So, my coop and run is coming this week and though the chicks are nowhere near ready to venture out I am making plans. What do people tend to use in their runs on the ground? Ours in going on concrete slabs to save the grass so I was thinking, bark and sand? Will this be easy to clean and how often do people change their run litter?
Oh just sand? Do you rake it clean them or replace the whole lot? Is it cheap to get and will any sand do? Should I scrap the bark idea??
I have all purpose sand in my run. In my area it is $3.06 / 60 lb bag. My run is small, only 3 chickens, and it took 3 bags. I've been raking it up once a week. The poo seems to break down and disappear, there has been no smell so far.
I have an 8X12 enclosed run with a roof that we just finished, but I have plans this summer to finish it with sand. I've heard nothing but good things about sand in the run for cleanliness, chicks being able to dust bathe, keep incidents of parasites down, etc. I'm not looking forward to the work digging down and hauling sand will entail, but once it's completed it will be fantastic! So, my final suggestion is SAND.
SAND... doing a total make-over myself... have read a LOT... will have sand in the coop & sand in the entire 6x24' run... digging down 2-3 inches and putting a boarder around the inside of the run... not sure if I will use wood or plastic land-scaping boarder... taking a look tomorrow. From all I have read, sand is the cleanest, easiest to clean and no place for parasites to hide... not to mention one big dust bath.... oh and very little to no mud... great drainage. And, yes, rake or kittie litter scoop.
