What's the single most valuable thing you learned from BYC?

[azygous]

Regarding managing and caring for your flock?

Soon after I adopted my first two adult hens, I came here and the first thing I learned that was a complete revelation to me was the use of poop boards! It's the one thing that has made it easier to clean up after my chickens and make them more enjoyable.

Every morning I pull the poop boards out of the coop and scrape them off and wash them down. For the rest of the day, the coop stays clean and odor free. Very often I try to imagine how awful it would be to just let the poop accumulate and not have an easy way of removing it each day. The amount of poop generated during just one night is phenomenal. I'm happier knowing it's not piling up in the coops.

 

[HighStreetCoop]

So far, it's the idea to use stall freshener in my coop (Sweet PDZ). I'm used to it for horses, but it never occurred to me to use it for birds.

 

[leanna1120]

How are you using the Sweet PDZ? Just sprinkle it on the bedding periodically? I am new to chickens and don't have them in their coop yet. I was planning to sprinkle some Sweet PDZ on the poop board and on the floor. I am using sand for bedding in the coop and run.

 

[HighStreetCoop]

I'm not using sand. I want something that will add a little cushion for the LF when the come down off the perches. I've got Sweet PDZ in the brooder now with the pine litter and I'll keep using it in the coop in the litter to help keep things as ammonia-free as possible (I use it on the dog pee spots in the yard, too (having Mastiffs is kinda like have a pony pee everywhere in your yard!).

Depending on how things go, I may add a poo hammock full of PDZ under the roosts. We'll see.

 

[LakeMomNY]

Ventilation. Ventilation. And more ventilation.

 

[aart]

Poop boards with PDZ is probably one of the best things I've learned.


But I've learned a TON of good stuff here....

...and a lot of bad stuff too, mistake others made that I avoided because I read about it here.