What's wrong with pine bedding, shavings or chips?

[sayccrn]

Hello, I have pine bedding in my coop and brooder, and I was on another forum and they were saying that pine can cause resp issues in your birds. But no one has answered me as to why and what else I can use? So far they seem fine with the pine bedding, I clean under their roosts every morning and they are out in their pvc tractor all day, so they are really only in their coop if really bad weather is around. Is there something else I can use. I do get grass clippings, but I don't think it would be enough to use just for their bedding, and won't grass/leaves get damp as it composts? Could I use a combination of pine and dry grass clippings? Or shouldn't I worry about the pine as long as I am cleaning under their roosts every morning? Thank you!

 

[DobieLover]

Hello, I have pine bedding in my coop and brooder, and I was on another forum and they were saying that pine can cause resp issues in your birds. But no one has answered me as to why and what else I can use? So far they seem fine with the pine bedding, I clean under their roosts every morning and they are out in their pvc tractor all day, so they are really only in their coop if really bad weather is around. Is there something else I can use. I do get grass clippings, but I don't think it would be enough to use just for their bedding, and won't grass/leaves get damp as it composts? Could I use a combination of pine and dry grass clippings? Or shouldn't I worry about the pine as long as I am cleaning under their roosts every morning? Thank you!

I read one anecdotal article about pine shavings possibly causing respiratory irritation.
I've used it in the past and I've never had a problem. I have since switched to hemp bedding because it's less dusty and will decompose better when I put it in the compost bin.
If I were you, I wouldn't worry about it at all.

 

[Kaesi2020]

I read one anecdotal article about pine shavings possibly causing respiratory irritation.
I've used it in the past and I've never had a problem. I have since switched to hemp bedding because it's less dusty and will decompose better when I put it in the compost bin.
If I were you, I wouldn't worry about it at all.

Hi Dobielover, I've been considering hemp bedding. Where do you get it from? We have an Agway and TSC nearby. I never noticed hemp bedding there though (I could be mistaken). Is there a huge price difference? Right now we get giant bags of pine shavings for about 12 dollars each. I'm willing to spend a little more though if it composts better and would be better suited for a small coop. Is the smell strong? Thank you.

 

[DobieLover]

Hi Dobielover, I've been considering hemp bedding. Where do you get it from? We have an Agway and TSC nearby. I never noticed hemp bedding there though (I could be mistaken). Is there a huge price difference? Right now we get giant bags of pine shavings for about 12 dollars each. I'm willing to spend a little more though if it composts better and would be better suited for a small coop. Is the smell strong? Thank you.

There's really not much odor at all with hemp bedding.
You're only about two hours north from me. Where I am, there are three hemp processing plants. I haven't been able to find anybody selling hemp bedding locally! That may change in the future though. Right now I have it shipped up from Virginia from New Country Organics. It's very pricey that way because it doubles the cost to have it shipped. A 33-pound bale costs about $20. However, I only clean my coop out once a year so it doesn't really bother me.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I was on another forum and they were saying that pine can cause resp issues in your birds. But no one has answered me as to why and what else I can use?

You can read all kinds of things on internet forums, including this one. In a lot of this type of warnings there is a grain or truth. It may be a microscopic grain but there often is something. If someone can't tell you why there is a pretty good chance they are repeating something they think they read or misread.

Cedar shavings can be harmful, especially if they are in a confined space. Perhaps someone confused pine with cedar. This kind of thing happens a lot. Perhaps someone read that they are not good for certain animals so they assume they are not good for any animals. If the pine shavings are kept really dry the chicks or chickens can scratch them into dust, but they can do that with a lot of different bedding materials. Sometimes something else causes a problem and someone may assume it is the pine shavings.

Many of us use pine or aspen shavings in brooders or coops or nests and do not have issues. As long as they are acting OK I would not worry.

 

[sayccrn]

Hi Dobielover, I've been considering hemp bedding. Where do you get it from? We have an Agway and TSC nearby. I never noticed hemp bedding there though (I could be mistaken). Is there a huge price difference? Right now we get giant bags of pine shavings for about 12 dollars each. I'm willing to spend a little more though if it composts better and would be better suited for a small coop. Is the smell strong? Thank you.

Same! following!

 

[sayccrn]

Many of us use pine or aspen shavings in brooders or coops or nests and do not have issues. As long as they are acting OK I would not worry.

Thanks so much!

 

[Chickenhappy8708]

You may of heard sawdust causes respiratory distress. It does in fact cause lung irritation. So no sawdust. But I use pine shavings in my coop, everyone seems just fine, good luck.

 

[sealer39]

You can read all kinds of things on internet forums, including this one. In a lot of this type of warnings there is a grain or truth. It may be a microscopic grain but there often is something. If someone can't tell you why there is a pretty good chance they are repeating something they think they read or misread.

Cedar shavings can be harmful, especially if they are in a confined space. Perhaps someone confused pine with cedar. This kind of thing happens a lot. Perhaps someone read that they are not good for certain animals so they assume they are not good for any animals. If the pine shavings are kept really dry the chicks or chickens can scratch them into dust, but they can do that with a lot of different bedding materials. Sometimes something else causes a problem and someone may assume it is the pine shavings.

Many of us use pine or aspen shavings in brooders or coops or nests and do not have issues. As long as they are acting OK I would not worry.

X2
Pine shavings make very good bedding. It drys out the poop quick and it’s easy to clean up.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

But no one has answered me as to why and what else I can use?

I have used pine shaving for a number of years for literally hundreds of chicks and never YET experienced any respiratory or other ill conditions caused by the shavings. After using a number of materials.. (industrial hemp not locally available) they come in different sizes and work fairly well.

I do also like rice hulls.. carried in the same plastic type bale as shavings and equally affordable at one of my LFS (local feed stores).

I did read some time back that the oils in cedar *could* cause issues for the feet skin, in addition to the lung stuff.. I don't use cedar, and definitely see how it's easy for folks to make the association jump to pine.. I see it all the time with things like deadly night shade and plants in the night shade family, for example.

Another product I have used is pine or aspen wood stove pellets.. preferred in my piggy litter box, but not in my brooders.

Hay/straw.. awful for absorbtion

Could I use a combination of pine and dry grass clippings?

For my coop, I do add in outside material.. some folks use the "deep litter" method. My location is too moist, so I got semi deep litter (think forest floor) on my coop floor and droppings boards to catch roost waste, clean as needed depending on season and stock density. My brooder usually only gets a shovel of dirt/grass for enrichment/immunity not as bedding.