[Louise Gaunt]

With regard to no dry soil in the run for a dust bath, could you mix ash with either dried soil or sand in a cat litter tray so,they can have a dust bath? I know it isn't the same as digging a hole in dry soil which my hens love, but it could give them some amusement whilst confined to barracks.

[Celli]

Hi Celli
Do you mean the stuff that they use for reptiles? I'm thinking that would break down in my compost very quickly. Is there a downside?

Yes that's it , I get horticultural stuff, it's a bit cheaper I think and you get it in larger quantities, the only downside is it does come out the bag slightly damp, I just tip it into a big tubtrug and let it dry off for a few days, other than that I much prefer it to anything else I've used, I've found it lasts longer and not so much is wasted when I daily poo pick, and as you say, you can dig it straight into the soil.
I'm hoping the compressed stuff that arrived today won't be damp and can go straight in the coop, I'll report back tomorrow when I clean out the coop.

[Celli]

Mixed results from the sold block bedding, on the plus side, they are small, so very handy if storage is tight, but rehydrating is a bit of a chore, especially when you don't want it to be damp.
So it took a lot of chipping, sawing ( this stuff is brick hard you can't break it up with your hands ) and adding a bit more water until I had a heaped barrow full, and then one of my cats jumped in and pee'd in it ! ?.
Two blocks filled my 5x 4 coop to about four or five inches deep, I'd use it again, but in the summer, it's too cold to be hunched over a wheelbarrow for ages with your hands in cold water.