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 Mrsp,
I’m no expert but if you came into our shop (which is an agricultural merchants) We’d recommend giving them a worming dose as this can affect the nutrients absorbed into the body. Also try putting poultry spice in their food or add a mineral tonic to their water.
Are they trying to eat the feathers?
Try putting something like Stockholm tar or summer fly cream on the bald patches this will help keep the skin supple and encourage feather growth. The stickiness will also deter mites.
Hope this helps!!!
Hi
My ladies are going bald around their necks!they are still laying, we haven’t seen any mites but we painted the shed, sprayed it with jeyes and vinegar, put sand in their dust bath area. Do you think this is mites or something else? we have no idea what else we can do. We have added extra protein to their diet because I read that sometime feather pecking is a deficiency. Please help as they are looking pretty pathetic at the moment
I would like to say how helpful everyone has been over the ‘mite’ issue.
I’ve had chickens for two years and it’s only this year I’ve come into contact with those evils little critters. Just typing this is making me feel horrible!!!
Tomorrow is my day off and my poor hens are going to have their world turned upside down.!! I’m going in armed with dettol, vinegar, and teatree mixed in water – louse and redmite powder and creosote.
Hopefully in a week egg production should be up!!!
Thanks again everyone xx
with the weather being hot here in yorkshire this is the worse case of redmite ive had in 10 years.all the remedys ive preached on this site ive tried and they arnt working so im going back to my old routine.half a tin of jays fluid mixed with 4 litre of water spray the shed down leave empty for 2 days then paint with white emulsion paint.the mites cant get through paint and also seels all the cracks…..still a great and intresting site we all have redmite.roll on winter.lol.
sharyn ducks skin is much thicker than hens so its very hard for the red mite to feed on.ducks also prune them selfs better especially if they have access to plenty of water
can you tell me if ducks can get mites from our chickens
Never had trouble with mites until this morning.Your website is fantastic. It has cheered me up. Was very upset when I saw the infestation, but now I feel optimistic.I have had my 3 girls for just over a year. Little bantams. I look forward to seeing them every day. They were bought for me by my family when I retired from work.
Hi Helen
Chicken mite powder is really effective, sprinkled into corners and under the perch. Some people that we know use aviary sprays once a month – effective but these are not organic. Thinking about it I’m not sure whether the powder is organic either.
Hi Carol
Use woodchips rather than straw or hay as mites can’t reproduce within the stalks. We use the mite powder – expensive but it goes a long way and lasts a couple of years with our small (8-10 birds) flock.
You are so right to deter the mites rather than treat them. Much better and more effective in the long run
Hi,
I have just ordered my chicken coop ,so i thought i would read through to pick up some tips,
I am a little worried about mites so are there things i can do before my chickens move in, Can anyone give me any other tips,
Thanks.
I’ve just found mites in my hen house, had no idea it was such a prevelent problem. Am off to buy stuff to treat it now. Hopefully I can stop itching soon!!! Also know what to do with the large jar of vaseline which was given to my husband as a joke. Now I reaslise why the girls are off laying.
Thanks so much for all the very interesting and useful advice.