What do you put on the ground in your run?

[angelika]

We built a nice big run for our new flock for during the day. We let them free range in the late afternoon when we are home. They have already eaten all the vegetation that was once in the run area. So do I put something down now? Hay? Sand? Nothing? Or let it be dust and dirt? Also how do you clean the run? I can't usually find any big chunks of poop like in the coop. So I am not sure what to do. Thanks in Advance!!

 

[moonflowerfarms]

We put in straw. We find that it's easier to clean than just the ground, and it keeps them cleaner. My dog agility trainer, who has a bunch of chickens, just does hard ground. She got a bad case of chicken mites and the vet said it was partly because the chickens didn't have anything to wiggle around in to keep the mites down. We just put in the part of the straw bale we want to use in the middle of the run. Then the chickens have a wonderful time scratching it out into the rest of the run over several days. We loosen the flakes a bit, but they enjoy doing the rest themselves. Lots of good scratching.

 

[chfite]

Four inches or so of sand will allow the run to drain, chickens to turn under wastes for decomposition, dig for dust baths to keep clean. It is hard to beat sand. Just shovel it into the run, the chickens will level if for you.

Chris

 

[aart]

I don't have anything on the ground of the run, nor do I 'clean' it, poops dry up and/or disintegrate.....luckily my soil is very sandy and drains pretty well.

When we get heavy rain there is some drainage thru the run and I just throw down a thin layer of straw right in front of the pop door to cut down on the muck tracking into the coop.

Sometimes you need to wait and see what the condition of the ground is to know if anything needs to be done or not.

 

[angelika]

Thank you for all your input. I think I will wait and see what happens, and maybe do sand if need be!