Switched to sand in brooder...

[KFaye]

I use sand in my coop for my layers. I love it....I made a scooper that filters the sand through a wire netting. Kind of a large cat litter scooper on a stick. Anyway great idea for the babies. Will do that today! I don't know why I didn't think of that duh.

 

[warmheart]

Your babies look so happy dustbathing in the sand! I bet it was just what they needed.

 

[QuietPony]

Stupid question from a newbie. What is PDZ? This sounds like a good idea. My utility room is starting to smell like a barn. I may ask the hubby to go get me some sand.

Sweet PDZ is nothing short of a miracle! I picked some up and sprinkle it everywhere! The cat litter box, guinea pig cage and brooder! The litter boxes are in the bathroom, the g-pig is in my daughter's room and the brooder is in the kitchen (for now. they will be moving soon to the garage because Holy Cow the dust!!). You can't smell ANY of these things!
It's a mineral so it's totally safe should they happen to eat it.

I am a first timer and SWEAR by this stuff! Had I know about it years ago, I would have been using it in the littler boxes all along!
I paid 10 bucks for a 25# bag, and have barely made a dent in it with all my sprinkling in the last three weeks!

The only problem, is that it does not seem to work on teenagers.

 

[rookiechk]

Sweet PDZ is nothing short of a miracle! I picked some up and sprinkle it everywhere! The cat litter box, guinea pig cage and brooder! The litter boxes are in the bathroom, the g-pig is in my daughter's room and the brooder is in the kitchen (for now. they will be moving soon to the garage because Holy Cow the dust!!). You can't smell ANY of these things!
It's a mineral so it's totally safe should they happen to eat it.

I am a first timer and SWEAR by this stuff! Had I know about it years ago, I would have been using it in the littler boxes all along!
I paid 10 bucks for a 25# bag, and have barely made a dent in it with all my sprinkling in the last three weeks!

The only problem, is that it does not seem to work on teenagers.

Good to know QP! Thanks. I'm gonna have to ask my feed store for this stuff. Hopefully they carry it.

 

[lcammack]

We use straight Stall Dry or PDZ, which ever they have in stock, for our poop boards under the roosts. Our coops never stink and there are almost no flies. In our small coop with 4 hens we scoop once a week, and our big coop with 24 hens we scoop every other day. It is absolutely the best system. Because we use the poop boards with the PDZ our coop bedding (we use stall pellets) only needs to be replaced twice a year! We love it.

 

[RavenWood]

I use peat moss in my brooder. It's great - no smell, absorbent, and you can put it right out into the garden.

 

[QuietPony]

In the final stages of my coop planning, (big build is still a couple weeks off) and I'm starting to wonder now if I should switch my plans from the Deep Litter Method and go with sand.
Either way, I will continue using the PDZ (either in pine shavings or sand) and install poop boards under the roosts which will have a lip on the edge from keeping all the pdz from spilling off the edge. But these reviews on using sand have me thinking I should reconsider... lol Can anything ever be simple?

 

[rookiechk]

In the final stages of my coop planning, (big build is still a couple weeks off) and I'm starting to wonder now if I should switch my plans from the Deep Litter Method and go with sand.
Either way, I will continue using the PDZ (either in pine shavings or sand) and install poop boards under the roosts which will have a lip on the edge from keeping all the pdz from spilling off the edge. But these reviews on using sand have me thinking I should reconsider... lol Can anything ever be simple?

Heres a really good article I read about simple things you do daily to keep the coop cleaner. She mentions the sand and says its great.

http://communitychickens.blogspot.c...eaner-coop-with-less-effort.html#.UWRC0KXIb_c

 

[QuietPony]

Heres a really good article I read about simple things you do daily to keep the coop cleaner. She mentions the sand and says its great.

http://communitychickens.blogspot.c...eaner-coop-with-less-effort.html#.UWRC0KXIb_c

Book marked that blog. Thanks! Great information there.

 

[Sharon Bee]

Hi. I'm new at this too and am impatiently waiting for my 10 new chicks. (Coming May 16) I am setting up a plastic kiddie pool in our garage with heat lamp, etc. I put newspaper down first and then will add the pine shavings on top. At least maybe for the first two weeks? Then maybe switching to sand might be a good idea? Like you say, it would make cleaning easier with a kitty litter scoop. Will it hurt them to eat the sand? Are they still on chick starter?

I also read on BYC to maybe put a roll of chicken wire around the pool too so as they grow they won't leap out. That might be a good idea too. I'll post a pic once I have it set up and see what everybody thinks as I have never raised chicks before.