How do I keep my chickens clean?
Posted by Fiona Nevile in Chickens | 200 comments
Chickens are not naturally clean creatures, unlike the story book ones. Do you remember them? Clean living hens, wearing spotted scarves and venturing out to the market with a basket hooked over a wing and a clutch of chicks close by.
Real life chickens will foul their chicken house and quite often foul the nesting box. The only chicken that I have known to actively ‘clean’ her house was Mrs Boss. When the guinea fowl keets hatched she pulled all the hay from her nest out of their house in the ark. The more clean hay and woodchips I added the more she pushed them into their run. After a couple of weeks, I admitted defeat. The keets slept under Mrs Boss’ wings, on bare boards. I could never understand why she did this.
If chickens are not cleaned out regularly their droppings can harbour and spread disease. Droppings in the nesting box can foul the eggs. Remove any droppings immediately from the nesting box when you see them.
There is also the question of chicken mites. In warmer weather, mites can breed like wildfire in a house that is not treated regularly. They lay their eggs in dark nooks and crannies in the house and are at their most active at night. They bite the chickens and these bites can become infected.
An imaginative Estate Agent might describe our hen house as,
“A Canadian style two storey lodge. Lower floor family room with traditional wooden slatted staircase leading to spacious communal bedroom for 8 plus with half mansard ceiling and door to cosy penthouse nesting box.”
It gets a good cleanout once a week. And a top to toe super valet and repair in the Spring and Autumn.
If you are canny, the weekly cleanout for an average sized house (ours is designed to accommodate 6-8 Maran hens) takes about twenty minutes, often it is completed in ten.
The trick to quick and easy cleaning is to store everything that you might need within a few feet of the chicken house. We keep our chicken consumables in two large barrels in the run. One holds the bedding the other contains sprays, powders, oyster shells, grit and everything that a chicken keeper might need. These storage bins are also popular with the flock as they have another vantage point on which to stand and observe the world.
Our chicken feed is stored in the boot of Danny’s car and in a large aluminium grain store in the garden. Along with the wild bird and Min Pin food.
Generally I pull on my chicken cleaning gloves at midday when the flock are out an about in the run. Initially I spray the inside of the house with a decent anti mite spray. I close the door to the house as I am not sure how safe the spray is for the flock (although it is marked suitable for an aviary with residents). While the spray wafts through the house I collect all the stuff that I need from the barrels. woodchips, fresh hay and mite powder.
The old woodchips, hay and droppings are swept into the chicken run dustpan and go into their bucket (this was sold to me as a nappy bucket and has a lid). This lid is handy as the bucket can sit happily inside the run until it is full.
Once all debris has been removed, I spread wood chips on the floor of the house. These are great as they absorb moisture and make the chicken cleaning process much easier. They are available in enormous chunky packs. and a pack lasts for months. I lay a layer of woodchips in the nesting box topped with a thickish layer of hay. My mum recommended hay for the nests as mites can breed easily in the hollow strands of straw. The hens fashion the hay into nests very quickly, even if they are off lay.
Once fresh chips and hay have been spread, I return to the barrels for oyster shells and grit. I used to put these in a nifty container in the run, now I cast them just before I open the gates to get out. The flock dives for these and before they have discovered that they are not deluxe grain mix I am the other side of the wire. Poultry need grit. Ours find this in the back wall of the run. If yours don’t have access to a wall don’t forget to provide them with grit, if you are feeding them seeds and corn as it essential for breaking down the husks in their gullets.
Chickens are fine on woodchips alone and I have seen many happy hen houses that just have newspaper spread on the floor. Once you find an effective way to keep your chickens clean that suits you, use it on a weekly basis. You and your chickens will bloom.
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Hi,
We are quite new to chicken keeping and have 5 ladies who have all been laying everyday. The problem is that for the last 2 nights they have been reluctant to go to bed. Once I have opened the large door and shone the torch in there they all go in quite happily, I can’t see any mites (but then again reading the horror stories I haven’t looked that closely) but do you think that mites could be the problem?
Hi Amanda
We raised ducklings for some friends but don’t have any ducks living here so I have limited experience.
However, we do have a few younger chickens that roost in a nesting box attached to our hen house. This is much more exposed to the cold winds than the substantial house and a few weeks ago I started to line it with newspaper (good biodegradable insulation) under straw.
It might be worth Googling for forums with information for duck owners. Just in case.
Hello Stuart
You are lucky. Chicken feed s so expensive around here. It’s been going up steadily each month. Glad your hens are laying again. There’s not been a peep out of ours yet.
Hi Jane
I thnk that your chickens will be fine. They puff out their feathers to insulate themselves. And if the hen house is 3′ above the ground they will not be near the frozen earth.
Like you I dont want our chickens to be chilly but I think they’ll be fine if they are fit and healthy.
Hi,
I am a relatively new owner of 4 ducks – 2 pairs. Cambells and Indian Runners. They live in my back yard (actually we have given our large patio over to them!! They have a wander down the lush green garden when I am there to supervise). Anyway, it got down to -8 last night. They do come out during the day for exercise etc and at night they are locked in the beds of their small duck houses. They have beds of straw and hay and the beds are off the ground. However, two of the ducks keep laying down this evening. They are still eating and drinking ok and I was told that it is becuase they are trying to conserve heat. I have no way of heating their houses and I am worried about them freezing! I have put a thick blanket over each the roof of each bed to try to keep some heat in, is this enough?
I’m rather worried about the cold weather and whether my 6 chickens will be ok. The henhouse is about three feet off the ground and purpose built. The temperature here is reaching about -10.
My husband has asked me ( I think he’s joking ) if it would be normal to have the chickens in bed with us. Seriously though, will they cope?
ive just been for 20 bags of layers pellets and there down in price farmgate boc 20kilo now 5pound.
see im quiet fortunate because my wife cleans for a farmer him and is three sons farm 10thousand acres so when there harvesting more than often there combine harvester breaks down at least once so when the belt snaps they have to drop the load and he lets me shovel it into bags usually 1 or 2 tons at a time for 50pound. its hard work though can take me 2 days.
if i go to the animal feed store farmgate boc pellets are 5.50p for 20kilo or 6.60p for 25 kilo layers mash.were i get my mixed feed from is a farm with 3 very old brothers living together they charge 4 pound for a good 30 kilo of wheat or 5 pound for a good 30 kilo of the mixed food.if you could see my 18 pullets i swear to god they are still laying 17 or 18 eggs every day with out fail thats been since july.there on half wheat and half layers pellets.
Hi fn, thanks for that. Just gonna have a look now and see what is available. Will le you know. Thanks again.
Hi Stuart
Lucky you finding chicken feed for that price. We are paying nearly 9 quid for 25 kilos of layers pellets around here.
Still waiting for the first egg of 2009.
Happy New Year to you.
Hi Trisha
If you are only getting three hens I’d steer away from any breeds that have a tendency to go broody. There is a place near here that sells chickens http://www.cambridgepoultry.co.uk/poultryforsale.htm and gives details of the average egg yield and personality traits of their hens. There probably is somewhere nearer to where you live.
Hope that this helps.