Chickens need to take dust baths to keep mites and such off of their bodies.
Chicken run flooring gravel.
If your birds are entirely in a gravel ground coop you will want to find a little corner and add in the dirt.
The pros and cons of using the 8 most common chicken coop flooring materials.
Or a local farm type store called runnings has it as well.
In this article you will learn.
This sand is easily found by us at home depot and its a 50 lb.
I have sand wood chip wire solid wood linoleum and dirt in various coops around my fields.
However chickens love to dig holes and will unearth the gravel.
The problem is that if a layer of gravel is exposed chickens will walk on it.
Trenches to divert the water.
The bottom line is organic matter leaves wood chips grass clippings kitchen scraps all go in the run.
I keep hearing about all these people cleaning up their chicken coop and run all the time and i m wondering if i m missing something.
Possible fixes for a muddy chicken run.
Good chicken coop flooring is safe predator and rodent proof durable and easy to clean.
Flooring materials vary widely in quality cost maintenance needs and safety.
Some chicken keepers have commented that their chickens don t like walking on pea gravel but it is a longer lasting option to wood products especially if you don t have any plans on repositioning your run though won t have any nutritional benefit to the soil if you choose to dig it in.
I have most types of flooring around here i have tried most of them over the years.
The flock loves to sift though the leftover bedding but if it s left on the ground for long it builds up.
The best material for a chicken coop or run floor is one that is hard wearing and easy to clean.
Our chicken coop turned more like construction grade sand because we have a gravel ground to begin with.
Gravel can help disperse flooding rains into the soil with sand much like a drain field from a septic tank.
Therefore it s possible to cause bumblefoot and other foot problems.
Solutions to many of the cons associated with flooring materials.
Following the general rule of 4 sq ft.
Of space per standard chicken in the coop.
Do yourself a favor and go with construction grade sand.
Re grading is a big job but after a few years of the coop staying in one spot it may need to be done to avoid a muddy chicken run.