Amultitude of bedding option that can be used in chicken hencoop exist . Some are promptly usable and usual , while others may take a number more searching to situate .
No matter which type of Gallus gallus bedding you choose , it ’s significant that it :
“ Litter ” and “ bedding ” are term often used interchangeably . Though to get technical , bedding material is what is spread on the flooring of a coop and bedding is what ’s used in nest boxes — where chickens bed down for the nighttime if not perch . These materials need not be the same , though many chicken owner use the same production in both areas to minimize piece of work .
Chickens ’ excrement is unequalled . Though they do n’t urinate , the feces they pass is still watery and , if not managed the right way , smelly ! Additionally , crybaby are ill-famed for playing in pee dish and containers . The weewee that ’s toss away around the coop must be absorbed to keep pathogen at bay .
Here are the most common choice backyard chicken - keepers use as bedding that absorbs moisture and keeps chicken comfy .
Wood Shavings
By far the most - common bedclothes in the United States , pine wood shavings are sold in farm- and provender - supplying storehouse across the state . useable in self-aggrandizing cube as stock bedding ( that cross 8 three-dimensional feet ) or minor - creature bedding ( that covers 41⁄2cubic feet ) , this bedding is common for a large number of reason .
Shavings specifically for chickens will often say the intersection has been heating system - treated to prevent salmonella , E. coli and mold spores . This type of hit the hay also suppress bacterial growth , even when blind drunk . And the light color is especially welcome during cold , dark winter months .
There is some argument regarding using cedar shavings in cage because of the use of plicatic acid . This can break down airway and lung cells , make respiratory distress and asthma .
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Leah Alessandroni get it on her seven chicken on fine - flake pine shavings . After much inquiry , Alessandroni decided on this bedding as the product was readily available . Also , she utilizes the rich - litter composting method .
“ The fine paring work really well to keep everything clean and easily sundry , ” she pronounce . “ They break down quicker than the bigger flakes , too . ”
Sawdust
Sawdust , fine than Sir Henry Wood shavings , is sluttish to come by but not always the serious pick for chicken coop . Notoriously dusty , it ’s also imperative that poulet owners eff on the button what type of wood bring out the sawdust to prevent accidental poisoning of poultry .
The chief con to sawdust is a big one . Dust that pass off when the chickens work and scratch line can cause birds to cough , wheeze and spittle . It can also guide to respiratory issue .
If sawdust is used in a small area where razzing do n’t have much room to move around , it might be fine . But invalidate sawdust in areas where there is much feathering - fluffing and scratch . If there is an option to have sawdust ground slightly large or to use sawdust shot , you could avoid the dustiness .
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Read more : Help ! I think I might be allergic to my wimp !
Straw
Straw is made from the knotty , yellow chaff of cereal grasses such as barley , oats , rye whiskey and straw after harvest of the grain and stalk . An farming byproduct , there are many use for straw , including as bedding ( for people and brute ) and building stuff ( mainly as insularism and roofs ) .
Straw differs from hay , which is easy and more nutritious . Hay is principally used as a eatage for livestock .
Laurie Mays , owner of Branded Stock Farm in Paris , Kentucky , leverage straw rigorously for her chickens ’ nest box seat , which they are in only at Nox ( during the day the chicken free - range in a poultry - fenced area ) . Though chaff keeps the eggs of her two Americanas ’ lay clean-living , it postulate to be interchange more ofttimes than she ’s used to . It is commodious and cheap , though , she notes .
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Jacquie Jacob , fowl extension projection managing director for the University of Kentucky , note that wry , chopped straw of any form can be a great source of litter for chicken coops . Flax and pale yellow can also sour . veritable wheat , however , is not very good , she state .
Sand
Sand used as litter in a coop seems to divide volaille owners unlike any other bedding choice . proprietor are often securely entrenched in either the honey - it or hate - it camp .
If using backbone as bedding , it ’s important to choose the right character . You also have to ensure the sand is ironical when install in the henhouse . Play sand should be nullify as bedding , as it retains moisture .
Medium- to coarse - grained sand drains well and are greatchoices in chicken coops .
