Cleaning the chicken coop
5 to 10 minutes a day!
A clean and well-maintained chicken coop is a guarantee for the health of your chickens. It only takes a few minutes a day to perform a few tasks of the daily routine. Use good quality wood shavings like the one from http://www.ripobec.com/fr/nos-produits/24-premium-ms.
Pick up the biggest droppings with the small rake, as well as in the run, in the bunkhouse and in the nest box. Provide fresh water and grain and collect the eggs. Be careful, after a few days you may start to talk to your chickens and after a while you will be able to differentiate their vocal expressions.
– Shavings of kiln-dried wood
– Compressed in airtight bags
– Palletized or stacked
– Dust free
– Available at most farm stores
To do every week
Observe the general health of your chickens, take a look around the coop (check that no predators have been able to dig holes around it).
Our chickens do not do well in an enclosed coop, so as soon as the weather allows it, they go outside, and this allows me to do a good cleaning and wash thoroughly. But it is in spring that the big cleaning is done.
Now, cleaning the coop can become a special time with your children.
Once a week, I wash the water container and disinfect it with bleach and rinse it with vinegar. By using the Brite Tap water troughs (see in the online store, you will have clean and fresh water every day. However, in winter, you will have to use a standard electric water trough.
The grain container is washed as needed. The wood rip bedding in the dormitory and nests is changed once a month. ADD is sprinkled everywhere beforehand. Nature Sorb litter is spread monthly in the outdoor enclosure.
A good washing and disinfection once a year. That’s it, it’s not more complicated than that! For the Wood Rip, I recommend the animal formulation, dust and medium shavings.
PS: Rake your yard if your chickens have access to the yard to remove all droppings daily.
Rake your yard if your chickens have access to the yard to remove all droppings. Sometimes I only do this every other day, but my yard is not so big that it’s much easier to do it every day.
When raking the inner floor of your aviary it is a good idea to wear a dust mask.
Once you have raked the chicken droppings you can add them to a compost heap if you wish. If you would like to learn how to start composting, here is an excellent article in English for you to read.
https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-make-compost-p2-1761841
THE ADVANTAGES OF NATURESORB
https://www.meunerievicto.com/fr/points-de-vente
Products formulated for the agricultural market
Peat Moss Litter (Peat Moss)
PH controlled
Controlled humidity
Granulometry
100% organic, approved in organic production (MIB)
Unlimited duration of use
Decrease in odors and ammonia levels
NATURESORB prevents the formation of coliforms, salmonella, Escherichia coli, enterococci, staphylococcus aureus, aspergillus fumigators.
Tests carried out in laboratory.
Several accessories are useful and make cleaning easier, such as small garden rakes of varying lengths, a janitor’s dust holder, a small shovel for cat litter and a good flashlight. A headlamp is also handy for evening visits.
Sold at most co-ops.
Other products sold such as the garden peat moss do not have the same properties.
I usually do my super clean up in the late morning on a beautiful sunny day to dry the accessories as much as possible in the natural sunlight. Also, the chickens will have laid their eggs in the morning and I will install water and a feeder 20 feet away from the chicken coop during the cleanup. Get the hens out of the coop before you start, as they are bound to get in the way. That way, everyone stays outside and away from shovels and rakes.
To do monthly
First: remove the dirty litter from the chicken coop. Vacuum, clean and disinfect the floor and walls.
Second: scrape hen droppings off the perches, then spray them with the same diluted bleach solution, leaving for 10 minutes, rinse and wipe with a cloth.
Clean the roosts and spray them with a bleach solution (1 part bleach to 10 parts water), then wipe them with a cloth.
Then replace the egg-laying cushions with fresh material. You can find my favourite laying material in the online store.
Third: When everything is dry, add fresh wood shavings.
When I clean the coop, I pick up everything in the removable chicken house and take it outside to clean it. Often I even use the garden hose for the railing for example.
I don’t want anyone to get hurt and you’ll be surprised how curious these hens will be. They tend to snoop around underfoot, risking injury. A stifling hen house does not promote good laying, so keep things clean and dust-free if you want a healthy flock and good laying quality.
Laying cushions, on sale at Poules en Ville
Coussins de ponte (10 par boîte)
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