The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Leahs Mom]

Well...as you might have figured there was a reason I was asking about where you have mud.

I have posted about this before so those of you that have hung around for a long time are getting re-runs. But... I often see chicken yards totally denuded of any vegetation with totally impacted earth. The poo can't go anywhere in that kind of condition and it's very unhealthy. Then when it rains or snow melts, it becomes an impacted mud bog. This is VERY UNHEALTHY for the birds and the ground.

So...when the vegetation (grass) began to be depleted from my pen area, I began to do a deep litter in the run. Completely solves all those problems. It provides a HEALTHY substrate for your birds, creates healthy soil beneath that encourages insects to inhabit that the birds can eat, and totally eliminates the mud/slime problem.


We had some trees cut down and I had the crew dump the wood chips in a big pile. After it sat there for awhile, I discovered that it was full of red worms, so I put my electro net over there where they could dig through some of it and BOY DID THEY "GO TO TOWN" on that pile!!!!

Then...I began to move some of those chips, wheelbarrow full by wheelbarrow full, over to the dog kennel run. I've continued to move them over time working on getting it really deep in there in addition to whatever - including putting out the deep litter from inside when I clean out the hen house. My goal is to build a really deep base in that kennel so that they have a "winter area" that they can still dig down and find live bugs in there.

NOW THE GOOD THING...
Many tree services will leave wood chips for you free when they're working in your area. You can call the local tree services and see what they say. Many don't like to haul them back and dispose of them and they'd love to drop off a load for you.

I do let them sit in the pile to "cure" for a couple months before I use them. When I see worms inhabiting the pile I know they're good to go. That may not be totally necessary, just what I do. And I have so many piles now waiting for use that they're all okay.

Then, if you want...in the spring you can dig out some of the broken-down stuff under and put it in the garden. Or just leave it there to continue to do it's work

 

[Leahs Mom]

You can see the deep litter wood chips in the run in this photo. When the snow melts - or it rains - it just soaks right down into the ground. No puddling or mud to deal with.

 

[TeaChick]

Each state in the US has its own laws. Other places have laws, too. I believe everyone should know and follow the laws in their area, even if only selling "a few dozen eggs." Not following the existing laws usually invites more laws. Alternatively, work to change the laws if you don't like them.

I agree.

I have been having a minor sparrow issue that turned into a major sparrow issue while I was away for a few weeks on honeymoon. I am rebuilding my run to permanently solve the problem. But, since I have been back my older leghorn (4+ years) is looking not so great and I am considering worming all 6 birds as I know I have had a biosecurity issue. I haven't actually seen in worms in their poop so I also feel concerned about treating for something they may not have?

Do you worm? What to you use?

I worm monthly with cheyenne (don't spell it) pepper in their feed: a pinch per pound of feed.

 

[TeaChick]

I have a question for those of you that are talking about lots of mud.

Is the mud you're having in a fenced run area/fenced area? If not, where is the mud?

Pooticles!!!

Why, yes, I am an adult...why do you ask?

Me too; I'm an adult....
who's

@ "pooticles" with you!!!

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Quote:

We also, like Sally, built our coop somewhere the mud affects things with the chickens without realizing that it was going to be like this. =( Thankfully, we don't have a run, so they're not confined to the marsh in front of the coop.

It is just amazing to me that I did not know that I putting the coop and run in a low spot of a yard that sits low so a double low spot. But we picked our coop location based on picking a corner of the back yard away from the house.

 

[TeaChick]

It is just amazing to me that I did not know that I putting the coop and run in a low spot of a yard that sits low so a double low spot. But we picked our coop location based on picking a corner of the back yard away from the house.

That's how we picked ours too. We lived here for three years before getting chickens, and we still picked a location that basically floods. We were putting the coop in a good place for the chickens to be away from the dogs and ppl, we didn't remember that that particular corner of the yard floods every time we get more than a little rain. =(
At least they can get away from the mud hole that is their front yard....
by running around in my front yard.

 

[SallyinIndiana]

Quote:
my Dh insists that the corner NEVER flooded before the chickens. yeah no way, there had to be standing water and we just did not spend time in that corner. After all what kind of person without animals or children walks all over their yard just looking for wet spots.

 

[TeaChick]

my Dh insists that the corner NEVER flooded before the chickens. yeah no way, there had to be standing water and we just did not spend time in that corner. After all what kind of person without animals or children walks all over their yard just looking for wet spots.

Yeah, I understand. My DH misses things like that too. ;-)
Yeah, we walk around the yard for exercise (cuz we live in the middle of nowhere on a blind corner

), so we avoid that corner when we walk b/c we know it's wet. IDK why we weren't thinking of that when we decided to put the coop there. I just keep telling myself it's okay b/c we free range, so it's not like they're stuck there.
I did have to dig a ditch (which my DS actually finished for me) in front of the hen house so it wouldn't flood

anymore.



ETA: I knew literally nothing about chickens when we bought our pullets last March; I didn't even know how much I didn't know (I didn't think I knew everything, but I had a how hard can it be to free range chickens attitude). Only the strong survive has a whole different meaning to me now. I hate that I made things so much harder on my chickens than they had to be. =(

 

[aoxa]

If only fences would keep mud in... or out!

Mud and goats.... That would be the dream.

 

[flagirl]

My coop was surrounded by over a ft of water this last summer till november due to 75 yr rain! we brought in 10 yds of sand, filled over 60 sand bags to put around the coop and 1 1/2 ft sand in coop to get above water level. we put milk crates to dry land for hens to get out and range, but that stopped when bear and cub showed up about 4 months ago and got 5 hens that day. We got a rescue dog the next day and the poor birds were in coop with time out in afternoons when dog was in till hawk got another. down to 7 and they are now out of water and run is dry. water was never this high except for maybe 75 yrs ago! 3 months after our old dog died last feb, a bob cat came around almost every sunday for dinner, covered run and then the bear. luckily here in fla, I have a large garden, so they get plenty of greens in their large run everyday. I had to go 45 miles to get a pair of boots, everyone around here was out! hope not to have another rainy season like that for another 75 yrs.