I totally cleaned the poo shelf yesterday for my 5, 23 week pullets. This morning when I went out, there must have been 60 new droppings for the 5 birds. That's 12 per bird per night! Is this excessive? Are they getting too much scratch? They have access to layer mash, oyster shells and water at all times. Only 3 are laying, so the rest are just "processing" the food, not using it for egg development. Any thoughts?
Welcome to chicken keeping! I clean my droppings tray every morning for my nine bantams, and what you describe sounds pretty typical to me.
i come very close to filling a half gallon bucket every day when i scrape the poop board under my 17 girls. i too have been wondering how my amount stacks up
They poop in their sleep too. As far as egg laying goes....there's many things that can affect them whether they lay or not...be patient, they'll lay in time.
Quote:Really try and understand around just what it is that they are pooping. It's food. When your hens are producing copious amounts of wet fetid poop, they are expunging an alarming % of the nutrients being fed . This is a big waste of money naturally. It's also a huge drain of energy- your management energy. Moreover, it often becomes an environmental hazard, especially if you are maintaining poultry year after year in the same enclosures/yards. 1. outfit your enclosures with a poop hammock 2. recalibrate your diet regime-10-25% UltraKibble supplement mixed with scratch grain and oystershell make for a far superior diet than typical commerical mashes, crumbles and pellets. If that isn't feasible feed your hens an Optimal ForageCake -actually cut up the foragecake into brownie sized pieces and slightly soak each piece one end before placing out for the hens to eat. The foragecake transforms wet heavy droppings that smell strongly- into lighter drier manure- droppings that can easily picked up with a gloved hand- without the casing smearing all over the place.
Where do you get the ultrakibble to make your own feed? And is feed wheat ok to feed with scratch as a treat-not the main diet?
Quote:A plastic coated table cloth is one option. Situate it beneath the nocturnal perch in such a manner that it is secure and convenient for ready removal. If the birds are maintained on a diet that works against big wet droppings, the manure can be brushed off with relatively little effort. A good spray cleaner is necessary to clean the surface of the poop hammock. Shade cloth can also be used. Quote:It can't help but be used as they spend the night over it. Quote:The wheat mixed with scratch is a good diet provided you've included ultrakibble. Ask the store nearest you that carries foragecakes (also made by farmers' helper) to order it for you.
