PDZ Scoop Problems

[fightingbunny]

I am loving the poop trays with PDZ. It makes poop cleanup so much easier and SOOOO much less disgusting. Instead of scraping moist slimy stuff, I just scoop out powder balls. No smell and no ooze.

My problem is that the cat litter scoops all seem to have pretty big openings and some of the poops crumble into tiny bits that fall through. Now my PDZ poop tray bed has these really small balls of poop and I am not sure how to get them out.

Do most people just ignore these and not demand clean tidy perfection? Am I being overly picky? Is there a special scooper I can use?

Thanks in advance, Jenn

 

[Pegasusi]

There are a lot of litter scoopers that have smaller criss-cross openings. Check out Amazon or the Big Box Pet Store websites. Also if you gently "roll" the poop in the PZD, sand or litter it holds together better for removal.

 

[fightingbunny]

Okay, I feel lame, I just never thought of other animals having scoops. Reptile scoops are much more fine, as reptiles have sand instead of large cat litter particles for bedding. The PDZ is like powder sand and soooo tiny! I think it won't get caught on the holes for this one.

https://www.amazon.com/Zilla-Reptil...pID=41AnvhTqNeL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

With holiday shopping coming up hopefully I get enough order to do the add-on item.

 

[aart]

I take care of this problem,
PDZ and/or sand becoming saturated with pulverized poop,
in two ways.

I keep the layer of PDZ on the roost boards thin, less than a 1/2",
and sift all of it every day or two. I add more once a week or so as the PDZ level lowers due to the PDZ that sticks to the poops. This keeps the PDZ on the boards 'refreshed'.

I've tried the reptile scoop in the brooder, still have a lot of poop particles go thru the screen, plus it's small. Found this mesh organizer basket to work much better for sifting.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...s-poop-pictures.621363/page-178#post-18966048

 

[RowanTheRed]

I do something similar to @aart. However, my coop is fairly large at 8 x 10 feet and the entire floor is covered in sand / PDZ, so I use an old mesh trash basket. I sit the basket on top of an old plant stand, scoop the top layer of the / PDZ mix with a short flat tip shovel and let it sift through. I work my way through the coop and can have it all clean in no time.

Here is so photos to show you what I am talking about

 

[fightingbunny]

How much dust does that generate?

 

[RowanTheRed]

How much dust does that generate?

Oh, just a wee bit, lol. No seriously, it is enough that I wear a mask when I do it and keep the doors and windows open. The dust is not so bad if I just take the top layer of the sand where the poop is. If I get too deep of a scoop there is much more dust from the dry sand as opposed to mostly clumps and a little sand / dust if I take the top "dirty" layer. The chickens are off foraging in the yard for bugs so they are no where near when I scoop the poop in the coop!

Honestly though, the dust it creates is no where as troublesome as the heat in the coop on a summer day. It gets pretty sweltering under the metal roof with the southern heat!!! During the summer I have to get it done by 8 am or it is unbearable. If I wait too late in the day I end up COVERED in a dusty paste from the sweat and dust combination.

 

[aart]

During the summer I have to get it done by 8 am or it is unbearable. If I wait too late in the day I end up COVERED in a dusty paste from the sweat and dust combination.

Ah, so your coop does need more ventilation(just posted on your thread)....
...and no way I would sift that much bedding CrayCray!

You need to add some windows, vents, and some poop boards, get shavings down on that floor.