Re-doing our chicken run - in need of advice

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kamoshika

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Hi,

I realise there are probably a number of similar threads on here, but the more I've read the more confused I am as to what we should do. This is our chicken run at the moment:

chicken run.jpg

With all the rain, the chickens have had free run of the garden over the winter as their run turned into a swamp, but they've pretty much destroyed it and we want our garden back, for the kids to play in now the weather's getting better. The pond in the picture is being filled in (ugly, dangerous, and causing damp problems in the adjoining room!) and we're planning to turn that whole side of the garden into a run, with a proper fence and gate. My questions are (predictably!) about what we should put on the ground. I've read suggestions for gravel and wood chip in various places. I'd guess whatever we put down, we need some sort of permeable membrane under it to let water through, but to try and keep the top layer separate from the ground / mud.

I'm intending putting a corrugated plastic roof over part of the run - we have a drain along the side wall, so ideal really. The far end of the current run (near where the waterbutts are) is particularly prone to flooding, so covering that over should go a long way to stopping that. I was also thinking to put a "sand-pit" under there for them to dust bath, and some perches. Does that all sound sensible?

If anyone can offer advice on:
Best ground covering?
How deep?
What sort of sand for a dust bath?
Anything else good for keeping them amused - hanging feeders / mirrors?!

Thanks in advance (from me, Charlie, and Hettie!)
 
Good afternoon kamoshika, first off, how many chickens do you have and what kind (small, medium or large breeds)? That will help with how big your run should be. From what I've been told, 10sqft per bird for the run. The type of covering for the run? I don't know. Mine is just a dirt floor. I'm lucky, my run has a natural slope going away from my coops.
Sand for the dust baths, I've been told to use masons sand with a little DE and even a little fireplace ash.
As far as keeping them entertained, crickets, grasshoppers and tree toads.
I'm sorry that I haven't been too helpful. This forum is loaded with experience and great people, I'm sure someone will be along soon with better advice.
Good luck and Welcome!!
 
Hi Kamoshika and welcome to the Forum. Wrigley has given you good advice, except that we are a bit short of tree toads in the UK! (Wrigley lives in the USA.)
Yes, it's a very good idea to cover the base of the run with permeable membrane to stop the birds digging the mud up into the floor litter, then you only have to deal with the droppings. If you can also roof the run, and create a gutter with a drainpipe to the drain you already have, there will be no more problems from mud and damp.
I'm not sure what you mean by a proper fence and gate - it looks as if at present the birds are jus confined by a bit of chicken netting, and you could considerably improve their safety by making a proper weldmesh front on a framework which will support the roof. Even if you think there are no foxes in your area, they can pop up anywhere and would kill all your birds if they are not properly protected.
If you can make the run secure and dry inside, and instal a membrane, you can then put down any one of a number of soft, absorbent types of floor litter, nice and deep so they can dig in it, eg Aubiose (shredded hemp stems) or Comfibed. This sort of bedding is very easy to keep clean, you just pick up the poo every day and top up the floor when necessary. If kept dry it does last a long time and is very comfortable for the birds.
What area will the finished run be? The girls will be quite happy if they are not let out into the garden, so long as the run is big enough - as Wrigley says, the minimum floor area per bird that is kept confined is 2 sq. metres, or 10 sq. ft.
 
Gosh kamoshika, thats's a shambles! Just remember that the urban fox is waiting to strike. You need a rigid run protecting the coop from a digging fox for 12 hours. Until you get to check.
 
chrismahon said:
Gosh kamoshika, thats's a shambles! Just remember that the urban fox is waiting to strike. You need a rigid run protecting the coop from a digging fox for 12 hours. Until you get to check.
Click to expand...

Chris doesn't mean to upset you, Kamoshika, its just that we know he has lost several favourite birds to fox attacks and this is terribly distressing, so he feels very strongly on the subject of security. Wouldn't want you to learn the hard way!
 
