What do I do with all the chicken poo?

[valschicksrus]

I use deep litter and the poop doesn't give off a compost heat. It kind of dries up and settles to the bottom. Works so well and so little work...the only trouble I am always struggling with is when they are messy with the water and the shavings get wet = smelly and flies. Today the coop is getting a full clean out and I am going to paint the wallys and rearrange things so the water is in less of a traffic path. Enjoy your expanding flock. There is something about owning chickens that seems to destroy the ability to make mathematical calculations. We started with wanted 6 and somehow there got to be 17 out there!

Please explain the "deep litter method" once again for the newbies!! Is it just deep piles of shavings on the floor of coop??

 

[Chicken5ooh]

I just got back into raising chickens from when I was a young boy...it was "work" on the family farm and I didn't like it. We never had to really deal with the poo but since having my own little hen house I've been doing the "Deep Litter" method and I think it's the best. I use pine shavings and food grade DE mixed in and clean out is maybe every 4-6months pending how it looks. No fly or smell issue at all and when I do clean it out it goes in my vegetable garden and then gets tilled into the ground. It works for me, but I certainly recommend the deep litter and keep your water outside for now. Good Luck!

 

[J-Sanders]

ok deep litter folks, where do you purchase your DE and in what quantities? It seems online costs a fortune to ship the 50 pound bag, but my local farm stores don't sell it in anything larger than a 5 pound carton. I live near Kansas City, MO. I have really been frustrated on trying to locate something reasonable before I need my coop (my chicks are coming next week).

Go to the TSC in Independence MO and if they don't have it they can order it for you. We can also get the 35lb bales of Chris Cox blended hay at our TSC. Our prices run a bit higher than most states so yours should be cheaper. 16 dollars for the hay blend and about 10 dollars for the DE and Lime.

 

[J-Sanders]

Please explain the "deep litter method" once again for the newbies!! Is it just deep piles of shavings on the floor of coop??

Per my post at #31 in this thread.


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[Majd]

If you only have few hens not a problem use the poo as organics for plants... its great!!

 

[looneyrooster]

I have a small teeny tiny coop for my two chickens(rooster and hen)and i just leave the poo and it sorts itself out.I keep the chicken in the yeard and build a big cage around the soil so the soil is 1 metre deep

 

[ducklucky]

So many great ideas on here, but we will stick with the deep bedding method as we are in Maine and the last thing you want to do in the dead of winter is scoop, shovel, etc. Just keep adding your bedding as needed, maybe every couple of weeks. You don't want it to be wet, and when it starts smelling of ammonia, add another layer, and open up more on nice days. Depends how many birds you have, and yes, ventilation is a key, although we have to close up about 80% of it come Dec. If you clean your coop in the fall after your garden is done, you can put it all directly on the empty garden, and let nature take its course, and add any leaves or clippings or anything else. Works like a charm. Everyone has a different method, this worked for us even when we had 70 chickens (downsized to 10) they are thriving and perfectly happy. Just keep their nests nice and clean with plenty of fresh hay or whatever you use, they'll be fine.

 

[Pngzv]

Seriously I read once that someone wanted to put an a/c unit in their coup cause it was hot!! Really?i don't have a/c in my house.. What to do with poop?hmmmmm..I'm a u.s marine combat veteran started raising chickens to feed my wife and kids never could get myself to butcher one of my birds we just eat their eggs I thank them every egg I gather.. I put their poop in my garden my corn is 7ft tall I'd post a pic if knew how.. Tomatoe plants are 5ft. Cucumbers I pickled 25 pints and are now giving them away.. Green beans hollysmokes(dilly beans,caned, frozen) green peppers,banana peppers ok Im stopin put it in ur garden some mite say its to hot whatever that means!! I'm loving the results!!

 

[PuffyChick]

I just take my pine shaving with poo and dump it straight where any of my garden plants need fertalizing.
So far it doesnt seem to hurt and infact things are going a little wild crazy in the garden.
My 1st year apple/apricot/pear tree's trippled in size just this year!

Hubby is going to make compost tumblers (2) so when that gets up and running I will start composting I hope if I can get a good mix.

My big thing now is the heat and trying to find new spots that are partly shaded to move their tractor coop to.
I dont want their run area to soil the ground completely and kill off whatever they are on (currently my asparagus area)

How long do you think they could stay in one area befor they kill the ground they are on?
I have hopes of moving them from garden bed to garden bed sort of deal.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Seriously I read once that someone wanted to put an a/c unit in their coup cause it was hot!! Really?i don't have a/c in my house.. What to do with poop?hmmmmm..I'm a u.s marine combat veteran started raising chickens to feed my wife and kids never could get myself to butcher one of my birds we just eat their eggs I thank them every egg I gather.. I put their poop in my garden my corn is 7ft tall I'd post a pic if knew how.. Tomatoe plants are 5ft. Cucumbers I pickled 25 pints and are now giving them away.. Green beans hollysmokes(dilly beans,caned, frozen) green peppers,banana peppers ok Im stopin put it in ur garden some mite say its to hot whatever that means!! I'm loving the results!!

Thank you for your service! God bless America, the Land of the free, because of the Brave.