What is the best nesting material for boxes?

[matt44644]

I use covered cat boxes with straw on the inside.

 

[RonP]

I have been using shredded junk mail for nesting material for over 6 years now.

Yes they eat it.

It's not a problem, as I get a lot of junk mail.

I will not shred any shiny paper or metallic inks.

They eat a lot worse in their deep litter outdoor run.

 

[Akrnaf2]

The best nesting matirial is pine shivings. Pines have natural oils, that the main ingredient in it are poly Terpenes, the pine oil have a powerful antibacterial,anti viral,anti fungal and anti helmintic influence! This bedding reduce dramatically all pathogens in the coop!

 

[JLGauntt]

I've been using some leftover artificial turf (just the turf - no infill). No mess. It's very easy to clean (just hose down) and the girls really seem to like it.

 

[MilleFluersRus]

I don't believe that dryer lent would be good to use. The dust can be bad, the little paper shreds can be of possible interest to them and the hairs and threads that make up the lent are not something that would be good for your clucky ones

 

[3baymares]

Our chickens enjoy laying on fleece. Keeps the eggs clean too. They do not push the fleece blanket material around either nor have they pooped on it (2 months of use so far). In this photo you can see they are clean except for a feather and one wood chip.

 

[carlsaSC]

I sized my nest boxes to hold a plastic dish basin (12 quart size) from WalMart. They're about $2. I use pine straw to line it, and the chickens do make nests in it. But the added cushioning of the plastic bottom makes broken eggs unlikely. Plus, removing them for cleaning and refilling with straw is easy.

 

[BenandHelen]

So how deep should the bedding/nesting material be in the boxes? Our nesting boxes are built into the side of our coop. They are pretty much right at floor level.

 

[casamatt]

I too just started using flake pine shavings as a base in my girls boxes and then applying some horse hay that my Hackney wouldn't eat. It's working great so far and I just added 13 more hens to my 6 and no problems with any even after all the "hen pecking".

 

[TLove99]

I put some rubber mat down in the bottom then added a little grass clippings from the yard on top. I feel the mat gives some padding and insulation since its one of those nest boxes that hangs out from the coop. There is just enough clippings to make it look nesty. They really wouldn't help much for a real nest. I tried pine shavings before I put the mat in but they kicked them out and made a huge mess. They seem to like this set up. There are some clippings on the coop floor but nothing like the pine shavings. And the grass is free!