Official BYC Poll: How Often Do You Clean Your Coop?

[writerskramp]

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It's not a pleasant part of keeping chickens, but it's one we must all deal with regardless: poop. How often do you clean your coop out? Don't include pens in your answer, just your coop or coops. Do you find it easy or difficult to clean them out? What changes to your coop design or technique would you make to improve the process?

(Check out more Official BYC Polls HERE!)

About as often as old post and polls are recycled.. Toss in fresh pine shavings over a dirt floor and allow the chickens to spread it.. They do fine job! Stays clean for some time as they turn it over.. Sometimes throw in peat moss to neutralize any faint ammonia odor.. Then chips over that a day later. After my feathered help spreads it evenly. A non-leaking roof works miracles retarding ammonia development, dry, dry, dry. Soon out will come the wheelbarrow and shovel and many trips to multiple gardens.. Use as mulch to plant through or around annuals.. not touching plant.. about 6 weeks before planting. With the hope it will rain a couple times in between.. Chicken doo doo is very potent, don't do this with straight poo, it'll burn your plants. Unless you till or dig it in hopefully preseason.. If not convenient, at minumum10 days and some rain.. More chips than poo works fine.. Chickens not only provide you with eggs and meat, but grow a fine vegetable garden.

 

[Ascholten]

I use tongs to pick the poop out and put them in their own composter. When the pine shavings get low ill throw more in there. The girls help a LOT to spread them around, ie outside where they are not supposed to be etc etc. :/

Generally Ill get all the poop, sometimes when I dont let them out because of a lot of rain etc for a few days, they will scratch around and bury the poop in the pine bark. Over the following days / weeks as I ruffle through the bark to spread it back even since they LOVE to pile it up, ill come across a dried up turd or three, ill grab them then and carry on. So far I have never had to do a complete change out of the pine shavings. it's a wooden floor chicken tractor. I am seeing that the very bottom is starting to resemble dirt, and since its a year old and what it is etc, im thinking is just the natural decay and all, and I probably just for the sake of being clean, should vac it all out for them and replace everything but there is no stink or any issues so...

Aaron

 

[DogAndCat36]

I use hay for my coop. It usually gets dirty enough to clean out every 3-4 months, whenever the hay gets kinda flat and it starts to smells. I use a rake and a hoe to get the soiled hay out and then wheel barrel it away.

 

[writerskramp]

I use tongs to pick the poop out and put them in their own composter. When the pine shavings get low ill throw more in there. The girls help a LOT to spread them around, ie outside where they are not supposed to be etc etc. :/

Generally Ill get all the poop, sometimes when I dont let them out because of a lot of rain etc for a few days, they will scratch around and bury the poop in the pine bark. Over the following days / weeks as I ruffle through the bark to spread it back even since they LOVE to pile it up, ill come across a dried up turd or three, ill grab them then and carry on. So far I have never had to do a complete change out of the pine shavings. it's a wooden floor chicken tractor. I am seeing that the very bottom is starting to resemble dirt, and since its a year old and what it is etc, im thinking is just the natural decay and all, and I probably just for the sake of being clean, should vac it all out for them and replace everything but there is no stink or any issues so...

Aaron

You know I just can't get into all this microscopic work.. Chickens used to live in trees.. and are not native to North America.. If they ain't walking in poo... which I owe them for all their contributions.. Vac!? 'H' no.. Mine live in a dirt floor coup and a dirt run. Which floods.. Feel bad for them and spread a bale and a half of straw.. Now they come out too play.. Chickens are not puppies nor kittens.. There is nothing huggable about them, I've tried petting a few friendlies.. They ain't into it. Sure as a hot place. Don't want them sleeping in my bed with me... It's uncomfortable enough with two dogs, but they keep me warm.

 

[Ascholten]

Your coop may not be as bio diversible as outside in the poo palace, so stuff building up in there may do worse things to them than a pile under a non native tree. I don't think anybody really wants to do that kind of work, microscopic or otherwise but I am pretty sure most DO want to keep their birds healthy. People used to live in caves. Maybe you should get rid of that toilet, that IS overkill, and a huge waste of water, why don't you just poop into a pot and when it gets full, throw it out the window, you know, like they used to do?

