[lottienewbie]

hi all,have had my chooks for 2 weeks now,they are now 11 weeks old bless,they have settled in very well and we handle them every day,but to my question in hand,
    The hen house i manage to keep very clean but was wondering how the best way to keep their run clean,i have not got the ability to keep moving the run around the garden,but they are on grass at the moment,but the mess is building,some one said to me to dig out the grass and put a layer of gravel then sand then another of gravel,to put a dust bath in with some choice food in for them to scratch for,and some greens for them to eat,with the base being bilt up in this manner all i would need to do is hose it down and the mess will drain into the ground like a soak away,not sure what disenfectant i could use,

any ideas in this matter would be very much appreciated thanks,


kind regards Neil and family

[raeburg]

Hi 

How many chooks and how big is the run?  Does it have a roof on? 

Ta

[lottienewbie]

hi ya,
          We have 4 chooks and the run is 4ft wide by 10 foot long,and there is no roof on it at the moment,

regards Neil.

[raeburg]

Ta

The run is a bit on the small side - the minimum should be 1m² per bird for large fowl.  If it's at all possible extend the run.  My run is wood chips on bare earth and is roofed over.  The roof stops it getting really smelly.  I replace the wood chips every few months and compost them.  There wont be grass there for much longer    When I do this I keep the girls out of it and dig it over with some garden lime.  Having gravel beneath wood chips will help drainage.  Hope this makes sense.

[lottienewbie]

thanks for the information,we were told that we coud have 6 birds at least in this size run,so went for 4 as to be kind,just goes to show not everyone have the same info,
   the wood chips does sound a good idea,where would i get wood chips from as i cant say i have seen them,wood bark i have seen,maybe it is one of those things that you only see when you are looking for it lol,by the way what does the lime do,is it a type of disenfectant??

many thanks

Neil

[andreadon]

unfortunately, a lot of people get told that's an okay size.
It really isn't if they're in their run for most of the day.

your run in metres is 1.23 x 3.07 = 3.79 sq m.

Official guidelines say 1sq m each bird, but! that's aimed at farmers who have thousands at a time (so it's much bigger overall) : you want to try for 8 sq m in total if you can for 4 birds.

Try to get a roof on it if you can - and if you can't, then you could put in a large table - at least part of it would be dry and it gives them somewhere to shelter in the rain and an extra layer for entertainment.
 

[lottienewbie]

thanks will sort the size out,they do have some shelter as the house is elevated and they get underneath,but i will put a cover on it pronto.

the question was more to do with keeping the ground clean and fresh,wood chips does sound like a good plan,but am open to any other suggestions.

many thanks for all your help so far.


kind regards Neil and Family

[Roughlee Handled]

..........the question was more to do with keeping the ground clean and fresh,wood chips does sound like a good plan,but am open to any other suggestions.

many thanks for all your help so far.


kind regards Neil and Family

Hi Neil, we are aware of what your question was. The point the other members have made is that to keep your run "clean and fresh" you need more space or less chickens. 
You can put a roof on your run.  This will stop your run from turning into a mud bath, because it will when it rains. 
Your chickens will get bigger as well.  What breed are they?
Can you move the run around your garden?  Because when they start laying (at 19 weeks ish) grass or "greens" are what turn your yokes yellow and give them the taste.
If you can not move your run I would suggest that you use bark or chippings from (if you have one a garden shredder).

Do not believe what all sales people tell you they either ill educated or are in it for the sale. We are in it for the animals.

Point for you
Argos are still selling this item
http://www.argos.co.uk/ProductDisplayTRK019?partNumber=7057070  as a chicken run when it is made for guinea pigs, see below a photo from the manufactures catalogue.



To recap my suggestions to you are that you
1. Reduce the amount of chickens or extend your run.
2. Use bark or chippings on the floor of your run.

 This will not answer your question but you should put a clear plastic roof on your run as this will help (it will not stop) your run from turning into a mud bath.