Have you ever watched a Chicken taking a dust bath? It is so entertaining!! Chicken dust baths are an essential activity for your flock. Not only do they keep your chickens healthy and clean, but they also provide many other benefits. Let me show you How to Make a Chicken Dust Bath in 3 Simple Steps!
Chickens will find their dust baths, usually in a place that you least expected and definitely didn’t want them to – like in strawberry buckets! The below photo shows Momma Fluff and Lacy Legs the bantams making themselves at home in the strawberry buckets. We had been experiencing some bad weather, and if the soil in the buckets was dry I am sure they would have started bathing in them.
WHY DO CHICKENS TAKE DUST BATHS
1. Chicken dust baths help to control parasites.
Chickens can catch lice and mites, it’s a normal fact of life with poultry, but if you keep their coop clean and dry, and the birds have the ability to dust themselves, the likelihood of these parasites becoming a problem is low. If parasites do become a problem here are some other tips to treat your birds.
2. Chicken dust baths help to keep feathers clean and healthy.
The chicken fluffs up it’s feathers and dusts the dust into the feathers. The dust gets all up in there, in the feathers and onto the skin. There is absorbs excess moisture and oils.
3. Chicken dust baths can help to relieve stress and boredom.
Bathing becomes part of the flock’s routine. Having a space where they can pamper themselves helps with boredom or even if they are stressed out – performing normal chicken activities helps keep a sane chicken.
4. Chicken dust baths are a great way to socialize your flock.
Birds will dust bath alone, they will also hang out together and it appears that there are no bosses when they are concerning themselves with this activity, it might be the one time you will see everyone getting on together.
5. Chicken dust baths are fun!
If you have seen a chicken dust bathing themselves you will know how entertaining it is. It might be routine and a bit of pleasure for the birds, it’s an absolute hoot for the humans that watch.
6. Body temperature regulation
In summer time the chicken will seek out a space where it can dig a shallow ditch fluffing down into the cooler soil, this helps lower it’s body temperature.
THE IDEAL DUST BATH AREAS
As easy as that!
How To Make A Chicken Dust Bath
Chickens need loose dry material for their dust bath. Dry soil, mulch and sand are great options. As mentioned before Chickens will find their own dust baths so if you leave them to it, they will find something suitable.
What are Other Benefits of a Dust Bath?
In addition to the health benefits, dust baths also provide other benefits for your chickens. For example, rolling in the dust can be a form of stress relief for birds, particularly if they are housed in a crowded or stressful environment. The dust also helps to regulate the chicken’s body temperature by absorbing excess moisture and cooling them down. Finally, dust bathing can be a social activity for chickens, with multiple birds often using the same dust bath area at the same time.
If you live in an area where space is limited there are a few simple hacks to make what your chickens need.
Let’s have a look at how we can create a simple dust bath for your flock.
- Find a container or something you can put the dusting material into. Some examples are large fish bins, an old tyre or a wooden box
- Fill with dry loose material – sand or dry soil
- Place somewhere it will get some sunlight, but wont get wet
So, now we have given you a few tips on How To Make a Chicken Dust Bath, you will be able to create an area for your flock where they can dust themselves, and they will thank you for it!