Oregon

[tallyho]

We must not have much to say! Those Washingtonians got it going on. A very chatty bunch. Although, I guess some of us communicate on the Oregon Chicken meetup thread. That one moves a long especially close to meet-up time.

Shall we talk about the weather? The Silkie teenagers aren't sure what to think about damp feet. I told them to stop complaining and get used to it!

 

[Cloverleaf Farm]

Well, I recently found a great fix for the mud soup in my coop runs, thanks to someone talking about Pac NW mud on another thread...I went to my local feed store and got bagged bark nuggets...big pieces, minimum 2"x3" pieces, up to about 4"x6" or so. It cost me around $100 for my big run, but got it mud-free. It's great! And lots cheaper than covering all the runs!

 

[Miz Mary]

Hey Cloverleaf farms ..........will the chickens get slivers in thier feet from the bark ??!!

It's SO wet and cold today !!! I cant wait for spring already so my 10 weekers can get some SUN !!!! I had one of my 2 white Silkies ( "Frosty" - roo ) die two days ago ....... no sign of illness or anything ..... I am going to get lots more silkies in the spring , I really like this breed !!

Does anybody order from My Pet Chicken ??

 

[feathers4fun]

Oh the mud, tired of it already and still many months to go! I've dumped a couple bags of shavings in my layers run but would need at least 10 to really help. Years ago I put hog fuel in it and it held up for years, even with 2 large breed dogs for awhile. I'm thinking I might try to do some hog fuel again, has anybody used it and would there be any reason not to?? Sounds similiar to cloverleafs solution, with the larger pieces/chunks, though probably not as clean.

 

[Xtina]

I've never heard of hog fuel, so I looked it up. The only thing I can think of that might be a problem with it is that since it's a mix of unlabeled woods, it could have cedar in it, which you're not supposed to use with poultry. But who knows?

 

[tallyho]

Quote:
Are you talking about the chunks of bark that are used for landscaping? The big brown pieces? And will you just leave it there forever and ever? I'm asking because when the vector control inspector came out to look at our chicken set-up he said that we'd have to remove our bark chips (from tree-trimmers) at some point. We've had them for a while and there's no smell. We just keep adding chips as we get guys to deliver to us. I like the idea of the big chunks.

 

[Xtina]

Vector control inspector! I've been dreading having my coop and run looked at, because I never do anything to it! I throw my grass and weed clippings in there in the summertime so the chickens can scratch at it, and there's a bunch of bins that hold rocks that I cleaned out of the backyard. I never clean out the poop because it just composts down. Do you think he'd take issue with all that stuff? I need to spend a lot more time in my backyard, but it's hard with a baby because he just won't play by himself, and it's too crappy to take him outside to play while I work out there.

 

[tallyho]

Quote:
Sorry about your little guy.

I'm pretty sure there are some silkie breeders in Oregon who have really nice, foofy silkies. You should post something on the meet-up thread and see what the silkie people have available.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=403482

 

[tallyho]

Quote:
Yeah, I finally did it and it wasn't painful at all. Just suggestions. They want to control the rats/flies/smell. I didn't agree that I would have to replace my chips because it composts down. I also sprinkle baking soda at the slightest scent of chicken since I have more than 3 and live in the city. (The barking schnauzers behind me are worse than anything my chickens can think of doing.)

 

[Xtina]

Baking soda's a good idea. You must buy it in bulk? Where do you get so much? And what do you do about the flies in the summer? That's been a constant problem for me. I imagine just cleaning better is the only real solution. Hopefully by next summer the baby will be able to let me work in the yard.