Chicken Coops for Sale in Muskego, Wisconsin
Chicken Coops for Sale in Muskego, Wisconsin
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 House in Muskego, Wisconsin
A good place to start any search is the internet. Simply plugging in the phrase "chicken coops for sale in Muskego Wisconsin" 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 Muskego Wisconsin chicken coops. What to look for when buying a chicken coop in Muskego, Wisconsin With the substantial increase in chicken keeping there has actually been a just as big increase in the range of poultry stuff for sale. Poultry housing is a proceedings in point. It's likewise a classic example of the great old bandwagon being got on as various potential poultry housing professionals peddle an array of lodging asserting to be the suitable solution to your chicken real estate needs. Frequently the cost looks eye-catching, your house looks attractive, hell also the clean-cut family members standing there feeding the chickens look desirable. Surely they recognize a high quality chicken house when they see one? There are many economical and also horrible coops swamping the marketplace. I recognize this as I've examined a number of them in the field, and also seen a ewe run directly through one when the feed bucket showed up. The result was nothing but an expensive pile of fire wood as well as a little flock of bemused as well as currently homeless bantams.
Baby Chickens For Sale in Muskego, Wisconsin
Typically these mass produced models are constructed of quick grown up timber - come the initial drop of rain they swell, leaving you either defending a door that will not shut, or tearing the doorway furnishings off in a vain effort to launch the squawking residents. The initial cozy day indicates the wood dries and also cracks, the really felt roofing bubbles and boils, and also come nightfall the chickens choose not to go in. This is not as a result of their dissatisfaction at the decrease of their when desirable home yet since the hovel is currently a haven for, as well as most likely abounding, the fowl keeper's bane, red mite. Add on the fact that it said on the blurb that it would certainly match 4 big hens when that stocking thickness was based upon the Circle Line at 5pm on a Friday, and what are you entrusted? A few hinges and also some kindling. A suitable coop for thee to four birds ought to cost you around ₤ 300 though this can depend upon whether you elect for a free standing house or one with a run connected. Assuming you are varying your birds in a big room and the pop opening door is big enough for the type you maintain, after that the primary requirements of housing come down to three points which will define the variety of birds your home will hold; perches, nest boxes and also ventilation. A lot of breeds of chicken will certainly perch when they visit roost at night, this perch needs to ideally be 5-8cm broad with smoothed off sides so the foot sits easily on it. The perch ought to be more than the nest box entry as chickens will certainly likewise normally seek the acme to perch. A perch lower than that will certainly have the birds roosting in the nest box over night (which is by the way when they create the most poo) resulting in dirtied eggs the following day. They shouldn't however be so high off the floor of your home that leg injuries might occur when the bird gets down in the morning. Chickens require about 20cm of perch each (in tiny breeds this is undoubtedly less), plus if greater than one perch is set up in your house they must be greater than 30cm apart. They will certainly hunker up with their next-door neighbors but are not that crazy about roosting with a beak in the bloomers of the bird ahead. Ideally the house needs to have a least one nest box for every 3 birds and these should be off the ground and also in the darkest location of your home. Your home must have sufficient air flow: without it after that condensation will develop every night, also in the chilliest of climate. Realize, air flow works on the concept of warm air leaving through a high gap drawing cooler air in from a lower gap - it's not a set of holes on opposite wall surfaces of your home and also at the very same degree, this is what's called a draft. If you have a house with a run attached then the factors above are still true, yet you must likewise take into consideration the run size. The EU maximum lawful stocking thickness for a free variety bird is (and also allow's face it, among the motivations for maintaining some chickens in the house is possibly enhanced or better well-being) 2,500 birds per hectare, that's optimal one bird each 4m made even. Take a close check out some of the deal residences - it could well be your house has the ideal perches, proper ventilation and enough nest boxes for an affordable number of birds, however will each of the chickens have anything greater than an A4 sized item of ground to spend the day on? And so as the claiming goes, "you get exactly what you pay for". You could think you've got a deal, however you and your group could rue the day you did. Acquisition the appropriate house and it will certainly last for a few decades, otherwise longer offered the proper treatment. Ultimately your chicken and your fowl keeping encounter will certainly be a lot the much better for it.chicken coop
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