Chicken Coops for Sale in Mcleod, Montana
Chicken Coops for Sale in Mcleod, Montana
Sand Litter Bed In The Chicken Coop: An Experiment
We’ve been managing our chicken coop through a . This hybrid system has worked extremely well in . Briefly, how that system works is, the chickens roost over the sand, which acts like kitty litter to dry out their overnight poop, and in the morning the poop is raked to the lower area, where it composts-in-place with lots of straw and other high-carbon bedding.
Last year, fed up with the very real problems involved when you combine chickens and vegetable gardening, we decided to stop attempting to free-range our birds and instead fenced in a large, outdoor area adjacent to the coop. We confined the hens to this area (the ducks, less destructive, still get to free range) and this solved many of our chickens-scratching up-my-seedlings problems.
Too Much Of A Good Thing?
However, this confined run area led to another problem. This is a good problem, a problem I cannot believe I have, but it’s a problem nonetheless. In order to accommodate our flock in this confined area, we piled on the straw and woodchips in both the coop’s lower area, and the outdoor run.
This has led to, basically, more compost than I can use. Yeah, I have too much compost. Crazy, right? I didn’t know there was such thing as too much compost.
When I hauled out all the deep litter and piled it up, it looked like this.
And it’s not just dealing with storing Mount Compost Heap up there. The bedding was building up so deeply in both the coop and the run that we started to have problems just opening the door to the coop. The chickens weren’t super effective at scratching down to the lowest levels, and I’m embarrassed to say that some anaerobic ickiness was starting to take place in the deeper levels of the bedding.
Something needed to change.
Trying something new.
Is Sand A Solution?
In order to manage these drawbacks, we are experimenting with a sand bed in the run area of the coop. The fenced outdoor chicken area will still be managed as a deep litter system, with arborists woodchips and straw added as needed for carbon.
But inside the coop itself, I’m trying sand.
I had help raking out the new sand.
I see several potential upsides to a sand bed, and a few downsides as well.
Pros:
- Sand bed is lower profile, so we’re able to open the door without hassle.
- Seems drier in winter due to superior drainage.
- Spilled chicken food is less likely to get “lost” in the bedding. I’ve observed chickens pecking at the food that falls on the sand. Less food waste = less feed expense.
- Sand adds natural grit to a chicken’s diet and sharpens nails
- Probably less expensive in the long-term, since sand doesn’t require frequent additions or “top-ups” like a deep litter system.
- May allow for indoor dust-bathing. I have not observed my hens using the sand to dust bathe, but I’ve read that they will.
- May cut down on opportunities for Coccidiosis in chickens by providing an inhospitable environment for the protozoa.
- Easy collection of poop allows for a more dedicated manure-composting system, which might be of use to people looking at black soldier fly farming (hem hem, me) or related endeavors.
When the hens spill feed, they can pick it up now.
Cons:
- Cold. The sand does not add to the warmth of the coop like the composting bedding. The sand feels noticeably colder to me when I touch it, and I’m not even walking around barefoot like my chooks. Cold is a drawback here in January. However, to chicken keepers in hot weather climates, perhaps a non-heat generating litter option would be a benefit?
- Requires more regular dedicated maintenance. We’re already in the daily habit of scooping the poop from the sand covered upper coop area, so this doesn’t add a huge amount of work to that chore, but it’s definitely not the kind of job you can ignore for several
weeksdays. - Does not break down into compost. Unless your chickens already make more compost than you can use, less compost is a bad thing.
- The ducks don’t seem happy about the sand, but then ducks don’t like change, so I don’t read too much into this yet.
- Duck poop doesn’t scoop well. The front runner of Reasons I May Go Back To Deep Litter is wet duck poop on sand. Ewww.
- The poop has to go somewhere. In the prior system we just scrapped the upper poop onto the composting bedding. Now the upper and lower poop have to go somewhere. At the moment we’re scraping the poop out the door into the outdoor run area, but this experiment of sand-bedding the indoor run has triggered a re-evaluation of all my manure and compost management practices. So, simple change.
As of now, I have more questions than answers. I’ll let you know how the sand bed works out going forward.
