Chicken Coops for Sale in Big Creek, West Virginia
Chicken Coops for Sale in Big Creek, West Virginia
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 Basics in Big Creek, West Virginia
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Big Creek West Virginia" 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 Big Creek West Virginia chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Big Creek, West Virginia With the big rise in poultry maintaining there has actually been a similarly huge rise in the variety of fowl materiel for sale. Chicken housing is an instance in point. It's also a timeless instance of the great old bandwagon being got on as various prospective poultry real estate professionals market a selection of cottage claiming to be the optimal option to your chicken housing needs. Commonly the rate looks attractive, the house looks appealing, hell even the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look eye-catching. Definitely they understand a top quality chicken house when they see one? There are several affordable and horrible cages swamping the marketplace. I understand this as I've examined a number of them in the field, and seen a ewe run directly with one when the feed bucket showed up. The outcome was nothing but a pricey heap of fire wood as well as a small group of bemused and currently homeless bantams.
Chicken Coop Adelaide in Big Creek, West Virginia
More often than not these mass produced versions are constructed of rapid grown hardwood - come the first decrease of rainfall they swell, leaving you either defending a door that won't shut, or tearing the door furniture off in a vain effort to launch the squawking inhabitants. The first warm and comfortable day indicates the wood dries and also splits, the felt roof bubbles and also boils, as well as come nightfall the hens choose not to go in. This is not because of their disappointment at the decline of their as soon as desirable property however considering that the hovel is now a sanctuary for, and most likely abounding, the fowl keeper's nemesis, red mite. Add the fact that it stated on the blurb that it would fit four big chickens when that stocking thickness was based on the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and just what are you left with? A few hinges and also some kindling. A suitable coop for thee to 4 birds should cost you in the region of ₤ 300 though this can rely on whether you elect for a free standing house or one with a run connected. Presuming you are varying your birds in a big space as well as the pop opening doorway is big sufficient for the type you maintain, then the major needs of real estate come down to three factors which will certainly define the variety of birds your house will hold; perches, nest boxes and ventilation. The majority of types of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost at night, this perch needs to ideally be 5-8cm large with smoothed off edges so the foot rests comfortably on it. The perch must be more than the nest box entrance as chickens will likewise naturally look for the highest point to perch. A perch below that will have the birds roosting in the nest box overnight (which is incidentally when they generate the most poo) causing soiled eggs the list below day. They shouldn't however be so high off the flooring of your home that leg injuries could take place when the bird comes down in the early morning. Chickens need concerning 20cm of perch each (in small types this is undoubtedly less), plus if greater than one perch is installed in the house they need to be more than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their neighbors yet are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird in front. Preferably your house ought to have a least one nest box for each three birds and these should be off the ground as well as in the darkest location of your house. The house ought to have appropriate air flow: without it after that condensation will certainly build up every night, even in the chilliest of weather. Be aware, air flow works on the concept of cozy air leaving via a high void drawing cooler air in from a reduced gap - it's not a collection of holes on opposite walls of your home and at the exact same level, this is what's known as a draught. If you have a house with a run connected after that the factors above are still real, yet you ought to likewise take into consideration the run size. The EU maximum legal equipping density for a cost-free array bird is (as well as allow's face it, one of the motivations for maintaining some hens in your home is possibly boosted or much better welfare) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's maximum one bird per 4m settled. Take a close consider some of the bargain residences - it could well be your house has the appropriate perches, appropriate ventilation and also sufficient nest boxes for a practical number of birds, yet will each of the chickens have anything more than an A4 sized piece of ground to spend the day on? And so as the saying goes, "you obtain just what you spend for". You may think you've got hold of a bargain, but you and your group could rue the day you did. Acquisition the right house and also it will last for a few years, otherwise longer offered the appropriate therapy. Ultimately your fowl and also your poultry maintaining encounter will certainly be considerably the much better for it.plan plan
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