3.6m Omlet Chicken Run for sale, Brand New in Boxes, Milton Keynes (MK19)

[Lorax]

Hello. I got my chooks on Thursday evening and thus far they've given us five eggs. (We've got running total thing on the blackboard in the kitchen which says "today our eggs cost...£X" thus far they're at £151 each.)

 

We're hugely enjoying them. The set up we've got so far is a cube with standard run, attached to which is a long 25m length of netting, so they're free ranging on grass. They seem really happy and this morning were out catching worms.

 

But my Q is this: do I need to provide a dustbath and if so can anyone give me an idea of what exactly? At the moment they've got lots of lovely grass, but that's all. Surely they need something to dust themselves with?

[Ain't Nobody Here]

If they have access to a dry flowerbed that would be ok but with winter coming and having grass in your run (which won't last long ), you could give them a cat litter tray or tubtrug in their run.

[Laura & CTB]

Mine did manage to make their own dustbath in the garden squished between a hedge and a wall which I am now covering when it rains to keep it dry for them.

They also have a shallow tubtrug in the run filled with some playsand, soil, ash and a sprinkling of diatom and red mite powder which they use a lot when it's too wet to go out to play.

 

I think they would enjoy having something else to play with

[Lorax]

Thanks so much.

 

More Qs:

 

So, we need something something shallow.

What do I put in it? What Laura suggested?

What about keeping it dry though, does that matter?

 

pmsl ANH, we've already seen the work they do on the grass, . But we plan to move the run regularly. Just give the chooks long enough to eat the moss and weeds!

[goodinparts]

At the moment my girls are making dustbaths all over their playground (a chunk of the garden that is too shady for anything except chickens to grow there) but once things get wetter I have a cat litter tray on standby to turn into a dustbath as I doubt if mudbaths are as popular or useful.

But....really important question, lorax, what chooks did you get? And are there pictures anywhere? Impressed your eggs are down to £151 already

[Clairey_Fairy]

Had my girls a week and the grass in the run was no longer grass after about 4 days! Are putting woodchip down next week as garden not big enough to move run every 4 days. They have made a dust bath behind the gooseberry bush at the moment but we have got an old washing up bowl to use as a dust bath. Hope they will like it.

[thelurch]

I have an old Belfast sink in the WIR which I half fill with compost and playsand, at times there are 4 girls in it sparring

for a bit of bathing!

[Lorax]

But....really important question, lorax, what chooks did you get? And are there pictures anywhere? Impressed your eggs are down to £151 already

 

I must upload some pics.

 

We got a Bluebelle, a Columbine, a Speckeldy and a Golden Ranger. The first two haven't started laying yet but the other two have provided us with seven eggs so far. And you'll be pleased to know that the price of our eggs has now fallen to £70odd per egg!

[Clairey_Fairy]

2 chickens , and in 8 days our eggs are now down to £24!

[Lorax]

Well done. I'm guessingYou were more sensible and didn't buy a Cube!

[Margalot]

For our dustbath we got one on those large plastic under the bed storage containers. It has a lid so on wet days you can close it up if you aren't able to put in underneath a sheltered bit.

 

We put a mixture of compost / playsand and we use some ash from our fire mixed witha bit of louse pwder for good measure!

 

I love it after they have bathed, get out, stand up and do the feather shake you get a cloud of dust appear. (from the ash)

 

On the other hand they have also dug some great holes in what was the lawn and made their own dustbaths too

[windway]

Hi

I provided mine with a shallow trug and play sand. So far they have not bathed in it only eaten it (they do have access to grit!)!! Maybe I should add some soil to it too.