Unsecure chicken perches

[kevf1]

i have got the girls in a big WIR as me and t'other half are at work all day... but i want to give them some where to havea good dustbath.. i have seen where they are using at the moment.. and i have an old raised bed... but what do i fill it with? soil and sand.. any ideas?

[bruciebumpkin]

A mix of soil and sand? Mine are obsessed with theirs. I was thinking about putting in a little diatomaceous soil to dry out any bugs..?!

[kevf1]

sort of what i was thinking... put some DE in every now and again.. and its in a dry bit in the run that gets the sun from about lunch time.. they seem to love it and the old raised bed is about 1mtr by 1mtr so should be big enough....

[bruciebumpkin]

That sounds like ample size... depending on how many you've got. Mine have a giant ceramic flower pot, they love jumping up into it and the sides stop all the soil getting flicked everywhere (well, that's the theory anyway)!

[kevf1]

i got 8.. but they tend to try and cram into about 2ft square at the moment... its quite amusing

[Henergy]

I'm using an old childs sandpit - have filled with half play sand and half compost & they seem to love it.

[kevf1]

sounds about the way i'm thinking ...

 

thats me sorted for this weekend...

 

although i am sure t'other half will find other jobs for me to do

[TheFeatheredFiend]

Our girls chose their own mix, they found the remains of last autumn's bonfire so their dustbath is a mix of weathered wood-ash and leafmold/soil. They seem to love it!

[Busybird]

I have an old tyre in a well covered part of the run filled with a mix of sand and compost. It does get used but most of the time the girls choose their own spot - under a shrub, under the children's swing, in the middle of the lawn...

[Chortle Chook]

I supplied a posh sandpit from Flytes o Fancy that has a nice little roof, as I was given it, all carefully painted in pink and cream by my OH, for Valentines day. At the moment it has wood ash in it. My girls do use it but they'd rather use the back of the flowerbeds (hoofing out any daffy and tulip bulbs to make themselves nice and comfy )

[Henergy]

What a fab Valentines present