***OKIES in the BYC III ***

I am new to owning chickens I live in the OKC area and am most in need of knowledge on what works best for the floor of the coop and in the egg boxes? I have read good stuff on pine shavings and sand. Does the DLM work here with how humid we get? How often should I move my chicken run?
 
So, I'm new to owning chickens, have two hens and a Rooster that I've had for a couple of weeks. I'm using an old coop that the previous owners of the land had, but I'm not really happy with it and want to build something the chickens can be happy in.

I live in Jones, OK. Anybody nearby my wife and I can visit and see how to avoid costly mistakes in building a coop? I've started reading the coop and educational sections of this wonderful website, but there's no substitute for a good old-fashioned recon!

I'm in Meeker and there are several members in the Choctaw area.
My main cook is a corner section of the big barn that we enclosed and equiped with an outside coop door and run along the length of the barn. The layer flock actually free ranges every day and returns to the barn coop.
A lot depends on how many chickens you will have...allowing for growth of the flock and possible needs like egg laying and brooding chicks.
Wood construction works great. In some pens, I use wooden shipping crates (24 x 48 x 30) converted to small coops for a trio or a quad....the roof has a screen section for summer and is lowered and secured for winter. And I also have two coops from plywood made like a loafing shed for goats. In the winter, I attach a piece to the front of the loafing shed type to help block the wind and elements. Both types have wire doors that cover the opening to keep out critters. The loafing shed type is filled with straw and can be moved by using a dolly on one end.
cow and coops 082.JPG Coop construction 7.JPG Coop construction 9.JPG


I am new to owning chickens I live in the OKC area and am most in need of knowledge on what works best for the floor of the coop and in the egg boxes? I have read good stuff on pine shavings and sand. Does the DLM work here with how humid we get? How often should I move my chicken run?
If you plan on rinsing out your coop, then the floor can have a very slight slope and linoleum is good. It can be covered with wood shavings, sand, etc that would need to be replaced when you clean out the coop. Plywood or tin in the bottom of the nest boxes with straw, wood shavings, pine needles or even astroturf (can be washed with a hose and put back in). In my crate coops, I have a wood floor that I shovel out the poops and bedding material once a week.
In my barn coop and the shed type coops, I use the deep litter method using pine shavings and leaves allowing the chickens to turn it by tossing scratch on the floor. Layers of material are added about every 3 weeks and sometimes I use a pitch fork to deep turn it. the heat from the composting helps to keep the coop warm in winter. Each spring, I dig out the composted material and add it to my garden beds as mulch and later turn it in to improve the tilth of the soil. As for humidity....the hot summers have less humidity so you might need to spritz the litter once in a while to lightly moisten the litter....helps to cool off the inside of the coop and keeps the dust and dander down.

There is a great section on different coop designs, and a thread on DLM.
 
I am new to owning chickens I live in the OKC area and am most in need of knowledge on what works best for the floor of the coop and in the egg boxes? I have read good stuff on pine shavings and sand. Does the DLM work here with how humid we get? How often should I move my chicken run?
I am also in the OKC area. This is my second year with chickens. I'll tell you what we've learned so far (at least our personal experience) about bedding and mobile runs. We've had good luck with pine shavings in the coop. I used DLM in the winter, but not in the summer. Mostly because no matter what you do it stinks with the heat, and it hides all manner of insects and larvae. It also seems to keep the coop hotter inside and can have an affect on the ventilation. I use about 3 in of bedding right now. Sweet PDZ under the bedding helps tremendously, though it's no match for heat and humidity once there's a good amount of poop built up in there. We try to be vigilant about the smell because we live in a neighborhood, and want to keep things amicable. If you are using a mobile run, you need to make sure it's shaded during the hottest part of the day, and move it when they've exhausted the weeds and grass underneath to prevent boredom. We used a mobile run last year, and provided artificial shade via a huge piece of plywood board. The wind kept knocking the board over so we had to figure out a way to keep it stable. You won't have to worry as much about shade when fall comes. Welcome to the thread, and the world of chicken keeping.
 
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I am new to owning chickens I live in the OKC area and am most in need of knowledge on what works best for the floor of the coop and in the egg boxes? I have read good stuff on pine shavings and sand. Does the DLM work here with how humid we get? How often should I move my chicken run?
I'm all about a sand floor, it is perfect imo. The poop dries out quickly stays dry, easy to clean (dry poop is non smelling poop)
 
I'm all about a sand floor, it is perfect imo. The poop dries out quickly stays dry, easy to clean (dry poop is non smelling poop)
Do you put sand in the nestboxes as well? I have a dirt/sand run, so sand gets tracked in the coop. I have noticed that the fine layer at the bottom keeps poop from sticking to the floor, but turns the poop to dust, and makes wearing a mask a really good idea. I may try a sand floor in coop to see how I like it, but will probably end up using shavings over the winter since sand gets so cold.

Also, I love my dirt/sand run because it drains so well and with my severe mold allergies, I will not chance a litter floor with an uncovered run. But, I hadn't been cleaning the poop out of there, and so when I turned the dirt to make digging easier for my girls my stomach turned also because it smelled underneath.

I've been curious what people use to scoop poop out of the sand. A kitty litter scoop would take forever to clean all that sand. Lol! It's coming time to amend the sand since it has turned to packed dirt, so I'm looking for ideas for keeping it fresher.
 
Do you put sand in the nestboxes as well? I have a dirt/sand run, so sand gets tracked in the coop. I have noticed that the fine layer at the bottom keeps poop from sticking to the floor, but turns the poop to dust, and makes wearing a mask a really good idea. I may try a sand floor in coop to see how I like it, but will probably end up using shavings over the winter since sand gets so cold.

Also, I love my dirt/sand run because it drains so well and with my severe mold allergies, I will not chance a litter floor with an uncovered run. But, I hadn't been cleaning the poop out of there, and so when I turned the dirt to make digging easier for my girls my stomach turned also because it smelled underneath.

I've been curious what people use to scoop poop out of the sand. A kitty litter scoop would take forever to clean all that sand. Lol! It's coming time to amend the sand since it has turned to packed dirt, so I'm looking for ideas for keeping it fresher.
I have not put sand in the nest boxes I didn't want to encourage digging or dust bathing in there worried they would break eggs. We use a rake gently over the top (one of those that look like a fan) to put it in a pile then an old broom we shortened (stiffened) the bristles and a dustpan on a handle (so no bending)
 
Do chickens eat red fire ants? I just found an ant mound of fire ants yesterday and want to make sure it's safe for me to put the chickens around it for them to eat. I am trying not to use ant poison.
 

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