Wednesday, July 1, 2009

TOO CLEAN OR NOT TOO CLEAN THAT IS THE Q


This is SHREK and STEVE... Shrek is the Ameraucana and Steve is a mystery yellow chick with feathers to her toes. Shrek is 4 weeks old, but I think Steve is only about 2 weeks old. She is so yellow and fluffy and hardly any signs of new feathers. She still has that innocent look in her eyes.

The two Buff Orpintons are CLAIRE (8 or 9 weeker) and GOLDIE (6 or 7 weeks old).

After reading some of these chicken forums and blogs, I realize that if I obsess over cleaning, I will keep my girls from building up their own immunities too.....

So I am going to spray down every three weeks, but rake every 3 or 4 days.....

That seems to be the happy mix of all the advice..... everyone is different, but I do not want my chickens being sickly because of my obsessive behavior. I do not want them to live in dirty conditions either.

I am also realizing that the more free ranging my girls do the less they will poop in their coop.

They run in the yard while I am feeding them and giving them fresh water every morning. I chain the German Shepherd and leave their gate open to their chicken yard. My dog Enoch was barking just a little this morning, so I went out and all the girls where back home in their coop. I really think he was letting me know so he could be unchained.

here are the links and what was said about cleaning too much.....



General Tips
Cleaning


"This is probably the easiest way to avoid sick birds. Over-cleaning is not necessary. The birds need to have access to droppings to maintain natural "gut flora". I know it sounds awful, but it's absolutely necessary for their health.

Excessive dust in their coop. It can cause respiratory problems for them, and sneezing/allergy fits for you. I hose the coops down entirely on a regular basis (3 months or so) to keep them as dust-free as possible.
Wet Spots in the bedding are a source for "bad" bacteria to breed. Chickens don't seem to know when to steer away from bad food, etc.. when they are scratching around. The fungus, spores, mold, and bacteria that breed in wet spots can cause respiratory and gut problems for your birds. If water spills, clean up the wet bedding, and allow the area to dry. Constantly wet areas in their environment should be managed. Holes in their yard that stay wet, and filled with mud, leaves and the like should be cleaned up and filled in."


Beth has added her great discovery for litter in the coop and below is that link

http://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=1560-DLM

2 comments:

  1. I had a large pen and small coop, so My birds did most of their pooping in their yard. The only time I cleaned out the coop was when I needed the waste for my garden and that was twice a year. I never had a sick bird. I really think a person can put two much work into their chickens and not enjoy them. My mother raised chickens most of her life, they were not her pets they were to put food on the table. She never cleaned a pen in her life. She never had sick chickens. Maybe we were the lucky ones. I loved raising chickens, and the only thing I don't like is feeding them when it's cold.

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  2. what a relief....... thanks anonymus------ i can relax a tad and enjoy my girls more!

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