using straw for deep litter

[pdordin]

hi,members,can members who have used straw for a deep litter in winter or summer,give me some info on using barley straw.i have tried to obtain wheat,bean, no luck so far.in the videos,books,and articles i have read,fanciers only seem to use wheat straw,not barley.   why? any info would be great on the use of barley staw.thanks pdordin

[little sam]

PEA STRAW IS THE BEST THINK OLDYELLOW KNOWS MOST ABOUT STRAW THOFOR DEEP LITTER

[Guest karl adams]

only trouble with straw it may have lice n mite in it and i think it can cause fungal problems

[Guest ljb107]

i only use barley straw in the nests not on the floor.

 

Lloyd

[Guest smudger1964]

better off useing sand on the floor mate at breeding time throw some twigs in on the floor small ones mind keep it natural as you can, thats my way dont no about others............. 8)

[pdordin]

thanks members,i allways use straw,on the floor in winter,the trouble was the wheat straw i use to get from my local pet shop as since closed,and turned into a pizzahouse,every pet shop in a ten miles radius of my house sell barley straw.what is the diffrence between wheat and barley straw,why do pigeon fanciers say dont use barley straw. kind regards p dordin :-/ :-/ :-/

[OLDYELLOW]

straw , when using straw you should only buy straw thats been gased as supplied in little compressed bags at your local petshop , this is because the straw from farms can have many tics and other creepy crawls in it which wouldnt do you pigeons any good at all , sand is ok with i feel it attracts more damp and damp creates its own problems re ecoli ectra , the best floor dressing available is hempcore

[pdordin]

thank you oldyellow,so i can use any straw in the platic bags,from your pet shop,thats great.was going to use shavings,they are good but blow everway.then i thought about the wooden pellets,till i saw the price.anyway,thanks to all members,for the quick info.kind regards pdordin

[OLDYELLOW]

if buying from a petshop ensure they dont keep live animals or the straw may be contaminated , buy HEMPCORE  great stuff by the time you have enough straw you could have hempcore and perhaps cheaper

[Guest smudger1964]

straw , when using straw you should only buy straw thats been gased as supplied in little compressed bags at your local petshop , this is because the straw from farms can have many tics and other creepy crawls in it which wouldnt do you pigeons any good at all , sand is ok with i feel it attracts more damp and damp creates its own problems re ecoli ectra , the best floor dressing available is hempcore

sand as always worked for me i did us straw when i sirst  started .but seeing to many creepy crawies put me off  im not saying dont us straw it wasnt for me .....sand in my lofts keeps dry i rake it over every day no damp at all..... its down to your management at the end of the day. ;D

 

 

[OLDYELLOW]

hempcore dressing on floor

[pdordin]

hi oldyellow,where do you buy hemp core fom

[Guest smudger1964]

hempcore dressing on floor

yes but look at the DAMP up the doors of your loft :-/

 

 

[Fair Play]

Easibed,Hempcore are what I use but when looking through the web I came across another type which is supposed to be 4 times more absorbant than any other on the market some company in the North East (I Think) but can't find the name.

[OLDYELLOW]

thats not damp that was wax to get the doors to slide lol  ;D ;D ;D ;D , where as if you walk on wetness outside loft such as grass or concrete when you stand on sand it attaches to your feet and the water runs down in to the sand creating damp and when you exit loft you take it with you  

[OLDYELLOW]

Hempcore is available at most equestrian supliers / farm supliers such as B.A.T.A or ask a petshop to get it in for you  

[frank-123]

i will be putting easibed down then hemp core on top then hopefully all i need to do is change the hemp core

hopefully tomorrow

that will do me until racing starts then back to bare floor scrape it as much as i can

 

[Fair Play]

Sorry geography was a bit out.

G.J.W.Titmuss Ltd herts

Northern Crop driers 01759 318396

Megazorb

Don't know if it will blow about as it looks "fine" but has had dust extracted

 

[pdordin]

thanks to you all,i ordered some, respiro-san dry,thats was advertised in the bhw.that as not come yet.i am going to use under the deep litter.i will try getting some hemp core,tommorrow,if not it will be the straw.i think all forms of deep litter,such as straw,hemp core,sand,shavings,are all used successfully,by you all. once again thanks to you all kind regards pdordin

[Guest spin cycle]

i found sand to dusty..so switched to barley straw which i refresh weekly and clean out completely once a month. with the wet harvests you are more likely to get spores/fungus in wheat straw than winter barley as it is harvested ealier before the wet started. check your straw and smell it for freshness and it should be ok...i think creepy crawlies fall through straw layer and starve. i've never treated for ext. parasites except for tcp in bath (pigeons or me  (evil)) the big drawback is mess as  it blows about ect so if this is problem hemcore ect is probably better bet

[pdordin]

thanks spin cycle for the info

[paul10121968]

thats not damp that was wax to get the doors to slide lol  ;D ;D ;D ;D , where as if you walk on wetness outside loft such as grass or concrete when you stand on sand it attaches to your feet and the water runs down in to the sand creating damp and when you exit loft you take it with you  

 

and end up an inch taller ;D ;D ;D

[paul10121968]

my dad used to use deep litter,his was a mixture of straw and just about anything he could get his hands on shavings,sawdust and the birds droppings themselves,i can remember him spraying it quite often with something and he would go in with a fork and toss it all around,but im going back 25 years ago.

[Guest IB]

On same theme, going back to the 1960's used to go to Hamilton's the local farm for a bag of straw for the birds' nests.

 

No nest bowls in those days, just the straw on the box floor. Don't recollect any bother with it either.

 

[Chairman]

When using straw a tip dave Allen gave us all was to take a slice of the bale and shake it loose and place into a black bin liner, then pour a capful of Duramitex over the straw, then tie the top of the bin liner with string hang up for 72hrs then use as needed, this way you have as suggested in an earlier thread "gassed" it and the lice, mite and creepers will not want to live in it plus it keeps the moths away.In my stock loft I pour an enormous quantity of cresote over the wooden floor area and then split a full bale of medicated wood shavings then I put a full bale of straw on top of the shavings, it is only replenished annaully before I weaned the new years youngsters accross and I find no problems with their growth or health using this method.But your loft must be bone dry for this to work sucessfully.   8)