Run Maintenance

[JOSEPHC]

I have eight hens in a 9'x9' run. I let them free range for about one - two hours per day. At about 6:30 P.M., they go into the coop and come out at about 6:30 A.M. The coop has pine shavings in it which I remove the droppings from every other day, yet keep the pine shavings in it (deep liter method being used). The run has dirt in it which I rake the droppings out of every third day. The run drains well and about once per week, I take a deep, four- prong hoe and turn up and loosen the soil in the run.

My question is, is this enough maintenance/cleaning or should I be doing something else? I plan to put sand into the run next Spring, but for now, I am stuck with the soil in the run.Your advice and experience will be welcomed.

 

[DraigAthar]

That sounds about like what I do with my run. I tend to let the girls out for more than just two hours a day, but other than that we have the same routine as you. We find that every time we rake out the run we lose a bit more dirt along with the droppings, so we add sand or garden soil periodically to keep the run from digging its way to China. In the winter, we throw straw in the run so the hens can scratch around in something. The ground freezes pretty solid here in winter. Our run has a roof over it, so the dirt/sand stays pretty dry even in rain/snow.