Very muddy run and smell....what to do?

[dodgewoman]

Ok, so my hens have been shut in and didn't free range all winter due to our deep snow. I don't free range much as I have hawks and my Dane that likes to treat them like squeak toys so they are in the run a lot. It's starting to smell now that the thawing is happening. Plus is supper muddy and even puddles in some spots. What can I do to help with out spending a ton of money?

 

[Ridgerunner]

Read this. It’s got some good ideas.

Pat’s Big Ol' Mud Page (fixing muddy runs):
https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=1642-fix-a-muddy-run

It’s not good but when it sets in rainy or during the thaw it’s something you might have to live with a bit. However, they do need to be able to stand on something dry. They can get blisters on the bottom of the feet if they live in wet. So put something out there that they can occasionally stand on that is up out of that mess.

I don’t know what your set-up is but there are two basic concepts. I know it’s too late for a lot of these but maybe one or two will give you an idea.

The first is to try to stop water from getting in there to start with. Slope coop and run roofs so they don’t drain in there or use gutters to get that water away. Use berms or swales to divert water from running in there. Maybe a roof or some kind of rain guard on the sides. A lot of rain will blow in from the side.

The other is to give water that gets in a place to go. Don’t put your coop or run in a low spot where water drains to or stands. Build the run level up so it is higher than the surroundings. I added a few inches of clay dirt to my coop floor to make sure it was higher than the surroundings. But in a run where rainwater will probably blow in sand will be better since it drains so much better. Part of the problem is that clay will hold water while sand will help it drain out. The clay in my coop will stop water from soaking in but sand will help it soak out of a run. As long as the water has a place to drain to, a French drain may be real beneficial. What you can do depends a lot on your terrain.

I’ve got a roof over my run, put it where it is a bit high so it can drain, and built a swale to keep rainwater runoff out, but it’s still a muddy mess when it rains a bunch. Part of it is high enough and under that roof to at least give them a dry place to go and I dumped some pea gravel at the door from the coop so I have a more solid place to walk. But they will still dig holes for dust bathing which become mud puddles.

Good luck with it. Pat’s article might give you some ideas.

 

[jetdog]

I agree with diverting the water so it doesn't get inside, I have course sand in my run with a roof on it and everything is dry, I used septic sand because it drains very well, just a perimeter of 2x6's with weed fabric and wire then the sand on top I used about 5 inches of sand.

 

[dodgewoman]

Sands a good idea! I can throw some pallets in there for them to stand on. I know it can't be good for them to be in mud. Our problem isn't run off, we just live in a very high water table area so any extra water just sits!

 

[Alicatt]

I used lime for the smell, got it from tractor supply, near the horse stall stuff. Haha, told lady I needed lime and she said, limes grow on trees.I guess she saw me looking at the seed packets. Under the feeder I used crushed stone, and in the corners too. I used pallets where I could with scrap wood on top and hay. The rest I built up with pine bark nuggets.

 

[Kazfam]

Any leaves around? Piled and left from the fall?
Toss them in the run as litter...

 

[Maximus23471214]

I also do that and it works well..