[neenyneen]

Good afternoon all,

My run is on top of concrete flags (easy cleaning!) which i then chuck a load of easibed over to make it easier on the chooks toes and give them something to scrat about in. when i get in from work and all over the weekends, i let my ladies out in the garden and when they have gone to bed i hose the poo off the grass. The past few days i have noticed that the poos contain a fair amount of easibed  so i am going to discontinue using it in the run and just keep it in the coop.

Has anyone else come across this before, or am i just completely wrong for using easibed in the run knowing full well they would be pecking about and such. All girls seem very healthy and the consumption of easibed doesn't appear to have harmed them in any way.

What flooring would be best ontop of concrete flags? Could i just leave the flags bare or would this be too hard on the feet as i mentioned above.

Apologies for the long winded set of Q's! 

[helens-hens]

I have a similar type of set up i.e. concrete slabs and easibed or similar on top. I do find that they peck a bit at the easibed but not enough to show in the droppings. Likewise they occasionally peck at the woodshavings used in the coop.

I wouldn't have thought there would be much in easibed to harm them as it is fairly sterile and dust extracted. Are they just managing to pick some of this up when eating other things they may have scratched up? I assume they have easy access to layers pellets?

[neenyneen]

Hi Helen, yes pellets are always available and i am always mindful that any table scraps we give to them are put in their special treat tray so no accidental contamination by poo or easibed. Im still going tostop using it in the run and maybe go back to the larger playground woodchip we had before.

Thanks for your reply.

Janina

[pammie]

Hi, I too have concrete slabs, I use straw on the floor as this is nice for them to walk on and they can still scratch around.  I did use wood chips when I first had the girls but found thought it was not so nice. At least when they are in the run with straw they can have a sit down.