Topic of the week - Dustbathing

[Shannon89815]

I filled a large plastic bowl with dirt and a bit of wood ash for my 2 week old chicks, that are now 4 weeks old. I stay away from chemicals or additives. I have a 5 ft diameter HW stock tank as a master bathtub, so my 6 chicks are currently in the tub in the bathroom.

As the chicks have taken to really enjoying dust baths, dusty dirt is everywhere!! Dirt on the vanity counters! Dirt on the window sill! Dirt, dirt, dirt! I'm vacuuming, mopping, and wiping up counters and sills daily and counting down the weeks/days until I can move these little sweeties out to their coop and run area. They also like to peck around and scratch in the dirt bowl - which gives them something to do.

Using large plastic bowls or larger open animal water tubs would work well during winter months inside the coop or run of snow covers the ground.

 

[silarajc]

I'v tried giving my 7 week old chicks a casserole container of sand, and sand mixed with composted soil. They seem to just empty it out, scratching and pecking at it, rather than dust bathing. They will dustbathe in the wood chip litter, though.

 

[Banaynaychicken]

I'v tried giving my 7 week old chicks a casserole container of sand, and sand mixed with composted soil. They seem to just empty it out, scratching and pecking at it, rather than dust bathing. They will dustbathe in the wood chip litter, though.

chicks tend to attempt dust bathing in anything at first.

mine tried to on a blanket. it was cute cuz all she would do was flap and flop in a little circle on the blanket.

 

[VC2]

We live in Phoenix and although I've given my pullets 100lbs of sand in their run and they have a large dirt area (both with DE sprinkled in) they prefer my raised planters or the kids sandbox. I've had to tell the children the sandbox is now off limits because I can't keep them out of there! I can understand the planter and raised garden because it's usually moist and cooler in the 106 degree heat but why the sandbox guys... why?

 

[Petra Pancake]

My chickens just dig their own dust bathing pits in their run and all over the back garden. It looks like a little mine field (got no problem with that in general, it's sort of rugged terrain anyway). A few days ago I found that they had dug one right next to a young lime tree which was coming loose because of it. I just put a plastic crate over the hole to stop it from getting worse.

 

[Judith Mardula]

We live in Phoenix and although I've given my pullets 100lbs of sand in their run and they have a large dirt area (both with DE sprinkled in) they prefer my raised planters or the kids sandbox. I've had to tell the children the sandbox is now off limits because I can't keep them out of there! I can understand the planter and raised garden because it's usually moist and cooler in the 106 degree heat but why the sandbox guys... why?

Lol, glad to hear that. The place where my run will be was originally a dog kennel, then a secure play area for my grandson's sandbox! It has a big red maple in the middle and should be fine for my eventual chickens...now I won't get rid of the sandbox. .

 

[thewatsonfarm]

Watching the girls dirt-bathe is one of my favorite joys! They have the best time!!! I love when they are so blissed-out that they roll over on their backs, belly in the air -- hilarious!

I have a wine barrel that they use most often, and there's a tire that they use too -- both I have filled with dirt. They have made a few pits of their own under the bushes around the perimeter of the yard, but our soil is clay & really tough for them to dig up. Not so nice and soft as the dirt I give them. And honestly, I think they love the luxury of flinging a whole lot of dirt around. Only the barrel and the tire have that much loose dirt.

I don't add anything except a bit of sand sometimes. We have gas logs in the fireplace -- not a real fire = no wood ash & I'm suspicious of DE. It never occurred to me before last week or so that people would have "recipes" for dirt baths, but I think that's awesome! I learn so much on this site!!!

We went through major house construction last summer, so I accidentally let the yard get really out of control & this year I am working hard to reign things back in & beautify. I saw this cute idea about painting tires as dirt baths. This is so cute!!!

Source: https://www.weedemandreap.com/repurposing-chicken-baths/

If the author of this blog is here on BYC -- I just found your blog recently & it's terrific!!! My girls may need their tire to be painted purple. I'm all for fancy-fancy when it comes to spoiling the girls! Love, love, love!!! (Again, this is not my photo -- I am sharing from the blog of a creative genius!)

*Oh, we don't have winter here. I'm in southern California.

 

[cruzer4u]

Has anyone thought of or know if providing dry coffee grains for dustbathing is good for chickens? It's good for the soil.

 

[Hoodoo Hens]

I just recently moved my chicks to their coop. Since I still have to finish enclosing the run and they're going to be locked in the coop in order to imprint that it's home, I decided to make them a little dust bath for the interim.

I found a lid to a plastic container that was just laying out near the wood shed, left here by the previous owners and decided to make use of it. I went out into the pasture and shoveled some dirt that had been freshly dug up by the moles or voles, but they leave a nice powdery dirt that was easy to scoop off with a shovel. I probably filled the lid halfway full with soil. The lid is about 2' x 18" and about 4" deep. I realize it's not that deep for a long term dust bath, but it'll do fine for now.

To that I added about six cups of wood ash that's been saved from the wood stove and about six cups of DE. I had the DE already, as I use it to help keep ants from invading the house and barn. I stirred that all up and stuck it in their coop. I think it took about 5 minutes before a Wyandotte figured out she could bathe in it. When I left there were 3 Orpington in there and the Wyandotte all having a good time.

 

[achiekitty]

We free range our girls for most of the day and they find their own spots. Ocassionally, they also find a way to get in the vegetable beds. Lately, when we let them out to the front yard, they’ve been going to the neighbor’s unplanted area to dust bathe.

The front yard is off limits currently, even when they are begging to come out.

Needless to say, I should probably make an area, under cover, in their run (or somewhere in our own yard) for their dust bath.