Sand or hay in the coop? Help???

[Lucymae]

i have a great coop and run. Love the sand in the run but unsure about using in coop. Have a wood unpainted floor. Any suggestions?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

If you like sand in the run, you can use it in the coop. Definitely don't use hay. It can mold if it gets wet and be a problem. You can, however, use straw.
I use pine shavings in the coop. I don't use sand because it is humid here and can freeze the sand into an iceberg.

 

[Lucymae]

Thanks. We live in northwest ga. It gets hot here too but humidity isn't horrible. What about pine straw ? We have an abundance of free stuff.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

What is pine straw? Is that dead dried pine needles? That would be ok.
Baled hay is intended for feeding livestock. Baled straw is intended for bedding.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Since the floor is wood, for longevity it would be best to either paint it, use a coating like Black Jack 57, or cover it with vinyl or some similar flooring, to keep the wood from rotting. Bedding of your choice can go over that.

 

[Acre4Me]

Straw, pine bedding, sand (as long as it doesn't freeze where you are), are common. Pine needles could work as part of the material, but pine needles aren't absorbent. If you use them to bulk up shavings or break up the sand that could work, I suppose.

Where are you located? someplace warm or that freezes in winter? My neighbor has chickens and when he saw our coop that we are building (raised off the ground) he wondered why we weren't using a wire/open floor so the droppings could just get scratched into the ground below by the chickens when they were out and about during the day. It is too cold here to have an open bottom to the coop, but I would imagine could also be a solution if you live someplace warm. does your coop have a dirt floor? if so, many on here are fans of the deep litter method (aka "DLM") - its kinda like a compost pile in your coop - varied organic material that breaks down over time and helps with odor, etc.