Using Shredded Paper for Coop Litter - As Good As Wood Chips?

[paintedChix]

This thread has soooo much information, but I'll just put in my two cents that might only be worth one. I use to board my horse at a barn that used shredded paper for their bedding. The BO's husband was a manager at the local paper mill and they were able to get shredded paper in bulk for cheap/free. It was...kind of awful. First off, the smell of paper pulp was so strong in all of the barns, it just about punched you in the face if you were the first to open the doors in the morning. When wet it turned to the heaviest mush you can imagine. It felt impossible to sweep even when dry.

Now, I know using it in a chicken coop is probably going to be different. It won't get wet with urine like it does in a horse stall, but I would never recommend using it anywhere where getting wet is a risk.

I don't remember a lot about that barn other than sometimes when a friend or acquaintance will ask me about the place, and I'll immediately have the knee jerk reaction of, "oh, the shredded paper bedding place!"

I've owned & worked w/ horses/ponies off & on most of my life.

You are right. I can not imagine using shredded paper as bedding for large livestock that produces lots of urine. Pine pellets weren't " a thing" yet when we had them stalled. Honestly, I don't like pine shavings for chickens at all. But LOVED them when dealing with horses. Especially at the barn that got them closer to sawdust, than flaked chips.

But in the case of our chickens, I LOVE shredded paper. Our pens & coops are open to the ground - no floors. The paper, other natural materials & dirt (started w/ sand here in the sandhills of NC) all interact w/ each other. The chickens scratch, dig & throw around all that bedding & litter. Poop is "digested" & disappears. What is left is a nice composted material that continues to work where the chickens are or becomes "gold" for the garden.

 

[SkyAJK]

This thread has soooo much information, but I'll just put in my two cents that might only be worth one. I use to board my horse at a barn that used shredded paper for their bedding. The BO's husband was a manager at the local paper mill and they were able to get shredded paper in bulk for cheap/free. It was...kind of awful. First off, the smell of paper pulp was so strong in all of the barns, it just about punched you in the face if you were the first to open the doors in the morning. When wet it turned to the heaviest mush you can imagine. It felt impossible to sweep even when dry.

Now, I know using it in a chicken coop is probably going to be different. It won't get wet with urine like it does in a horse stall, but I would never recommend using it anywhere where getting wet is a risk.

I don't remember a lot about that barn other than sometimes when a friend or acquaintance will ask me about the place, and I'll immediately have the knee jerk reaction of, "oh, the shredded paper bedding place!"

You are scared for life..

I was having this image of smelly wet shred paper as I read your post. You must had a lot of shred papers. The chicken coop is ok with shred paper so long your chickens is nothing like mine, having fill of it.

 

[SkyAJK]

Spot?
You need to make a pattern. One hole is not enough. I made 6 holes in 3x3 m. 1 hole every meter.
You can skip the places with the trees/bushes.

Thank you for the map, it is very clear.
I look at your map and thinking about where in my chicken run.
My area is hilly.
The footpath is higher ground than the front of my house, it is descending down from there. My chicken runs are at the end of the property so it is at the lowest point of the property. Base on your map there, I would best do it as per that 2nd map, just at the end where water flow down its natural way.

When it is not excessive and prolong rain, the rain water just pass through, but due to the prolong and excessive rain, everything just mess up.

 

[avjudge]

It was...kind of awful. First off, the smell of paper pulp was so strong in all of the barns, it just about punched you in the face if you were the first to open the doors in the morning. When wet it turned to the heaviest mush you can imagine. It felt impossible to sweep even when dry.

I think it must make a big difference what quality of paper is shredded and what shape the shreds are. I shred mostly corrugated cardboard plus a good amount of newspaper and grocery cardboard (cereal & pasta boxes etc.) using a heavy duty office “micro cut” crosscut shredder. As I believe I mentioned earlier in the thread I do use it in a horse stall as well as my chicken coop. We do not routinely stall our horses, but I have had my horse on stall rest (i.e. in the stall 24/7 for several days or weeks)a couple times over the last few years. And when my husband is going to use his llamas he will catch them the previous evening and put them in overnight.

I have never noticed a smell of paper. As with sawdust bedding, the urine spreads across the stall floor (mats) under the bedding and then is wicked up into it. I don’t find the damp paper to be any harder to deal with than damp sawdust. And it sweeps just fine.

If I were routinely stalling my horse I would not use paper just because I do not create it fast enough. When Flicka was on stall rest I would have to buy a few bags of pellets and shavings to replace what had been soiled. And for ease of cleaning I did prefer the sawmill sawdust I got by the truckload in my previous horsey life (late ‘70s-early ‘80s) as the fine paper shreds do seem to bury and hide the manure more thoroughly as my mare (in both cases) circled the stall through the night.

 

[Bawkbok]

That is fact that there is so much work keeping my chickens!

Chickens ARE a lot of work. They are more work than dogs. But it should still be fun. Anyone who tells you you can "just feed and water them and collect eggs" is not properly caring for their chickens. We know someone like this and they end up "finding" them in the yard - dead. Quotations are her words ver batim. If you want happy, healthy chickens, they require attention, interaction, extra care, occasional health check inspections, a clean coop, sufficient space and of course, observation.

