Official BYC Poll: Do You Wear a Mask or Respirator When Cleaning Your Coop?

[mrrossi]

I don't but it's only 3 hens in an outdoor covered area, and I use the "special hay" for chickens - there's no dust!

 

[Birdiewi]

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We all know how much dust those birds can create, so I'm just wondering who wears some kind of respiratory protection when they are in and around the coop - and when!

Have you had any issues from not wearing a mask?

Please vote and leave a comment below!

I use Mason sand in my coop so it is much cleaner than shavings or straw that foster so much bacteria. I don't wear a mask because I school the poop regularly and don't have to do intense clean outs.

 

[Naiva80512]

Personally I wear a mask whenever I do a deep cleaning. My coop is really little though with only two drakes LoL. I use straw as my bedding. I should probably wear the mask everytime I clean the coop and change their beddings. The smells are really strange LoL but since it's a little coop the cleaning is not taking so much time. I think when you have a big coop you should always wear a mask and it doesn't matter if you are deep cleaning or not.

 

[Lisaloha]

I clean the poop out of the chicken house a few times per week and I don’t wear a mask for it, but that’s a good idea. I do use gloves, like gardening gloves though, to clean it out. And I use dishwashing type rubber gloves when I wash their water dishes.

 

[CareBearLife]

No never. Infact the only thing I wear are my rubber boots and a smile.

 

[Solaire]

I only put on an N-95 only when I'm doing a full clean out, swapping out new straw. Not when handling them outdoors. I raised my chicks inside and saw how much bird dust they put out in a confined space, plus I'm mildly allergic to straw. When you get to sweeping the Coop out we're dealing with Bird dust, Chicken poop dust and straw dust. These aren't all things you necessarily want to be breathing in. I do believe however that it isn't necessarily the most hazardous thing as long as your Coop isn't absolutely filthy and you're not inside the coop with with no ventilation. Step away for air frequently; Or just put on a mask and not have to worry about it. It's much easier that way.

 

[RichLin AR]

I don't wear anything, though I probably should. Depending on the cleaning (deep litter, monthly summer clean, dusting, etc.), I sometimes have to step out for fresh air. Spring cleanout is usually pretty rough. Adding shavings can be rough too, as it sometimes has a lot of dust.

I'm pretty much the same, never wear a mask. In fact, I hardly ever clean out the coop. When I need fertilizer for the garden or the greenhouse, I scoop up a few buckets of litter. When I clean out the nest boxes, I drop that litter on the (dirt) floor, then it all works together to make a great fertilizer.

 

[chickenfarmer56]

Me personally I don't but you probably should but I do wear rubber gloves

 

[GoldyKai]

I did once when I was cleaning a duck coop for someone, but that was just because there were other people around and I didn’t feel okay taking it off.
I don’t wear one now, but sometimes I have to take little breathers outside and I bring lots of water with me. I never actually thought about how beneficial one would be lol.

 

[LaFleche]

When cleaning the poop boards (every day/every other day) and whenever I am cleaning the whole coops (at least 4-5 times a year) I wear ffp2 and even ffp3 face masks as I do not wish to end up having to use an oxygen device.