Wood chips or straw?

[chriscos]

We usually use pine shavings, but this winter I tried straw in the coop and the "deep litter" method. It worked pretty well, but come spring when I had to clean out all that straw.... it was not easy. I've found that the straw does not compost as quickly as the shavings too (which you think would be the opposite, but that has not been my experience).

The straw is supposed to absorb and retain more of the nitrogen in the urine, which makes it better for composting. But like I said, in my climate anyway, the wood chips seem to be composting faster than the straw.

 

[Mikee1948]

Quote:
For the coop and nesting boxes. I've used straw but it was too smelly and messy. I buy the chips at Walmart, much easier to maintain.

 

[hondo58]

The chickens get the same treatment as the horses...pine shavings for all.

 

[bleith]

I like pine shavings in the coop with a little DE sprinkled around. the run has dirt but will probably get sand in the future

 

[peepblessed]

Quote:
So glad you mentioned the cedar! I was thinking how great it would be. I have used alfalfa which is a great natural odor killer but they eat it pretty fast. I guess it saves on feed

Does anybody have thoughts on alfalfa?

 

[umanduhbree]

I use wood chips inside the coop and will be switching over to sand and dirt in the run after reading some other posts. Thanks all for the info.

 

[Rhode Island momma]

I am new to raising chickens(6 months) but I researched this quiet a bit and I have tried both. I use wood chips. The straw seems to hold moisture longer which attracts more bugs, it also doesn't seem to be good with the poo, the poo just stays on top, it was smellier in the house with it in there, and it breaks down faster too. The wood chips dry quickly, and soaks up some of the poo (especially the runnier stuff).

 

[MOChickenz]

I have to say something here. Lol. Not likely to be popular.

I am no expert, but while I use only straw in my brooder, I do use a thin layer of cedar shavings under the straw in the main coop. It smells better, they lay great, and my vet said as long as your coop is well ventilated and you are not dealing with baby chicks it is fine. He does strongly advise against using cedar in the brooder.

I had a breakout of a respiratory illness last winter and a few reoccurances in chickens through the early spring. We culled these, of course. I started using the cedar in April. No problems at all that I can tell. I am not saying that it helped with the respiratory illness, I just don't see it hurting them.

 

[Yashar]

Neither,
I use leaves!
I rake up all my leave in the fall and keep them dry under a tarp. I use them for my chicken barn that has a wood floor and use them for my aviary.

Leaves are free if you have a big enough yard to collect them and a place to store them. You could use really large trash bags too keep them fresh. You can jam a lot into one bag.
They break down into really nice compost for the garden. They don't rot like hay or stink. The chicks really like them, so do the big girls.

 

[HappyChickenLover]

As long as the leaves don't cause mildew or mold...