Sunday, April 14, 2013

Spring Coop-Cleaning

There are bird turds,
many many bird turds,
there are bird turds
all around.

There are bird turds,
numerous bird turds,
there are bird turds,
on the ground.

In the coop,
there is plenty of poop.
Excrement and feathers,
man, those birds crap together!
When you look in the hay,
you know it's cleaning day.
When you step in the coop
and get poop on your boot,
you know what I'm gonna say!

~*~

   Right when I thought spring was were, there was another flurry of snow two days ago. It's mid-April, for crying out loud!
   One of the first things I like to try and get done in spring is cleaning the bird barn. The chickens, geese, ducks, and guinea hen I keep live in what was once a horse stable on the property I live on. I'm gonna find a good place to dump the old hay today, and try and get it cleaned out completely by the end of the month.
   I let the birds free-range, and contrary to popular belief, I have never had a problem with them wandering off. But in the cold, harsh winter, when the wind-chill brings temperatures into the sub-zero, none of the birds want to leave the coop (and I sure as hell won't be out there cleaning it). By the end of winter it is time for a change in bedding. During the time I can't change the hay, though, I still keep things tidy by sprinkling saw dust over the filth.
   A clean coop makes for happy, parasite-reduced/free birds, and free-range birds are even happier.

~Evie Rooks

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