I don't want to be sleeping with no stinky dogs in my bed either FWIW, warm or not. I HAVE seen chickens though that DO like the petting thing. The tractor supply out here, one guy comes in and brings a silkie he puts in the darned shopping cart, with a little perch thing he made up and goes around the store with her. She gets all kinds of awws and ooh she's so cute and pets and scratches and loves the attention it seems. Chickens like dogs I would believe probably have different personalities, and some do like to be pet, just like some of those quivering urine dribbling little mutts that the hollywierd types like to carry around in their purses like to bite anything that moves and don't like to be pet. Some do, some don't.

 

[micstrachan]

My coop floor bedding only needs changing 2x per year. I use a "poop hammock" under the roosts, so I just have to pull that out and hose it off once a week. There's virtually no poop on the coop floor because of that. Feed and water are in the run, so no spills.

I might try this poop hammock.

 

[writerskramp]

You know I just can't get into all this microscopic work.. Chickens used to live in trees.. and are not native to North America.. If they ain't walking in poo... which I owe them for all their contributions.. Vac!? 'H' no.. Mine live in a dirt floor coup and a dirt run. Which floods.. Feel bad for them and spread a bale and a half of straw.. Now they come out too play.. Chickens are not puppies nor kittens.. There is nothing huggable about them, I've tried petting a few friendlies.. They ain't into it. Sure as a hot place. Don't want them sleeping in my bed with me... It's uncomfortable enough with two dogs, but they keep me warm.

Your coop may not be as bio diversible as outside in the poo palace, so stuff building up in there may do worse things to them than a pile under a non native tree. I don't think anybody really wants to do that kind of work, microscopic or otherwise but I am pretty sure most DO want to keep their birds healthy. People used to live in caves. Maybe you should get rid of that toilet, that IS overkill, and a huge waste of water, why don't you just poop into a pot and when it gets full, throw it out the window, you know, like they used to do?

I don't want to be sleeping with no stinky dogs in my bed either FWIW, warm or not. I HAVE seen chickens though that DO like the petting thing. The tractor supply out here, one guy comes in and brings a silkie he puts in the darned shopping cart, with a little perch thing he made up and goes around the store with her. She gets all kinds of awws and ooh she's so cute and pets and scratches and loves the attention it seems. Chickens like dogs I would believe probably have different personalities, and some do like to be pet, just like some of those quivering urine dribbling little mutts that the hollywierd types like to carry around in their purses like to bite anything that moves and don't like to be pet. Some do, some don't.

Get your point.. but I would be partial to a cave with an upgrade to a 5 gallon bucket. That being said, realize some chickens would like attention. Have a few that hover around a little and one that waits for me in the coup because I doctored her.. now I guess we're buddies. Though I can touch her.. petting is not her thing. Outdoor dogs are stinky.. mine used to be outside. Till they pulled off The Greatest Escape a couple times, building a literal tunnel. Crawling on their bellies under the kennel floor.. Impressive workmanship and effort.. how that big dog got through there is a mystery akin to how same chicken gets through a woven wire fence or out of the run.. So until I pour a slab, they're in my cave. Get their exercise running up and down a fifty foot second floor deck.. and well behaved, but won't do the dishes nor clean the house, but neither would the ex.. and not as well behaved. Was thinking too, to upgrade my bucket with one of those newfangled fancy seats. Would be a bit more comfortable during emergencies.

 

[AnnaWolf]

I collect the poop once a month, i lift the straw and rake everything together and put it in my compostpile. I deep clean the coop 1 a year.

 

[cluckingheck]

Whenever, honestly. It usually ends up being once every month or so. The floor usually lasts a while, it’s the top of the brooder that needs to be scraped off constantly. They like standing on top of it to look out the window.

 

[papajoesfarm]

I clean the poop boards and roosts in the Adult coop every day. The bedding is changed monthly, but fresh chips are added on a weekly basis. The brooder coop gets changed weekly. All of the chips and scrapings are used in the fertilizer operation. The brooder box cleaning gets used immediately, the adults added to the compost operation. People always ask why our tomatos grow so fast, and so big.