The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[islandgirl82]

We've had the rubber stall mats in the horses and donkey stalls and all along the aisle. My chickens and ducks (when I had ducks) were around them daily while they were free ranging and they ate things they would find off the mats in the aisle that were not covered in bedding (ie. picking through horse and donkey nuggets) and they were fine. The barn has open stalls on the top so the horses could all see each other and there was plenty of airflow so the birds weren't enclosed with the fumes though.

 

[Leahs Mom]

There "should" be plenty of ventilation as the barn has high ceilings.

I was reading reviews on the TSC site just now and some folks use the mats for exercise mats in their homes. A couple people said to leave them outside for a few days so that they "air out" and the fumes won't be as strong. One person said they could hardly be in their house the fumes were so strong but that they did subside in a couple days. That particular mat weighs 100 lbs so she wasn't able to drag it outside and just lived with it. But she did say she'd let them air out before bringing them in in the future.

 

[islandgirl82]

Ours are the heavy mats too and they had plenty of time to air out before we put them in the barn. I did have one in the house when we had a litter of Newfoundland puppies...it was perfect for keeping their space clean after they were too old for their mum to be cleaning up after them but not quite old enough to be learning to go outside.

 

[sunflower4you]

I used them all last winter. So -20 degrees. I have a small area I insulated for the winter so I could brood chicks for early spring hatches.

Dirt is good if you have good drainage. You will have rotting issues and predator issues with dirt floors. Any chance you can cement and dirt over the cement? I have wood floors, but my coop is up off the ground and hard wired to keep out predators. I chose to remove ducks from the chickens because of the water issues. Ducks need more water than chickens do. They also keep water containers dirty. I do not feed or water in my coops to keep out moisture and mice. Mice are attracted to the feed. (that you bought and paid for)Lice and mites are carried by mice and so are a host of other nasties. Easiest way to keep a coop pest free is to remove a large source like free feed. Best way to keep combs from frost bite is to keep the coop dry. Best way to do that is remove the water and make sure you have good air flow.

This is my first winter having chickens and I have kept their food and water out in the run all summer/fall. I was hoping to leave food and water outside in the winter, too, for the reasons you listed. I put a tarp over part of the run to keep the snow off that section. If I put their food/water in that covered area, will they come outside for it? I live in the northern Midwest where temperatures are at or below freezing for a good part of the winter. Others have said that even cold-hardy chickens will not come out of the coop in some winter weather. I have 3 EEs and 2 BAs that are 5-6 months old.

 

[Turk Raphael]

Hmmmmm. I wonder if I could put those on the cement pole barn floor.... Wonder if they'd be toxic to eat off of (since chickens eat off the ground)? Also wonder about the fumes which seem to effect chickens easily....

Finally got the area cleaned out in the pole barn so I can put the kennels in there for winter housing. But the floors are cement and that seems to me like it would be really cold - even with shavings on them since they'll dig around and move the shavings. So I've been trying to think of something I could put down to make it less cold on the feet and legs... Thanks for the idea. I'm going to have to check those out!

Every building here has a concrete floor and it doesn't bother the animals if you have thick bedding. makes for easy cleaning too. My dad's chicken houses are re-purposed dairy barns and have been used for chickens for at least 80 years.

Rubber Mats..... I think the mats would be fine except I'd be more likely to go with thicker mats than you could get for $5 bucks each.

TURK

 

[Leahs Mom]

@sunflower4you
I'm in Indiana. When the flock was smaller I kept the feed inside. I prefer the feed inside, but my hen shed was such that I did not get rodents inside (and still is).

Last year I had to put it outside because of not having enough room indoors. I really don't like the feed outside as I feel that it draws rodents to the living area. Funny how the inside feeders say they like it because it keeps rodents away; the outside feeders like it because it keeps rodents away

. But in a barn-type setting which isn't rodent tight, it would be totally different for which I like better.


Anyhow... They will go out if they can see ground to walk on. I did a lot of shoveling last year. Alternately you can throw wood chips or leaves on a path to the food which helps them see that it is the ground.

I refuse to do all that shoveling this year which is why I want to move the flock into the pole barn for the winter. Food will be inside and I'll have to keep mouse traps set all the time unfortunately. I really prefer them to stay in their normal setup as they will be able to get outside more. But last year the older hens wouldn't let the pullets go inside and it was way too cold weather for that ridiculousness. Since the hen shed was really too close of quarters for them to be inside all day long, it was a constant issue. On the worst days I left the pop doors shut to protect the pullets from being shut out in the extreme cold. But it was NOT a good solution.

Therefore...kennels in the pole barn this year. It's an experiment and I may hate it but I'm going to at least try it. The part I won't like is that they won't be able to go outside freely if they choose to do so. But it will give them more indoor room and keep the youngers from being banned outside in extreme weather.

 

[Leahs Mom]

Quote:
Yah...the mats I saw were 100 lb mats for $39 ish through TSC.

So...how much bedding is down on those floors depth-wise?

 

[Turk Raphael]

Yah...the mats I saw were 100 lb mats for $39 ish through TSC.

So...how much bedding is down on those floors depth-wise?

Depth. When we put it down on a cleaned floor, I guess it's initially about 6 or 7 inches but when the birds are on it for a few days, they flatten it out to about half that. About half way through winter, we add another load of shavings and that does them til Spring. Every evening, we throw a bit of cracked corn around all areas of the floor and the birds keep the stuff turned over. Works for us.

Turk

 

[LakeMomNY]

I don't worry about my coop's deep litter not really, truly composting. When it is time to add some fresh material to the coop, I just pull some old litter from the coop into the deep litter in the run to make room.

The deep litter in the run really truly composts; the coop is healthy, dry, safe and super easy to maintain. The run is a healthy, interesting place to scratch around when the birds can't be out roaming free.

Nothing smells. There is no work.

It's a win-win-win setup.

 

[lalaland]

This is my first winter having chickens and I have kept their food and water out in the run all summer/fall. I was hoping to leave food and water outside in the winter, too, for the reasons you listed. I put a tarp over part of the run to keep the snow off that section. If I put their food/water in that covered area, will they come outside for it? I live in the northern Midwest where temperatures are at or below freezing for a good part of the winter. Others have said that even cold-hardy chickens will not come out of the coop in some winter weather. I have 3 EEs and 2 BAs that are 5-6 months old.

I live in northern mn, and keep the water and food outside during the winter. Leah's mom is right, I have to make sure there is a shoveled path to it (keep it out of the snow) or throw hay, etc so they will walk to the food and water. On rare days, say 40 below plus a horrid windchill, I might add food and water just for the day to the inside of the coop. With the setup you are describing, as long as they can reach the food and water without having to walk thru snow, they should be ok.

Some chickens will walk on snow, but that hasn't been my experience until almost spring

I have had chickens who got caught in a snowfall and refused to walk thru one or two inches of snow to get back in their coop at night. Came home to find them in the dark, wet and miserable, covered with snow, maybe 10 feet from their nice dry coop..