Where to locate the compost bin, near the coop?

[triplepurpose]

just for another perspective, im not a huge fan of the dropping board/droppings hammock method-- to me thats just more work. with an active, good litter whats falls under the roosts gets incorporated just like in the rest of the coop, or if it doesnt always you can use a tool to incorporate it if/as needed, whereas a droopings board alwsys stinks unless you scrap it every morning. lots of people seem to like them for various reasons tho, so to each their own i guess...

 

[triplepurpose]

Originally I was going to have all my roosts the same height, but have decided it'll work better having staggered roosts heights.

having roosts of different heights is not really recommended. they will end up all jockeying and competing for position on the highest one(s) every night because these are always prefered. having them all the same height easily eliminates that problem and the stress it creates.

 

[DreamsInPink]

Thank you for that input.. I'm still really undecided about whether I want the droppings board/hammock or not. You mention active, good litter.. I'll be using pine shavings most likely. I guess I'll just have to try one or the other and see how it works. And which one I like better.

Actually, I have done extensive research on roosting behavior and have found quite the opposite to be true.

From what I've read, the varied heights is highly recommended due to the fact that it encourages and embraces the natural instincts of the chickens. There will be a natural hierarchy, or pecking order in any flock. Once that hierarchy is established, the hens know their place within the flock and squabbling over roosts is usually minimal, unless, a hen decides to challenge the hen/s above her in the hierarchy.

And once I learned all that, it makes so much sense to me.. from a chicken's point of view!!

 

[blucoondawg]

I have different height roosts and it's fine, the chickens in the top of the pecking order get the top bars the rest go lower there isn't a big fuss and fight every night. They do just fine.

 

[DreamsInPink]

Thank you for that!! That pretty much confirms what I've been reading... I won't know how mine act for a while yet. They are still little.

 

[mekidsmom]

Good to see the thread still going. Lots of good ideas and suggestions in here! I know there's a ton of other compost type posts around the forums as well... but the "how far from the coop" - I'm not sure if it was addressed in other threads. Thanks for the thoughts, everyone that's contributed!

My coop still isn't complete... and now we've got snow in Upstate NY, so everything's at a bit of a stand still at the moment. That said, I did get my compost pile started near the coop. I've been making it a habit to put just a LITTLE bit of food in, and kind of digging in a little to place it toward the center and always bury it with shavings or leaves (we have PLENTY of leaves in this very deciduous area... oh my, there's "natural" compost piles everywhere honestly). Despite the fact that there's TONS of raccoons, skunks, crows, and dear around... no one seems to have disturbed the pile at all! This is good news to me! I think it'll be ok to give the chickens a decent amount of "leftovers" and toss the rest into the compost as long as I follow this method!

I saw some ideas about freezing fruits and veggies in water for cool summer treats. Although, it sounded like most comments indicated people's chickens weren't very interested in pecking at frozen water and left the treats alone until the ice melted. I do like the idea though of freezing scraps. I already freeze bread heels and take them out to make breadcrumbs on the fly. There's no reason I can't toss another container in the freezer for chicken approved food scraps.

This weather needs to hurry up and get better again though! My chicks are creating a dusty mess in the laundry room... I'll miss their chirps though when I'm getting my morning coffee from the kitchen next to the laundry room! Already starting to hear a few clucks in there. I'm surprised my daughter hasn't suggested that we just let them stay in the cage inside like parakeets.

 

[Chilly Lizard]

Cool this is very helpful!