Too much DE (cough) & sleeping in the nesting boxes. Oh, and winter.

[Hatrick]

So I think I've been using too much DE in my coop. I was just grabbing small handfuls and tossing it on top and mixing it around but I heard you're only supposed to use a light dusting. Is this stuff really that harmful for me to breathe in? (Not intentionally of course, just while cleaning.)

All three of my girls who are approaching laying age, I think, are sleeping in the nesting boxes. Is blocking them off at night the most effective way to stop them from doing this.

As well, I'm looking for tips on keeping them comfortable during the winter which up here (Ontario, Canada) can be bitter cold. We only have one vent on the side of the coop but I don't think that's enough. And yes, I have read the ventilation page I just don't understand it.

Where else should we add them and what kind of vent is the best to use for winter?

Sorry for the long random post.

 

[jemagsy]

If it's food grade de I think you will be okay, however, you may want to get some masks from the store and wear those while cleaning. We started doing that and it made things so much easier. Over time the dust, etc can really wear on your lungs, there's what they call baker's asthma or work-related asthma, where breathing in too much dust can cause lung problems, very unlikely with back-yard birdies, but just a "fun fact" for you.

We tried blocking off the nest boxes with a board and it ended up causing a lot of eggs to not get laid in the box, because we have some girls that like to lay before the sun is up. Also, the nest sleeper almost hurt herself trying to wiggle between the board and nest. I would advise that you wait until it's dark out and then take them out of the box and put them on the roost, a few weeks of doing that should give them the idea.

Hope that helps. Good luck with the nest sleepers!

 

[Chickenmaven]

The problem with throwing around DE is that it has such tiny particles, you can't help but breathe it in. Plus, the reason it is touted as a bug killer is that these particles are sharp. You do not want that in your lungs. You really need to buy some medical masks to use with the DE. They're cheap at the pharmacy.
Take care of yourself, so you can take care of your chickens!

 

[purplepeep]

Hey!

I am in Ontario, Canada too!! Where abouts are you? I know all about our winters... We're up in Timmins. brrrrr. lol.
I have one hen that always sleeps in the nest. I just let her be, since it is only one out of 17 that does it. Plus she looks so comfy all tucked in there.

I did have one chicken that always roosted on the window sill however, and I couldn't close the window at night with her there, so I just waited until dark and picked her up and moved her to the roost a few nights in a row. She never even woke up, and now she doesn't sleep on the window sill any more. I think it would work the same for the nest boxes. Plus I have heard that your roosts need to be higher than the nest boxes to get the ladies to sleep up there.

 

[Hatrick]

We're in St. Catharines, ON so not quite as cold as Timmins I'm sure.

Yeah, all three of them are sleeping in the boxes although they haven't started laying yet so I'm looking to break them of the habit before they start in a few weeks. I plan on cleaning out the whole coop tomorrow. And our roost is higher than the boxes by about six inches but it's pretty close to the roof of the coop, maybe it's too high? Oh and enlighten me, what is this "egg song" I'm hearing about?