtunity for bugs/mites to lodge in your coop.

If you're doing it correctly, there isn't a lot of fresh poop sitting around for them to step in. You add bedding as needed and the chickens mix it around getting the poop down into the deep litter so that it composts. And as far as their health, studies have actually been done showing that chickens kept with the deep litter method are actually healthier.

 

[Jessica_1285]

I will be trying the DLM for my new coop. I usually clean out once a week and it seems like such a waste of
litter!

 

[larsonll]

In my small hen house, I use Equine Pine pellets from Tractor Supply. They are compacted pine pellets. I clean out my hen house once a month and compost it three months before giving it to the garden. No smell. I use deep wheat straw in the nest boxes since it seems to keep the chickens from pooping in it rather than thinly laid wheat straw. I had a long time backyard chicken friend recommend the Equine Pine to me, and I love it. I used pine shavings and tried straw before, but I had to clean out the hen house about once a week with those. I judge by how the hen house smells, and it smelled strongly after a week of those. A bag of Equine Pine costs about $5-6 to cover the floor about 2-3 inches in my 3 x 5 foot hen house. So $5-6 a month for cost.

My girls are about 7 months old now with this method. We have lost no hens. They are all laying well. What I am using is not no technically deep littler but somewhere in between. I do dust with food grade DM with each litter change. No mite or other parasites yet.

 

[crittergarden]

I use "Woody Pet", which is also an equine pellet thing, for my house rabbit's litterbox. But when I put it in the compost pile, I extinguished the composting action. This is why I'm leaning tiward straw or hay in the coop. ANybody had good experience with straw/hay?