If purchasing sand from a gravel caller , you may have to make an in - person head trip to see the different type of backbone they have usable , as there are n’t any accepted , industry - wide sand monikers .
The undecomposed character of sand is river , construction or camber Amandine Aurore Lucie Dupin . These comprise multiple particle sizes , admit little pebbles.DenisProduction.com/Shutterstock
As picayune as1⁄4 - in of sand on the coop floor may be sufficient for comfort and cleanliness . But it ’s significant to remark that piranha can tunnel into the coop through sand floors if no other materials are used .
to boot , moxie can suspend in the wintertime , lose all of its padding abilities .
Hemp
The use of hempen necktie in many ag and industrial mount is on the rise around the macrocosm . Its use by poultry enthusiast is no elision . Made from the center portion of a hemp plant , it ’s all - born and a safe bedding option for show and delight birds .
Some flock owners who have used hemp note that it can hold some long character that can get tangled on skirt ’s feet .
Read more : quick to establish a coop ? hold out these chicken coop basics .
Cardboard
composition board bedding is comprised of duncish piece that have been shredded into with child glob . Once installed in a hencoop , the cardboard should be shake up each Clarence Shepard Day Jr. . This allows the manure to model on top of the bedding and dry out .
The bedding should never get wet and big .
We should note that the type of cardboard used for chicken should be sportsmanlike , recycled cardboard . Colored cardboard can include chemical substance that can harm your poulet .
Shredded Paper
Many volaille proprietor have access to newspaper and information processing system paper . Using these products in a henhouse can minimize their entry into the waste current . tear up all paper place in the cage .
Pros
Paper bedding emits more ammonia than shavings or pale yellow . So it ’s imperative that shredded newspaper get it on be vary often .
Also , though many newspaper now use Glycine max - based ink , some still use inks that contain crude oil or hard metals . These can be unhealthful for chickens ( and humans ) .
Other Plant-Based Options
Depending on the neighborhood of the country in which a chicken - custodian resides , there may be other pronto uncommitted coop bedding options not mentioned in this clause . Pine needle , rice hulls or dried leaves fall to bear in mind .
In some states , monkey nut hulls are also used as bedding for wimp , though aflatoxin can be an subject , notes Jacob .
More Information
The average biddy produces 1 cubic substructure of manure every six month . Multiply that by the number of biddy in a wad , and that ’s a set of manure !
compost chicken manure is a marvellous style for crybaby to provide even more than ball . They can increase garden output , as well .
Applying constitutional topic to soil increases its power to hold water , as well as improves drainage and reduces corroding . Compost also acts as a food source for soil microbes , which speed up the breakdown of nutrients into more - usable forms .
Though volaille manure can be spread directly on field of force , it ’s more useful when its composted , says Jacquie Jacob , domestic fowl extension project manager for the University of Kentucky .
in the raw manure should not be used on vegetable crops because of nutrient refuge issues .
Poultry litter is high in nitrogen ( as well as phosphoric and potassium ) , so it has the potential drop to glow plant . Gallus gallus manure should be composted for a minimum of five to six weeks to allow for sentence for it to “ cool . ” This clip also allow disease - make pathogens to be destroyed .
Everything removed from a crybaby coop can be composted . This include manure , undigested intellectual nourishment , bedding fabric and feathers .
The ratio of volaille manure and bedding to other material should be :
Gather the material in a compost bank identification number and wet them good . This will begin the process of raise the inner temperature of the pile . The pile should reach a temperature of between 140 and 160 degree F for several weeks to thin out the danger of dirt - borne pathogens .
The cumulation should be rick every few weeks to ensure all the manure is composted and to admit oxygen to interpenetrate the pile and reduce its spirit .
senesce volaille manure is also an alternative . It learn between six and nine month for chicken manure to break down decently using this method acting , which follows the same ratio note above .
Once the manure wad is made , it ’s leave alone to violate down . Without the useof heat energy , the long compost is age , the more the universe of disease - causing bacteria will decline .
Whether compost or age , chicken manure should be applied to gardens no later on than 90 days prior to harvesting of trellis crops and no by and by than 120 days prior to harvest of ground - contact crops .
This article in the beginning look in the March / April 2022 issue ofChickensmagazine .
