Best liner/ bedding for drop tray

[goodcluck]

Hi there, We've had the chickens about 3 months now and love love love them! Anyway, obviously this time of year everyone's lawns go horrible, but ours now resembles a quagmire!

 

We've moved the eglu round as much as we can, but the lawn is just looking awful now. Anyway, we have a plot of earth at the top of the garden that's now empty as we've dug out a very overgrown buddleia and we're thinking of putting the ladies up there.

 

Would it be ok to just put the eglu straight on to the earth (I was going to sink a couple of slabs in for the eglu to sit on so the tray comes in and out easily) or should I use bark?

 

I thought then I could till the soils over every now and again because won't the bark get all wet, pooy and sink?! Thanks for any advice x

[jess]

You could I guess it might be quite a cold wet muddy place for them?

 

I would put bark down personally.

[Falkor]

Ideally I would have the eglu in a fixed place, the whole lot on slabs and use aubiose of similar in the eglu and run. You would have to keep the run dry if aubiose is being used as it acts like a sponge to moisture. I use corrugated sheets from B&Q, two or three sheets of the 1.8m length works great. I also use the plastcic lawn edging cable tied around the base of the run to keep the bedding in

 

This gets a full cleaned out every 4-6 weeks. in between I just chuck in a few extra handfuls of aubiose.

 

Woodchip can be used straight on the soil but if the spot is muddy and wet then the chooks tend to trample it in to the mud.

 

I wouldn`t use bark as it gets muddy and wet, never really dries out and can smell a bit. Also some people say it harbours nasty fungi and spores which are not good for your chooks.

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Also if it's straight on open soil, then creatures with greyish coats and long tails might have a go at digging their way into the run & helping themselves to your girls food & water.....not a nice thing to have happen........

 

Sha x

[Busybird]

We have had our Eglu on slabs with the run on mud for two years now. It used to be grass...

 

We have had problems with rats. We sorted it with bait boxes, poison and removing food overnight.

 

It does get boggy in wet weather. This has been helped by putting a camping groundsheet (about 2m long) over the central section of the run (where the girlies dust bathing tyre and wooden roosting bar perch are).

 

It does get smelly. We deal with this by digging it over once a month or so and sprinkling it with Stalosan F. We also dig in garden lime each season.

 

We have four girlies in a 4m run. They seem healthy and happy and produce lots of yummy eggs

[Gallina]

It depends very much on your soil. I have light sandy soil and it is no problem at all having the run on it. If you have clay soil, it could get unpleasant.

 

But the Eglu itself must go on slabs because of rats: they just love nesting under Eglus. They don't seem so interested in the run: they have never tried to dig under the skirt of mine.

 

With light soil, it is particularly important to weigh the skirt down.

 

Slabbing the whole area would be much easier for you, but I know that my hens would miss digging their craters, and they don't get out much.

[goodcluck]

Thank you all for your advise. Much to digest! Cheers

[Ginfiend]

 

But the Eglu itself must go on slabs because of rats: they just love nesting under Eglus. They don't seem so interested in the run: they have never tried to dig under the skirt of mine.

 

 

If the eglu is on the lawn, does it need a slab underneath as well? I don't like the sound of nesting rats!

[Gallina]

If you move the Eglu around regularly on grass, you are probably all right. But an Eglu left in one place on soil will almost certainly attract rats. They love being snug and warm underneath it, and then they will start gnawing the drainage hole.

 

This has been my experience, anyway: it was solved by getting a Cube.

[Clash City Rocker]

Mine have lived in nothing but dirt since June 2007 in both an Eglu and a Cube without any problems.

 

 

 

 

 

[Peachy77]

Mine have been on mud since June 08 with no problems. Occassionaly chuck some wood chips in. No problems at all.