What to do if I can't clean my coop for 3 months?

[Sydney65]

Did you use the granulated or the powder?

Granulated.

 

[tigger19687]

I admit my Granulated PDZ is a bit dusty when I 'sprinkle' it high in the air as it falls... not sure why I do that some times but I was trying to do a light thin layer. I am back to making it about 1/2 to 1" thick which is easier to me.

 

[aart]

I admit my Granulated PDZ is a bit dusty when I 'sprinkle' it high in the air as it falls... not sure why I do that some times but I was trying to do a light thin layer. I am back to making it about 1/2 to 1" thick which is easier to me.

It is, I keep my sifter low to reduce the dust.

 

[Sydney65]

It is, I keep my sifter low to reduce the dust.

Mine is bc guineas don't land gracefully; they crash,slide,claw & skitter. I was constantly wiping down walls,screens, killed 2 fans,wore a mask and cleaned their nostrils w/qtips. When I opened the door,I waited for the plume to settle before entering and still exited dusty.
Their landing technique hasn't improved, but hemp is more obedient to gravity.

 

[aart]

Mine is bc guineas don't land gracefully; they crash,slide,claw & skitter. I was constantly wiping down walls,screens, killed 2 fans,wore a mask and cleaned their nostrils w/qtips. When I opened the door,I waited for the plume to settle before entering and still exited dusty.
Their landing technique hasn't improved, but hemp is more obedient to gravity.

I only use it on the poop boards.

 

[Sydney65]

I only use it on the poop boards.

That's the only place I used it as well but they use their poop boards as landing strips before hopping down to the floor.

 

[Flockincrazy]

How are you doing

 

[Hermits Garden]

I don't mean to be nosy, but what kind of hip surgery? Hip replacement, or the arthroscopic kind? I had the arthroscopic kind on each hip a month apart, and was only on crutches a few weeks for each. Good luck!

 

[citychicks99]

I don't mean to be nosy, but what kind of hip surgery? Hip replacement, or the arthroscopic kind? I had the arthroscopic kind on each hip a month apart, and was only on crutches a few weeks for each. Good luck!

I have two. The first one is labrum repair. I believe that's the arthroscopic kind. The second one is PAO. That one is more intensive where they cut into my bone, move it to the right place, and hold it up with screws. So I think that one might take a little longer for me to heal.

How are you doing

Thanks for asking! My doctor called me a week before my scheduled date to let me know that they had to postpone my surgery because there was a shortage of hospital beds due to the rise in Covid. I'm rescheduled for March 4th.

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My brother is building the chickens a bigger coop the size of a shed. Is it okay if the grass and soil is their floor? He didn't want to add a floor for some reason. The chickens have been coming out in the yard during the day anyway. They're currently sleeping in a converted doghouse and we're going to move it in the new house in case they still want to sleep in it. I've been trying the deep litter method in the doggy house but I think I did it wrong because I didn't start out with enough pine shavings I think. There's an ammonia smell to it. I added a lot of shavings and it would smell great at first but as soon as I turn the whole pile the ammonia smell would come back. Does that mean I need to start over? I have to go get them more shavings and I might put the whole bag in there or half a bag in there along with a bunch of sweet PDZ.

 

[3KillerBs]

Is it okay if the grass and soil is their floor?

Yes, a dirt floor is just fine. But it really MUST have an anti-dig apron to make it proof against digging predators.

This coop has a dirt floor and a hardware-cloth apron.

I've been trying the deep litter method in the doggy house but I think I did it wrong because I didn't start out with enough pine shavings I think. There's an ammonia smell to it. I added a lot of shavings and it would smell great at first but as soon as I turn the whole pile the ammonia smell would come back.

My article: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/using-deep-bedding-in-a-small-coop.76343/

One of the major reasons for a Deep Bedding system to fail is that there are too many chickens for the amount of space/volume of bedding. If the dog house isn't providing generous space (the usually recommended minimum for any backyard chicken is 4 square feet per hen), then they produce too much manure and too much moisture so that no type of bedding can possibly keep up with it.

Other reasons for the system to fail are excessive moisture and insufficient ventilation -- especially top-level ventilation right at the roof level.