1) can wood chips be used as litter? We have unlimited amount of wood chips, but I have no idea from what kind of trees it is (different tree service companies just drop trucks of those here) and it is much thicker than wood shavings.
I have seen posts on here where people use wood chips in the coop. They are not very absorbent so I don't think they will work as well as many other things, like wood shavings. I suspect they might be a little difficult to clean out if they mat together. It makes sense to try to use something you have on hand. As long as the coop is going to stay dry, it should work, but there may a bit more physical labor involved when you clean the coop.
2) can baby chicks be put in this rabbit cage? it does not have a lid, but I am sure I can think of something to put on top if needed. If so, how many chicks and until what age can be kept there?
The rule of thumb for space needed for chicks is 1/2 square foot per chick for the first 3 to 4 weeks, then 1 square foot per chick until they feather out, say about 8 weeks. I don't know how big that cage is so I can't tell you how many would fit in there. The height does not matter, just floor space. I also don't know how big the openings are in the floor of that cage. If the squares are 1/2" or smaller, then it will work OK but if the openings are larger, the chicks feet can go through.
In the book I have from the library it says
I don't know how familiar you are with coccidia, sometimes called coccidiosis or just cocci. Bear with me if you already know all this. Cocci is caused by protazoa that breeds in the chicks intestines. It is extremely common in nature. There are seven different stains of protazoa that can cause cocci. Immunity to one does not give immunity to any of the others. One or more strain may be in your soil or wild birds may infect your flock by their droppings. The protazoa lay eggs in the intestines of the chick, the eggs pass with the poop and develop in the damp poop for a day or two. The chick then eats the poop with the eggs and the cycle continues. Some cocci in their system is not going to hurt them. They need to go through about two weeks of this cycle before they develop immunity to that strain of cocci. It is when the cocci reproduces a lot and overwhelms the chicks intestines that the problem occurs. If the coop or run or brooder is wet and has poop in it, the cooci numbers can get huge. This is when the chick really has problems and can even die. If one has it, they all have it since they eat each other's poop.
The problem with a wire bottom to the brooder is that the poop does not stay damp so the chick cannot eat poop with the developed cocci eggs in it. The cycle is broken before they develop immunity. I raised mine on wire and never lost any to cocci when I let them out to the coop and then the run. I kept a piece of cardboard in the floor of the brooder for the poop to build up on enough to keep the cycle going. I also took some sand from the run and gave it to them as grit in the brooder so I could introduce any cocci that is in the run to their systems while they are young enough to build up the immunity they need. To be honest, I don't know if there was any cocci protazoa in the soil in the run since there had not been chickens around here for 25 years. I could only take precautions assuming it was there.
I am currently looking for a place to buy pine shavings for cheap. What I've seen at the local pet store is _very_ expensive.
I agree the pet stores can be expensive. The best place I have found for pine shavings has been Tractor Supply. You can try any feed store or look around for a co-op.
Good luck!!!
I have seen posts on here where people use wood chips in the coop. They are not very absorbent so I don't think they will work as well as many other things, like wood shavings. I suspect they might be a little difficult to clean out if they mat together. It makes sense to try to use something you have on hand. As long as the coop is going to stay dry, it should work, but there may a bit more physical labor involved when you clean the coop.
2) can baby chicks be put in this rabbit cage? it does not have a lid, but I am sure I can think of something to put on top if needed. If so, how many chicks and until what age can be kept there?
The rule of thumb for space needed for chicks is 1/2 square foot per chick for the first 3 to 4 weeks, then 1 square foot per chick until they feather out, say about 8 weeks. I don't know how big that cage is so I can't tell you how many would fit in there. The height does not matter, just floor space. I also don't know how big the openings are in the floor of that cage. If the squares are 1/2" or smaller, then it will work OK but if the openings are larger, the chicks feet can go through.
In the book I have from the library it says
"Unless the birds spend the rest of their lives in wire cages, those brooded on a wire are likely to suffer an outbreak of coccidiosis when moved to open housing. Brooding chicks on litter from the start gives them the gradual exposure to coccidia they need to develop immunity."
I don't know how familiar you are with coccidia, sometimes called coccidiosis or just cocci. Bear with me if you already know all this. Cocci is caused by protazoa that breeds in the chicks intestines. It is extremely common in nature. There are seven different stains of protazoa that can cause cocci. Immunity to one does not give immunity to any of the others. One or more strain may be in your soil or wild birds may infect your flock by their droppings. The protazoa lay eggs in the intestines of the chick, the eggs pass with the poop and develop in the damp poop for a day or two. The chick then eats the poop with the eggs and the cycle continues. Some cocci in their system is not going to hurt them. They need to go through about two weeks of this cycle before they develop immunity to that strain of cocci. It is when the cocci reproduces a lot and overwhelms the chicks intestines that the problem occurs. If the coop or run or brooder is wet and has poop in it, the cooci numbers can get huge. This is when the chick really has problems and can even die. If one has it, they all have it since they eat each other's poop.
The problem with a wire bottom to the brooder is that the poop does not stay damp so the chick cannot eat poop with the developed cocci eggs in it. The cycle is broken before they develop immunity. I raised mine on wire and never lost any to cocci when I let them out to the coop and then the run. I kept a piece of cardboard in the floor of the brooder for the poop to build up on enough to keep the cycle going. I also took some sand from the run and gave it to them as grit in the brooder so I could introduce any cocci that is in the run to their systems while they are young enough to build up the immunity they need. To be honest, I don't know if there was any cocci protazoa in the soil in the run since there had not been chickens around here for 25 years. I could only take precautions assuming it was there.
I am currently looking for a place to buy pine shavings for cheap. What I've seen at the local pet store is _very_ expensive.
I agree the pet stores can be expensive. The best place I have found for pine shavings has been Tractor Supply. You can try any feed store or look around for a co-op.
Good luck!!!