Hi all, thanks for all the replies so far. The run is approx 2.3m x 5.8 (~13m2) so plenty of room for our two chooks at the moment. They're hybrid layers (a Lohman Brown and an Amber Link) Once we've got the run sorted we're going to look into getting them a couple of companions.

We've got some chicken fence from Omlet up at the moment, but with the run having been such a mud bath we've opened that up and they have free run of the garden during the day, and they're shut in the coop at night. I'm intending to put fence posts and wire fencing up around the two open sides of the of the run with a gate for access. The two sides that will be fenced are next to a brick path / patio so should have no problems with anything digging.

I appreciate all the advice, and realise we need to be doing more to keep the girls safe from foxes. I know we can't be complacent about it, but our garden is relatively secure - house on two sides, and 6"+ wall on the other two, and behind one of those are thick brambles almost as high as the wall.

We don't really want to put a roof over the whole run. It's not really practical with the windows of the extension next to the run, but also our two seem to like being outside, even in the rain. They've got access to shelter at the moment, and except when it's properly tipping down they'll usually stay out in the open. Given that some of it is going to get wet, does that change the advice on what to cover the floor with? I've seen gravel suggested in some places - is that a good idea?
 
That all sounds fine. With a low run like yours you could consider getting a plastic tarpaulin so you could cover the exposed part of the run when we get a long run of very heavy downpours, though I agree with you that under normal conditions (whenever we last had those!) the more air they get the better. The plastic tarps from Tarpaulins Direct come in transparent versions in various sizes and are very cheap and long lasting and easy to fix and remove.
I use Aubiose on the floor of my run in and although it mostly stays dry, there is an area where the rain blows in that gets wet, and I find this just dries out without getting mouldy like wood chippings can do. The trouble with gravel is that it gets really filthy with the poo, which is difficult to pick up and dispose of on the compost heap because the gravel sticks to the poo in an unpleasant way. With a softer bedding the stems sort of surround the poo and are absorbent so you can pick it up easily and the coating of bedding assists the decomposition on the compost heap. Also its much more comfortable for the hens, who can dig in it. I find mine like to laze around on the Aubiose for an afternoon nap in the sunshine.
Whatever you use, a membrane makes maintenance easier.
 
Hi Marigold - very helpful advice on the aubiose (I'll look into that), and good point about the gravel, thanks. Think I'm getting a plan together:

Move the chooks over on to the main lawn area (or where it was before they obliterated it!) and enclose them with our current fence.
Clear the area where their run is going to be.
Fill the pond in and level.
Put in fence posts, gate and wire fencing.
Put a roof over part of the run and fit guttering / downpipe to drain.
Put down a membrane.
Fit sandpit, perches etc under their roof.
Cover the floor with Aubiose or similar.
Let the chooks back in.
Get them some friends to share it with :)
Lay a new lawn for the kids to play on
Post "after" photo on here of happy chooks and kids ;)
 
Sounds good, it will be much better for both them and you once its sorted, won't it?
Not sure what you mean by wire fencing - you will need galvanised weldmesh rather than chicken wire, as this will be strong enough to keep predators out as well as keeping the chickens in. If you use 1x1 inch, or 0.5 x 0.5 inch, it will also exclude small predators like rats as well as wild birds, which can bring in redmite and other problems as well as contaminating food. There a lots of threads on here with ideas about making runs, if you look.
When you get to the step about 'Get them some friends to share it with,' do ask more questions about how to introduce new birds with the minimum of bloodshed and upset, if you haven't done this before. Chickens are very territorial, and if you just bung them in with the older girls, World War Three is likely to break out!
 
Thanks again Marigold. Will definitely get weldmesh for the fencing, and I'm sure I'll be back on here for advice before we add to our flock!
 
You might also consider raising their coop abit. That would give them some protection from the sun and a more dry place to dust bathe. It will also be easier on your back when cleaning the coop.
 
Good point Wrigley (nice to hear from you). The underneath of the coop can provide shade, a dry spot for a dustbath (needed to control temperature and lice) and also discourages vermin. A valuable area really. Also when raised the coop is easier to clean for the oldies (me at the moment).
 
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