ZurcherFarms
Songster
- Jan 9, 2018
- 88
- 127
- 112
Hello!
I just wanted to bounce some ideas off of you all. I know chickens LOVE cattle and pig poop, and though it seems disgusting, it's actually pretty good for them, and creates less feed waste, and helps break up the actual livestock waste as they're scratching it around. Seems like a win win, right?
My question is, how is the best way to incorporate the two together? My hogs have a three sided shed with a padock of concrete. My current chicken barn isn't exactly close by them. Is it better to have the chickens nest in the same building, or do you just have them near enough to forage in their pens? Obviously it would be easier if they were all on pasture together, and they could follow them around but our fencing doesn't allow our pigs to do that. Is there any concern with the pigs eating or attacking the chickens? Will the broilers hop over a 3' pig panel to get into the pens? Or will they be too fat? Any extra predator concerns with them out in the open with the pigs? (Obviously you can make a pig shed as soon proof as a chicken coop...)
I've been debating having a little mini grassy area that the pigs can go out in and that they could share it with the broilers for part of the day, but need to work out the logistics of it.
I look forward to any ideas!
Here is a terrible paint-enhanced redition of an areal view our hog shed. The lean-to is in the corner of the L, with two concrete runs going to the West and South. I could put a separate broiler shed on one of the concrete runs. I could also fence off the pasture grass, to make like a square with the concrete.
Thoughts? Thanks!
I just wanted to bounce some ideas off of you all. I know chickens LOVE cattle and pig poop, and though it seems disgusting, it's actually pretty good for them, and creates less feed waste, and helps break up the actual livestock waste as they're scratching it around. Seems like a win win, right?
My question is, how is the best way to incorporate the two together? My hogs have a three sided shed with a padock of concrete. My current chicken barn isn't exactly close by them. Is it better to have the chickens nest in the same building, or do you just have them near enough to forage in their pens? Obviously it would be easier if they were all on pasture together, and they could follow them around but our fencing doesn't allow our pigs to do that. Is there any concern with the pigs eating or attacking the chickens? Will the broilers hop over a 3' pig panel to get into the pens? Or will they be too fat? Any extra predator concerns with them out in the open with the pigs? (Obviously you can make a pig shed as soon proof as a chicken coop...)
I've been debating having a little mini grassy area that the pigs can go out in and that they could share it with the broilers for part of the day, but need to work out the logistics of it.
I look forward to any ideas!
Here is a terrible paint-enhanced redition of an areal view our hog shed. The lean-to is in the corner of the L, with two concrete runs going to the West and South. I could put a separate broiler shed on one of the concrete runs. I could also fence off the pasture grass, to make like a square with the concrete.
Thoughts? Thanks!