I have plenty of advertisement papers, newspapers that I can shred, they eat so much of it that I can not do it.

We can't use paper for this very reason. We have a chicken who loves paper. I won't take the chance on an impacted crop. We are just not one of the lucky ones who can use it in our run - it's not worth the risk to me so we augment the yard compost, leaves, etc. with bags of oak mulch from the big box store 2-3 times a year.

Our soil is clay,

We've lived with clay soil. It is difficult to manage and impossible to grow anything in. We built above ground boxes for the vegetable garden and had to fill them with bags of dirt. Honestly, I'd rather deal with clay then sand. There is nothing like good dark, loamy soil. Those that have it hopefully appreciate it.

 

[fat brown hen]

My goal is like your, use whatever freely available. I have access to free cardboard, newspaper and product advertising paper. If only my chickens not have a buffet of these, keeping chickens would be so much easier and cost effective.

I do not use any bedding during the summer and fall (we have a long dry season). During that time, the dust and dander are enough to absorb any moisture from the droppings. You might be able to do the same, depending on your climate.

Also FWIW, I had a hen who always filled her crop with straw, iris leaves, and other strappy, fibrous vegetation. She never got an impacted crop, but I later realized that she had a high worm load and enteritis. I think she was instinctively trying to restore gut balance with all that fiber.

 

[Raubkatze]

I think it must make a big difference what quality of paper is shredded and what shape the shreds are. I shred mostly corrugated cardboard plus a good amount of newspaper and grocery cardboard (cereal & pasta boxes etc.) using a heavy duty office “micro cut” crosscut shredder. As I believe I mentioned earlier in the thread I do use it in a horse stall as well as my chicken coop. We do not routinely stall our horses, but I have had my horse on stall rest (i.e. in the stall 24/7 for several days or weeks)a couple times over the last few years. And when my husband is going to use his llamas he will catch them the previous evening and put them in overnight.

I have never noticed a smell of paper. As with sawdust bedding, the urine spreads across the stall floor (mats) under the bedding and then is wicked up into it. I don’t find the damp paper to be any harder to deal with than damp sawdust. And it sweeps just fine.

If I were routinely stalling my horse I would not use paper just because I do not create it fast enough. When Flicka was on stall rest I would have to buy a few bags of pellets and shavings to replace what had been soiled. And for ease of cleaning I did prefer the sawmill sawdust I got by the truckload in my previous horsey life (late ‘70s-early ‘80s) as the fine paper shreds do seem to bury and hide the manure more thoroughly as my mare (in both cases) circled the stall through the night.

I believe their paper was mostly newspaper, but I don't remember for sure now.

 

[SkyAJK]

I do not use any bedding during the summer and fall (we have a long dry season). During that time, the dust and dander are enough to absorb any moisture from the droppings. You might be able to do the same, depending on your climate.

Our weather since last year is just excessive and prolong rain. Humidity is high and mud....... Even my 1kg sugar bag has insect growing in it, so goes with the wheat flour, oat... We have a small humidity machine to remove humidity in our storage room.

Just about 2 days ago, I put hemp back into the bantam coop, they enjoy eating it so much, I thought....well let see, so far, still alive, but stopped eating it after 2 days. I am so graceful for that!!

My other coops I will continue with cardboard and remove those before sunrise. What a lot of work!!!

 

[SkyAJK]

Chickens ARE a lot of work. They are more work than dogs. But it should still be fun. Anyone who tells you you can "just feed and water them and collect eggs" is not properly caring for their chickens. We know someone like this and they end up "finding" them in the yard - dead. Quotations are her words ver batim. If you want happy, healthy chickens, they require attention, interaction, extra care, occasional health check inspections, a clean coop, sufficient space and of course, observation.


We can't use paper for this very reason. We have a chicken who loves paper. I won't take the chance on an impacted crop. We are just not one of the lucky ones who can use it in our run - it's not worth the risk to me so we augment the yard compost, leaves, etc. with bags of oak mulch from the big box store 2-3 times a year.

We've lived with clay soil. It is difficult to manage and impossible to grow anything in. We built above ground boxes for the vegetable garden and had to fill them with bags of dirt. Honestly, I'd rather deal with clay then sand. There is nothing like good dark, loamy soil. Those that have it hopefully appreciate it.

Yes, I have 4 garden beds to grow vegetable in. I just hate the mud when it rain day in day out.

And yes, having chicken is a lot of work...etc.... endless. If only and if only they don't eat cardboard, newspaper, hemp, it would be lesser work. Like yesterday, my Isa Brown laid an egg that has shell on the thin side, so feed her 1 calcium tablet. She was off calcium tablet jut last Friday and now back on again. Checking poops.. who done the abnormal poop?, who poop this wormy poop? investigation started...

They take over my refrigerator , half of it is storage green leaf for chickens, then on the side compartment bottom shelf is chicken medication.

My chickens worth it, but sometimes, some days, I just wish it is not so hard.