Chickens roll in the dirt to clean themselves. Now, this may seem unusual but this has a significant role in keeping the chicken healthy and clean.
So, let’s get to know how dirt can keep a chicken clean and how you can create a DIY dust bathing space.
What is Chicken Dust Bathing?
The behavior where chickens are seen splashing dirt on themselves is known as Chicken Dust Bathing and this process is seen in many other animals as well such as zebras, horses, and chipmunks. This process is quite beneficial for them when they cannot access any bathing spots during winter.
During dust bathing, chickens find an area filled with loose dirt and they roll around in and splash the dust on their body using their beak and wings. You can also find them flopping and using their legs to kick the loose dirt on their body and on their fluffed-out feathers.
Dust bathing makes the chicken happy and also you do not have to create or provide them with any bathing space. Rather, they would themselves find their own bathing area.
Why Do Chickens Dust Bath?
The common reason why chicken dust baths is that they do not want to wet their feathers, as wet feathers would take time to dry out and they would create health issues for them, mostly during winter. Dust bathing helps the chickens to stay clean and also eliminates the parasite.
4 Reasons Dust Bathing is Good for a Chicken’s Health
Here are the reasons why dust bath is considered beneficial for chickens:
1. Oil Control
Chicken has oil glands which they use to spread on the feathers and keep them clean. The oil keeps the feather water-resistant. Thus, when they roll on the dirt the excess oil gets absorbed by the dirt and this maintains an oil balance on their body.
2. Preventing Parasite
There are many external parasites that hide under the feathers of the chicken and feed on the chicken’s blood and skin and during a dust bath, they get smothered or dried out.
3. Improve Skin
Dust bathing helps to promote healthy skin by removing the dead skin, the dirt works as a scrubber and a dust bath of chicken is equivalent to a spa.
4. Enhances Community Activity
You can find a flock of chickens taking a dust bath rather than an individual attempt. Thus, it promotes group activity and many chickens are seen to participate at the same time. They are even seen splashing dirt on each other during a dust bath. This also stimulates and enriches the natural behavior of the chickens.
4 Steps to Plan Your DIY Chicken Bath
Here are the steps that you need to follow if you want to create a Chicken Dust Bath:
Step 1: Plan a Location
You have to decide a location where you want the chickens to bathe, otherwise, the chickens might choose a spot that they find favorable or protected. You can choose the ideal place near thick shrubs or at the base of the tree. Try to avoid areas with heavy and wet dust. If you find an area where the chickens had previously had their dust bath, then you can consider that as well.
Choose a sunny spot and give them enough options to dust and bathe in. You must also include a shady spot so that the chickens can stay cool during super hot days. Moreover, you can either make the place in the coop or in a free-range area, but you need to ensure that these places are far from the feeder or waterer so that the food and water don’t get contaminated. You must also plan these places far away from nesting boxes for safety reasons.
Step 2: Consider the Quantity of Dust
When you are creating a dust bath for the chicken you need to ensure the amount of dust in the area is balanced. Check the size of the dust bath and it should be at least a perfect fit for 3 to 4 members at a time. If you are choosing a container, then get shallow wooden boxes, galvanized tubs, custom-cut plastic totes, and old large flower pots. You can also surround the area with large rocks and logs.
Step 3: Keep the Dust Area Dry
It is your duty to keep the dust area dry so consider building a shelter over the bath. However, ensure that some amount of sunshine reaches the bathing spot and the chicken gets a sunny space for dust bathing. Choose loose and dry native dirt and you can also make your own mix of dirt.
The most common ingredient chosen is sand but you need to mix other dirt as well, to help in the process of exfoliating and removing excess oil. Take note that you are using construction-grade sand only as these are all-purpose sane and won’t impact the crop in case the chicken ingests it. Never use play sand as these are treated with chemicals.
Step 4: Adding Other Ingredients
There are many additional ingredients or amendments that you can consider while preparing a chicken dust bath, such as – diatomaceous earth, peat moss, sulfur bust, lime, herbs, wood ash, and charcoal. These provide extra depth to the dust bath and also the chickens enjoy their time here.
Why Chickens Abandon Dust Bath Areas?
Chickens might not use the dust bath that you have prepared due to the following reasons –
- The dirt isn’t loose enough
- The dust bath areas are not big enough for the chickens to bathe
- You have added too many amendments to the dirt
- The bath area is not protected.
Do Chickens Clean Themselves Regularly?
Yes, chickens take a dust bath and also daily preen to keep their feathers clean. This ensures that the bird stays healthy, free from external parasites, and does not fall ill. Daily cleaning also helps to release new feathers, remove bugs, and keep an oil balance on the feathers.
