Coop bedding compared

Bedding manages moisture, odor, and droppings. There is no perfect option — only tradeoffs between cost, labor, and your climate. Never use cedar shavings: the aromatic oils irritate chickens' respiratory systems.

Pine shavings

The default for good reason. Absorbent, composts well, widely available.

Pros

Good absorbency and odor control
Cheap and available everywhere
Composts readily

Cons

Needs full replacement every few weeks in small coops
Dusty if you buy fine-cut; get large-flake

Straw

Cheap and insulating, but the hollow stalks harbor mites and it mats when wet.

Pros

Very cheap, great insulation in winter
Hens love scratching in it

Cons

Mats down when damp — poor in wet climates
Can harbor mites and mold
Composts slower than shavings

Sand (coarse construction sand)

Works like cat litter: scoop droppings daily, replace rarely. Only in dry, covered coops.

Pros

Daily scooping = very clean coop
Excellent drainage, low odor
Cheap per year once installed

Cons

Heavy to install and remove
Terrible if it gets wet — turns to concrete-like muck
Cold underfoot in winter; no insulation value
Must be coarse sand, never fine/play sand (respiratory dust)

Hemp bedding

The premium option: extremely absorbent, low dust, composts fast.

Pros

Most absorbent option here — 2–4× shavings
Very low dust
Less frequent changes

Cons

2–4× the price of pine shavings
Harder to find locally; often ordered online

The deep litter method

Instead of replacing bedding, you add fresh shavings on top and let the lower layers compost in place, turning it occasionally. Done right, the composting action generates a little heat and you clean out only 1–2 times a year. Done wrong — too wet, too little ventilation — it's an ammonia trap that damages birds' lungs. It works best in larger coops with good airflow and a dirt or wood floor (not in small prefab coops). Start with 4–6 inches of pine shavings, add more as needed, and if you smell ammonia, you need more bedding and more ventilation immediately.

Wet climate rule: if your run turns to mud every winter, bedding choice matters less than drainage. Fix water flow first (gutters, grading, covered run), then pick bedding. No bedding survives standing water.

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