The Old Folks Home

[Alaskan]

Most of the poop is caught by the poop trays... So the bedding on the ground isn't too bad.. Yes, layers of uck... But you shovel it out while it is still cold enough that the stench is muted.

It is mostly the poop trays... That do get but again, slice those out with a trowel as soon as they are soft enough to slice.... And it us gone before there is enough warmth to boost the stench.


Even in high summer... I only need to clean poop trays about once a month.... So letting them go three months over the winter, isn't deadly.

 

[Alaskan]

Before I had poop trays... I would get these stalagmites of poop under the perches. SUPER bad, and nasty, and in a frozen block, that you couldn't get rid of!

That was bad...

Now is better....

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I get two of those in the places the poop boards don't cover. I call them Poo Mountain. It's awful.

 

[drumstick diva]

think I'm gonna have nightmares about "poo icicles and such"

 

[LocalYokel]

think I'm gonna have nightmares about "poo icicles and such"

 

[bruceha2000]

Those of you that live in cold climates will appreciate this. Today we're supposed to go up to 42! While we have not had a bad winter by any stretch of the imagination, the last few weeks we've been below freezing day and night, causing poop-sickles to occur in the coop. With the thaw today I figured I'd get an opportunity to chisel the stinkers out of there before spring nastiness.

Well...



At least I got 2/3 of the coop done before this happened.

Similar weather here, I guess the weather gods decided we should have a bit of a reprieve after last winter.

I don't shovel. I rake under the roosts every morning with a regular plastic garden rake. Broke one last year when I was pushing rather than pulling. Usually I can "hula hoe" back and forth but that time I hit too much solid while flexing the tines while pushing. This winter I am only doing pulling until I'm sure the pushing will just encounter stuff that is loose.

Not sure why you all are getting poopcicles and poo mountains. I don't have poop boards and the pine shavings are several inches deep under the roosts. Maybe because my coop, being inside an old barn, is a lot more open?

I like that! I may have to ask santa for one.

Or maybe instead of a long handled chisel, a weed killer flame thrower!

 

[Alaskan]

bruce, it must not be that cold where you are.

The poop mountains form when 5 minutes after it leaves the chicken it freezes into a rock. There is NO raking or pushing or pulling unless you are using a jackhammer or dynamite.

Nothing moves, the bedding, if you had more than 10% humidity, does not move... nothing moves. Solid bleebing rock.

You go out there, see the nasty poo mountain, kick it as hard as you can... and break a toe.

That is why every day you have to put a layer of fresh sawdust or whatnot over the poo mountain, so that you can pretend it isn't there... until finally there comes a day when it thaws enough that the poo mountain can be hacked out... probably with a pick ax, or a clam shovel. You just pray that you can knock the mountain down before it reaches their fluffy rear ends and fuses your cute chickens to the top of the poo mountain.

Lucky for me... this winter and last have been super long, dreary, extended falls. No below zeros. No poo mountains.

The poop shelves help lots, but when it does get super cold.... I actually do start to worry about one of my shelves, since the perch really isn't that high.... not that much poop storage space.

 

[Alaskan]

huh..... I don't clean that often any more.... and no scary mountains....

huh....



my chicken density per square foot must be way lower than it used to be, hadn't thought about it, huh.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I do actually have one of those propane weeders.

Al, you are hilarious, and completely right. There is no raking when the entire sheet of poo and shavings is frozen solid.


I should have been smart enough to realize I needed to have the human door open outwards when I built the coop, but alas, I didn't. That was another reason I needed to get in there and start hacking away, yesterday. It was getting to the point that the door wasn't opening enough to bring the waterer in and out.

 

[perchie.girl]

Powers been out twelve hours just came on and another wind storm is threatening to hit.

People next door lost a tree and their patio. They say this storm is NOT el nino... I believe it because its Freaking cold wind. And blowing the wrong direction.

Trees here are braced for east west west east wind. This is racing up the canyons coming from the south.

I have only seen it blow like this once before.... in San Diego. About thirty years ago. WE were due.

deb