YKershaw Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Hi, we are new to chickens, we got Henrietta, Felicity and Betty on 3rd April. They are wonderful, but what a lot of poo! Its everywhere, they are already banned from the decking we only finished last year, as they pooed on it so much! I guess it would stain it as I believe bird poo can take the colour off car bodywork! There are all sorts of poos as they are getting ready to lay, so I am not concerned about that. Husband hates the poo already. The chickens are free range 3 or 4 days a week, and in a standard run the rest of the time. I know this is probably a pointless question, but, any suggestions on controlling the poo? Thanks, I love the Forum! Yvonne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HENthusiastic Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 HI Yvonne! Ive had my chickens about 5 weeks.. and I've got a Henrietta too! They do indeed poo a lot! My way of dealing with it is little and often. I have a rubber glove which I keep outside the back door. I just wander around the garden with a flower pot and my rubber glove and pick up all the poohs I can see! Some people might find this a big yucky, but it doesn't bother me. I do this in the morning and then often in the evening as well. That way it really only takes five minutes a time and really keeps the place relatively pooh free! Its like anything I suppose, little and often saves a big job later! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbaraJ Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Yes i was quite surprised how many poos they do lol i walk around the garden every night with a kids bucket and spade and flick the poo in the bucket. Do you add bokashi bran to their feed, i've found this helps alot in firming the poos up, alot easier to clean, also i have a hard brush i use on the paths with water to clean any remains, should work on the decking if done daily i would think! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surferdog Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Hi, like you we've only recently got our chickens and you're right - they could poo for England ! Ours are in a hemcore covered run most of the time and I let them out for a couple of hours in the evening. I found that keeping the hose pipe permanently connected with one of those multiple spray head things means you can just blast away the poo after they've gone to bed. I also keep rubber gloves, a trowel and pot next to the run to pick up the poo every evening while they are free-ranging. I was doing it several times a day at first but found that leaving it for a bit means the hemcore soaks most of it up and it's easier to pick up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbaraJ Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 i'm saving the hosepipe for the summer if we get one as our garden is permanently wet this time of year and would be a mud bath if i used the hose! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moomin Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Mine are only little (9 & 11 weeks). They poo loads so every evening I crawl in on my tummy into the Elgu run with me yellow Marigold on and a flowerpot to put the poos in!! Whilst I'm doing it they peck around me; they get really close and chat away and I've even managed a few strokes! (Without the yellow marigold ofcourse!). It doesn't really worry me although I will be glad to get them a walk in run as it kills my back!! The only ones I don't like are yellowy soft ones, they rest are quite firm and easy to pick up. I also have to pick poo out of the nestbox too as thats where they snuggle down at night to sleep. It's full of poo in the morning, I haven't had to empty the poo tray once!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Welcome to the world of chicken keeping!! The best way to control the amount and size of chicken poo is to keep less chickens. Obviously with the less chickens you keep, the less poo that is produced and the less eggs you recieve. Other than reducing the amount of chickens, bantams produce considerably smaller and less frequent poo's so they may be a better option in the future. Although bantams also produce smaller eggs! It's all good fertiliser though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YKershaw Posted April 18, 2008 Author Share Posted April 18, 2008 Thanks, everyone. The children and I have just been out in the garden poo spotting with our flowerpot and our rubber glove! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moomin Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Thanks, everyone. The children and I have just been out in the garden poo spotting with our flowerpot and our rubber glove! There you go - it may even turn into a hobby!! You could even give a treat to the child that collects the most poos!! That will make them move a bit faster !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Lots of us use hemcore or aubiose in the run - it soaks up poo, and keeps the ground dry in wet weather. You can rake it out every few weeks and replace it, rather than poo-picking every day. When they are free-ranging, there's not much you can do about it other than poo pick/hose/sweep. Mine only get limited free-ranging, and to be honest I don't find it a problem - a shower of rain gets rid of most of them, and I just use a stiff broom to shift anything on the path or patio. It is worth having 'garden shoes' and changing them when you get to the back door, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jomaxsmith Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Apparently they do 18-20 poos each a day I've got one of those slotted scoop things that you use to clean out cat litter trays and I just go round the patio and garden with that, flicking the poos onto the flower bed! During the day I leave the solid one to dry to make them easier to clean up and swoosh the wet ones with water from the watering can. Jo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura & CTB Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Clearing up poo from the decking is easy, pick most of it up and hose down the deck and it's done - 3 minutes tops Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strepsy Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 I was also surprised by how much poo they do! lol. Even though I'd read lots on here about them being poo machines they still exceeded my expectations. I'm with the little and often, usually twice a day with trusty orange bucket and trowel and it goes on the compost heap. My dad also wants me to collect some in a hessian sack for him. Anyone know where to get a hessian sack? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BarbaraJ Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 Maybe a greengrocers. I just collect mine in a plastic compost bag for my neighbour! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
koo2cat Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 I do exactly that Ros, with my 3 girls. Once a day we go out, me with my bucket and trowl, and the one who spots the most poo gets a special treat (usuall a sweetie!). By clearing the poo up daily it isn't such hard work, unless we have a downpour and then the rain just washes it away! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajm200 Posted April 18, 2008 Share Posted April 18, 2008 I try to clear as much as I can each day using a trowel, bucket and rubber gloves Once a week I get hubby to rake the lawn to clear anything hidden in the grass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...