why is dust bad ?

[kentucky jay]

i read on here that people use misters to keep down the dust cuz its bad for the chickens...why is it bad for the chickens ? my coop has a dirt floor , and since i fixed the roof from leaking it has gotten very dry in there.....tons of dust when they come down from roost or even just scratchin ....

 

[teach1rusl]

I think ALL coops get pretty dusty

I've only read of using misters to help combat heat in the summer months...cool the birds off.

 

[gryeyes]

Quote:
Ditto.

 

[clairabean]

Think of YOU being 12 inches off the floor. Inhaling all that blown up dust in to your lungs. Every day. For most of the day. Yuck.

 

[GallusGal]

There are two reasons dust can be considered harmful. For one, breathing in dust constantly can - just like breathing soot or smoke - cause direct damage to the lungs and air sacs of birds. A bird's respiratory system is very delicate, and inhaling just about anything but air can cause damage over time. The other issue is that many pathogens have spores that can reside in dust, and upon being inhaled, can result in serious health conditions.

Remember, while chicken coops tend to become dusty, a dusty environment is not the preferred or natural state of the chicken; they were domesticated from a species of a topical climate, and for much of their early domestication, the species roamed freely rather than being confined to a coop where concentrated digging behavior quickly results in dust. You can find examples in veterinary literature of health problems caused by dust, and while some dust in the coop is unavoidable, excessive dustiness should be controlled in some way to prevent health issues.

 

[azygous]

I just picked up a bottle of neem oil from the garden and hardware store. It's a natural oil, harmless to chickens that's used to control garden pests, but is safe to use to settle the dust in coops and pens and it will control mites and other parasites.

 

[cgtara3]

Chickens have poor lungs. That seems to be their weak point. Dust and ammonia smells are not good for them in high concentrations. We can get rid of some of the bad stuff in our lungs when we have problems. They cannot. So caution is the best remedy.

 

[Laurajean]

Birds in general have sensitive respiratory systems. But I think the 'dust' concern is more regarding wood dust, from wood shavings in the coop, etc. I don't think dust from dirt would be as bad, although I am not sure of that.

 

[teach1rusl]

Well, I've still never heard of anybody using a mister INSIDE the coop...only out in the run...or the chicken hangout area for free rangers.