4m x 3m Omlet pen, cube, new auto door still boxed and coop light

[Falkor]

So OH has agreed that we can have a permanent run, YAY!

 

Run will have roof and table for the Eglu.

 

But here is the question........ should I put slabs down just around the edge to stand the run on and obviously deter Mr Fox or (as OH wants) slab the entire thing?

 

If I slab the entire thing I would have to put something on top like wood chip etc although I would be able to pressure wash them clean. But wouldn`t the chickens prefer to be able to dig in the dirt?

 

For every pro and con i come up with OH can counter it!? We are coming to blows!

 

Your thoughts and experiences would be greatly appreciated!

[chelsea]

I personally would slab it all.

 

We have a permanent run and wished that when we did ours. When we have torrential rain the aubiose gets wet underneath. Mine arent bothered about digging into the soil in their run (they can do that in the garden) and because I put a thick layer of aubiose in the run it would take them ages to reach the bottom anyway!

[Falkor]

How much is auboise and how long does it last in your run?

[dancing cloud]

I'm with your OH on this one (sorry!) and I'd go with slab it all.

 

Mine are in a secure yard during the day which was the back end of the drive, made up of concrete slabs and it is very easy to look after. They get to play out in the garden afternoons (if it's not throwing it down) and weekends, and seem to be thriving.

 

You can put down aubiose or equivalent on top of the slabs for them to scratch around and dustbath in and, at cleaning time, you can jetwash slabs at the same time as your . It also limits the possibilities of any cheeky rodents trying to nest underneath .

[surferdog]

Definitely slab it all. Ours is slabbed but we originally left some bare earth near the front. The chooks were tunnelling out and the dog was digging in - fortunately OH concreted it all before they met up in the middle.

 

I don't even pressure wash the slabs - all the aubiose gets raked out every 5 weeks (although we do a thorough mid-term poo pick and top up). Sweep the whole lot down and sprinkle some stalosan about before recovering with fresh aubiose.

[Lydia]

Yep I too would slab the whole thing. I wish I had too but, like Chelsea, am discovering that hindsight is a wonderful thing....

 

I left the soil because I thought the chooks would enjoy digging around. In practise, however, what happens is the soil in the middle just ends up totally compacted down and I'd have to supply them in a mechanical digger if they wanted to dig in it!

 

They scratch about in the aubiose that is on top and dust bath in it too so they'd be fine with it slabbed and it will save you work cleaning it in the long run.

[Egluntyne]

Slab it all!

 

They will enjoy scratching around in whatever bedding you provide....and rats will not be able to tunnel in.

[Lydia]

How much is auboise and how long does it last in your run?

 

About £7-10 for a big bale of the stuff. We change ours about every 6-8 weeks. It's compostable if you have the room.

[Sandychick]

I would love to slab mine - it really would solve a lot of problems. I can't because they have loads of big tree roots under their run. If I had the option of slabbing their run, I would do it tomorrow. With Auboise and a dust bath, they would be very happy.

[cathybc]

I am considering putting the girls on slabs. How deep do you put the auboise ?