wood chips verse hay?

[chicken parm]

right now I use wood chips in the coop and nest boxes. but was thinking of changing to hay. any hay users out there? would it be better?

 

[gritsar]

I use pine shavings in the coop and wouldn't think of using anything else. Very simple to shovel out at coop cleaning time. I use hay in my nestboxes. The girls round the hay out into nice nests and it's easier to take it out and replace.

 

[cockadoodle]

Limited use of hay is cool I think... nest boxes, a little bit in the run, etc. Is cheap, but it doesn't absorb like pine or many other alternatives, and therefore gets stinky faster from what I've seen and heard. The chickens like to scratch around in it, so it does have some entertainment value for them. I wouldn't use it for the primary bedding unless I was prepared to change it out frequently.

 

[cmom]

I use spanish moss. Eveything else I tried went out of the nest boxes including eggs. Not so with the spanish moss. I live in Florida where it is very abundant so I just go get it off some trees.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
You don't have a problem with redbugs from it?

 

[chookchick]

Wood chips are great, they are cheap, and stay nice and clean. I would only use hay (straw) for the nestboxes--it gets icky with poo. True hay can also cause impacted crops if they eat it.

 

[Sitka]

I prefer wood chips, bc they are absorbent and hay really isn't. The only thing I don't like about wood chips is that sometimes they have a lot of dust. But overall, I like them a lot. Easier to shovel / scoop.

[edit: typo]

 

[quercus21]

We use wood chips (sometime pine, I have a wood shop) on the floor, and straw in the nest boxes.

 

[HennysMom]

Please ensure you are differentiating between HAY and STRAW - as they are 2 different things. Hay can (and does) mold when wet and can make the birds sick; -straw doesnt mold (or it shouldnt anyway) and should be used for bedding vs. hay.

Just wanted to make sure the correct one is being used

I enjoy using pine shavings myself over straw as the straw just gets too messy for my taste and is awful to rake out, but I know alot of people that use it and love it. Its a personal preference thing.

 

[Mr_Jeff]

Hay is food, straw is bedding. Hay is also more expensive than straw because it is grown as a feed crop. Straw is a by product of a harvest. I prefer straw for bedding much more than chips. It's alot easier to clean up in my opinion and more stimulating for the birds to scratch through.