Pine Shavings or Natural Ground

[Backyardigan]

we have a small backyard coop and the run section is no longer grass but dirt. Our chickens LOVE the pine shavings and I’m wanting to put them on the ground of the run in the coop. However, it’s exposed to environmental factors, such as rain, and I’m wondering if that will make a haven for mosquito breeding. Should I leave it just the natural ground? Also, where the slide out tray is - should I include pine shavings there as well? New to this and just want to have a safe happy environment for our chicks! (We let them out each morning and after work until they run back into the coop so lots of free range backyard time). Thanks!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Bare dirt is a breeding ground for disease. It doesn't have beneficial microbes to fight off the bad in the droppings.

You can use shavings, grass clippings, dry leave, pine needles, hay... build it up like the forest floor. It invites bugs and good microbes and make for an eco system. Really cuts back on poo smell, especially when it rains. Since I pick up what poo I can find still, I call it "semi" deep litter. But you can look into deep litter and gather the concept. For me it's a constant process of renewal to get where I want it to be.

No mosquitoes breed in water not in debris. Though they can hide in debris once they have their wings... they seem to do just fine with lawn alone. They are never flying out of my "forest floor" setting. My run is covered but the edges still get the rain.

Inside the really tiny coops, my preferred pan cover is wood pellets like for a wood stove (home depot or Wally) or rice hulls (feed store). Shavings made the pan not slide out and so harder to clean.

 

[Backyardigan]

Thank you so much for all of the information. I found out the hard way this morning about the pine shavings and the pull out tray! I will grab some rice hulls today. We are going to see about adding a protective cover over the coop to try to keep most of the rain out. Again, I really appreciate the feedback!!

 

[christwodog]

I use hay for ground covering. They like to scratch around in it when it's fresh and they eat some of the smaller bud pieces. Plus if you can get an alfalfa mixture, it smells really nice. But with all this rain (I'm in South FL), everything gets gross and wet, so I just toss in some fresh hay daily. I'll probably rake it clean once all the rain stops, then start over with more fresh hay. I was reading about some folks using horse pine pellet bedding, but I haven't tried that yet.

 

[Folly's place]

Covering the run will be a huge help, and definitely add shavings and plant material to make a deeply bedded surface too.
Mary

 

[blackdog043]

Deep litter works very good in a run. Here is a good video.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/muddy-run-help-please.1037998/#post-16017992

 

[Backyardigan]

I think that’s a good idea! I

Deep litter works very good in a run. Here is a good video.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/muddy-run-help-please.1037998/#post-16017992

Thanks!!

 

[jthornton]

Sweet PDZ should work well in a pull out tray and even runny poop is easy to clean up.

JT