[RoyMK]

Hi

We have a wooden coop on order and it says it has a bird friendly stain which need replacing each year.

After reading about coating the coop with Creosote and various other substances to help control mites could anyone advise us if there is a substance that I should apply to the new coop to help seal it against mites?  Or is it just a case of keeping it clean?

Regards

Julie & Roy

[noshed]

I know next to nothing about chickens but from what I've read on here - fill in all the nooks and crannies with sealant. What, I don't know, presumably something which hens won't eat.
I'm sure a hen person will be along soon to advise.

[Sassy]

We were recommended to use Cuprinol as this is bird friendly. This will help to protect the wood. It is expensive but it does go a long way. I don't know about sealing nooks and crannies re red mite.

[poultrygeist]

I've not used any sort of sealant and (touch wood) haven't seen any mites yet. If you pick out any poo every day, clean out the straw and shavings regularly and check for any unwanted visitors eevry time you look in, you should be ok. If they do show up, you'll need something on hand that will effectively deal with them.
I have poultry shield but there are stronger treatments available. A lot of keepers use Diatom in the coop as a preventative.

You can read all about it here...

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=5250.0

Rob