Sand as litter?

[Cryss]

Under 8 weeks, that Lav is likely a cockerel.

I've been wondering the same. Not being experienced I wondered too if that one was older than the other lav because of the size and larger comb. But the breeder was waiting for lavs to hatch when I first contacted him looking for chickens. So I'm thinking if he already had some hatched he would have said so and sold them to me. That's when I started wondering about gender. We shall see.

 

[HenOnAJuneBug]

Thank you, I have worked hard on my run. My hope is to buy another dog run like this one, connect them, cover the same way. That would expand the run from a 10x10 to a 10x30!

Your run looks good. If you ever want more head room it's easy to do. Check out how I did my roof with angled sides

 

[Cryss]

Your run looks good. If you ever want more head room it's easy to do. Check out how I did my roof with angled sides
View attachment 1196465

Now thats cool!

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Ok, back with my first report of my thoughts on the rice hulls...

They actually seem to work really well at allowing the tray to be removed easily. I still had hay and shavings in my nest box that got kicked into the tray causing a slight hang up. But will work towards replacing the nesting material. And the tray is so shallow that a couple nights of a hen sleeping in the same place made the pile little deeper but it knocked down easily still for removal.

I do agree with @Folly's place that this type of coop is very poor design for unsuspecting newbies. I knew what I was working with and chose it for a specific purpose, with the intent of a bigger run added, even for just a few bantams, in addition to the few alterations I knew would have to be made. With the way the predator wire is attached these are essentially made for keeping birds in, not predators out. This is NOT a main coop for me, and only one of many smaller coops that I use for separation or breeding/rearing purposes. And my first and maybe only prefab coop.

I still have more rice hulls on hand and will continue using them in this coop to see how I truly feel about them long term. At least short term though, I would say it's definitely worth a try and was much easier to use in THIS instance, than shavings or hay.

 

[Folly's place]

Here in the Midwest, no rice hulls. Mary

 

[aart]

Your run looks good. If you ever want more head room it's easy to do. Check out how I did my roof with angled sides
View attachment 1196465

Nice!
Got a build thread or article with the details of how you built this?

 

[irmad]

I struggled so much when it came to bedding at the beginning... with allot of trials and errors..I realised I needed something that would absorb the ammonia in chicken poo. I started using crushed hemp which is used as horse bedding and it's super absorbent and no dust. I used deep litter method, every few days I would throw some grains in the bedding in front of the chickens and they would scratch and turn the bedding for me. This aerates the bedding and keeps the bedding fresh. I topped up the bedding every for months and would clear the coop once a year....I found keeping the bedding at least 12inch deep works best. Super easy, healthy chickens, no smell, coop stays fresh, warm in the winter and you get awesome compost at the end of the year. I tried wood shavings and my girls would get ill with the dust. I tried sand but once it gets wet, game over. I want to try coco coir (not cocoa) or peat moss next.

 

[CPT]

I've thought about using sand too, but my coop has a dirt floor; it's not a raised coop. It's a custom built little building for chickens. The sand would definitely get muddy. I I might put in pine shavings too....I've put down straw before, but boy, does it stink! The ammonia got really bad in there. I may also pick up a small bag of Koop Clean; has some odor neutralizers mixed in. I also found out they sell Chick Flic at Ace Hardware. You sprinkle it on your bedding to help neutralize odors.....

 

[irmad]

I've thought about using sand too, but my coop has a dirt floor; it's not a raised coop. It's a custom built little building for chickens. The sand would definitely get muddy. I I might put in pine shavings too....I've put down straw before, but boy, does it stink! The ammonia got really bad in there. I may also pick up a small bag of Koop Clean; has some odor neutralizers mixed in. I also found out they sell Chick Flic at Ace Hardware. You sprinkle it on your bedding to help neutralize odors.....

Unfortunantly Your sand will sink to the bottom and get moist. Once that happens, it will become breeding ground for germs. If you can keep the sand dry, then it will work. Chopped straw should work On a dirt floor, if you put a 1ft layer and keep topping it after a few months. Throw some grains in their every few days so that your chickens keep turning it over.

 

[irmad]

I've thought about using sand too, but my coop has a dirt floor; it's not a raised coop. It's a custom built little building for chickens. The sand would definitely get muddy. I I might put in pine shavings too....I've put down straw before, but boy, does it stink! The ammonia got really bad in there. I may also pick up a small bag of Koop Clean; has some odor neutralizers mixed in. I also found out they sell Chick Flic at Ace Hardware. You sprinkle it on your bedding to help neutralize odors.....

www.backyardchickens.com/articles/deep-litter-method-the-easiest-way-to-deal-with-chicken-litter-dlm.47740/