Chicken Coop From Pallets in Mcleod, Montana
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Mcleod Montana" into any one of the numerous search engines and a wealth of information will pop up. This information will provide links to other websites that will be informative and will provide the right direction for finding Mcleod Montana chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Mcleod, Montana With the massive rise in poultry maintaining there has actually been a similarly huge increase in the variety of fowl stuff for sale. Poultry housing is an instance in point. It's additionally a traditional example of the great old bandwagon being got on as different potential poultry real estate specialists market a variety of lodging declaring to be the suitable option to your chicken real estate needs. Often the cost looks desirable, the house looks appealing, hell also the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look eye-catching. Definitely they understand a high quality chicken house when they see one? There are several low-cost and also unpleasant coops flooding the market. I recognize this as I've checked a number of them in the field, and seen a ewe run directly with one when the feed bucket appeared. The result was just a costly stack of fire wood as well as a small group of bemused and also currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Supplies in Mcleod, Montana
More often than not these standardized versions are built of rapid grown up hardwood - come the first decrease of rain they swell, leaving you either barricading a doorway that won't shut, or tearing the doorway furnishings off in a vain effort to release the squawking citizens. The initial warm and comfortable day means the wood dries out as well as fractures, the felt roofing bubbles and also boils, as well as come nightfall the chickens refuse to go in. This is not due to their frustration at the decrease of their when eye-catching commercial property yet because the hovel is currently a place for, and also possibly crawling with, the fowl caretaker's bane, red mite. Add on that it stated on the blurb that it would match 4 large chickens when that equipping density was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, as well as just what are you left with? A couple of joints as well as some kindling. A respectable coop for thee to 4 birds should cost you around ₤ 300 though this can depend on whether you elect for a complimentary standing house or one with a run affixed. Assuming you are varying your birds in a huge room and the pop hole doorway is big enough for the breed you maintain, after that the major requirements of real estate boil down to 3 points which will certainly specify the variety of birds the house will hold; perches, nest boxes and air flow. A lot of breeds of chicken will certainly perch when they go to roost in the evening, this perch needs to ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off edges so the foot sits conveniently on it. The perch should be above the nest box entry as chickens will certainly additionally normally seek the acme to perch. A perch lower than that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is by the way when they generate the most poo) bring about soiled eggs the list below day. They shouldn't nevertheless be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries can happen when the bird comes down in the early morning. Chickens require regarding 20cm of perch each (in tiny breeds this is clearly much less), plus if more than one perch is set up in your house they must be greater than 30cm apart. They will hunker up with their next-door neighbors however are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally your home needs to have a the very least one nest box for every single 3 birds and these need to be off the ground and also in the darkest area of your home. Your house ought to have appropriate ventilation: without it after that condensation will accumulate every evening, even in the coldest of weather. Be aware, air flow deals with the principle of cozy air leaving through a high void drawing cooler air in from a lower gap - it's not a collection of openings on opposite walls of your home and also at the very same level, this is what's referred to as a draft. If you have a house with a run connected after that the factors above are still real, but you ought to additionally think about the run size. The EU maximum lawful stocking density for a totally free range bird is (as well as allow's encounter it, one of the motivations for maintaining some chickens in the house is possibly improved or far better well-being) 2,500 birds each hectare, that's optimal one bird per 4m made even. Take a close check out some of the bargain houses - it could well be your house has the right perches, appropriate ventilation and also adequate nest boxes for a practical variety of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized item of ground to invest the day on? And so as the saying goes, "you get exactly what you pay for". You may believe you've grabbed a bargain, yet you as well as your flock could possibly rue the day you did. Purchase the best house and it will certainly last for a few years, otherwise longer offered the right treatment. In the long run your chicken and your fowl keeping encounter will certainly be a lot the better for it.chickens for sale
More Posts
Chicken Coops for Sale in Fort Harrison, Montana
Chicken Coops for Sale in Lewistown, Montana
Chicken Coops for Sale in Dutton, Montana
Chicken Coops for Sale in Bearcreek, Montana
Chicken Coops for Sale in Hall, Montana