Unpopular opinion: pine shavings beat the deep litter method for small coops
I ran deep litter in my 4x6 coop for 8 months and the smell in July was enough to gag a buzzard, so I switched to plain pine shavings from Tractor Supply and scoop them out every Saturday morning. Takes me 10 minutes and the girls seem happier without all that damp buildup under their feet. Anyone else find deep litter only works if you've got a huge run to spread it out in?
Deep litter does not need a huge run to work, it needs the right carbon to nitrogen mix and regular turning. My 5x8 coop stayed dry all summer once I started adding more shavings on top and flipping it with a pitchfork every week or two. Pine shavings in a small coop can work fine too, but they get just as rank if you let the droppings pile up underneath them.