keeping it all OUT OF THE HOUSE!

[imzadi]

Hi all

I have a flock of 27 chickens, free ranging. We LOVE the eggs...only about 7 of my girls are laying but...within a month or so...oh boy!

Anyway. With a free range flock, how the HECK do you keep all of the ...poop! out of the house? I do have "chicken shoes" that I wear whenever I go out to the coop to get eggs, clean, or "play" with the girls. As our coop is...right there...not far from the house (I know, problem #1...but, winter in Maine having to plow and go far from the house every morning...in the driving snow?...no) so I use these shoes many times going outside if I'm going near the coop area. I demand that shoes are off right at the door...and my chicken shoes don't come past the door frame.

BUT...as the girls go where they will...they get their...stuff...everywhere they go. Including my front steps! We try to keep these steps washed off but...anyway. The mud room is a mess! we sweep it, wash it, and work hard to keep that mud room stuff from making it into the kitchen but, it still does. Now, don't get me wrong. It's not like there's poopy all over our kitchen...just that some dried stuff makes it past that mud room door.

Thanks for any help.

 

[centrarchid]

We sweep a lot and moved bulk of flock about 100 yards further from house. Intervening area has grass and gravel. Keeping birds off porch helps immensely. Dogs still track stuff in.

 

[imzadi]

how do I keep them off the porch?! Hubby uses the hose (much to his delight and the chickens ire) but, that only works temporarily. Ideas?

 

[centrarchid]

How much acreage do you have? Pictures will help. You need to provide alternative loafing locations.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

I have 3 different pair of "chicken shoes". They are all smooth soled that wipe off easily. For good weather I have a pair of cheap slip on deck shoes that I replace a couple times a year.
For wet weather I have a pair of rubber hounds that were $3 at Walgreens.
For cold inclement weather I have a pair of insulated knee high gumboots. They all stay on the back porch but they clean off easily because of the soles.

 

[centrarchid]

You could also screen off front porch creating a mudroom where shoes can be cleaned and swapped. Mudroom would still require frequent cleaning but provide buffer for rest of house.

 

[imzadi]

Interesting ideas! The chicken shoes i have are crocs...they DO have treads AND...are open so my feet get kinda dirty. I think I'll start by getting non-tread shoes...

I think another idea would be to figure out a way to block the porch. Can't really screen it. it is just a set of steps leading to a door that goes into the mud room. however, maybe I can set up some sort of...fenced off area around the porch. I have some of that green plastic fencing....

As for moving the coop area. We own quite a bit of land. The coop is currently close to the house... and, as i stated, there is a reason. We live in Maine and in an area where the snow drifts up and around. we can have 5 - 8 foot drifts here and there all around. Where the coop is has all sorts of pine trees to protect the coops from the elements, the trees protect from air assaults and provides a lot of shade. However, the biggest reason is winter...to move it away from the house would mean wading through feet of snow any time it snows just to get to the coops not to mention shoveling to open the door and clearing an area for the girls to play.

 

[centrarchid]

Interesting ideas! The chicken shoes i have are crocs...they DO have treads AND...are open so my feet get kinda dirty. I think I'll start by getting non-tread shoes...

I think another idea would be to figure out a way to block the porch. Can't really screen it. it is just a set of steps leading to a door that goes into the mud room. however, maybe I can set up some sort of...fenced off area around the porch. I have some of that green plastic fencing....

As for moving the coop area. We own quite a bit of land. The coop is currently close to the house... and, as i stated, there is a reason. We live in Maine and in an area where the snow drifts up and around. we can have 5 - 8 foot drifts here and there all around. Where the coop is has all sorts of pine trees to protect the coops from the elements, the trees protect from air assaults and provides a lot of shade. However, the biggest reason is winter...to move it away from the house would mean wading through feet of snow any time it snows just to get to the coops not to mention shoveling to open the door and clearing an area for the girls to play.

Heck, switch over to games and move coop anyway. Birds can fly back and forth over snow from coop for eats and roost and they will be able to find play sites themselves.

 

[appps]

Sounds like you need a buffer zone between the house and them. I'd be trying your green wire to keep an area poop free between them and the mudroom so your shoes have an area to walk clean before they get there.

 

[WoodlandWoman]

We have "yard shoes" as well as boots, for working out in the yard or coop. There is a lot of mud under the trees, as well as some poop scattered out on the property. We also don't have an attached garage and the driveway is not paved. I have a pair of shoes at the door that I slip on before I go out.

The other thing I bought after we got livestock is a combination boot brush and scraper. The scraper on the bottom scrapes the sole of your footwear. The brushes along the sides brush off the sides of your footwear. After a couple of quick swipes on that, we use the outdoor door mat for a quick finish. That all helped a lot! Then, we have another floor mat inside the door.

I bought my boot scraper and boot brush combo at the farm store.