Keeping a clean and sanitary chicken coop is important if you want your birds to have the best shot at being and staying healthy, this isn’t always easy and may require some labor but it’s a must.
If you notice that there is mold in your chicken coop you’d be right to be concerned, this article explores how this happens, and, what to do.
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Mold in chicken coop:
Mold is a dangerous material that can grow on almost any damp surface. You may find orange, green, white, or black mold growing in your bird’s coop.
This is how this happens:
How does mold grow in chicken coops?
Mold can easily grow in your chicken coops, mould can start to grow if the bird’s grain or feed gets wet and doesn’t get the chance to dry off.
All chicken feed has some mold spores on it. If the feed is allowed to stay wet then these mold spores will start growing and become a problem.
The mold on the bird’s feed will release additional mold spores and these can travel throughout the coop onto the walls.
Mould can also directly grow on the walls of your chicken coop. If warm moist air gets into the coop and condenses into the wall then the mold will then grow on the wall.
Will mold kill chickens?
Mold can definitely kill your chickens, not only can mold produce toxins that can be dangerous to your chickens, but it can even kill your chickens if not addressed.
Signs of mold ingestion in your birds include weight loss, watery droppings, problems with the bird’s egg quality, slowed growth, lesions, loss of control of bodily movements, paralysis, and even death
How to get rid of mold in the chicken coop:
The first thing that you’d need to do is get rid of any moldy feed in the bird’s coop. You can then clean the mold off of the walls of the chicken coop. Wear a dust mask before starting the mold removal process.
Start off by vacuuming any mold in the bird’s coop, use a vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filer. If the mold isn’t coming off easily you may want to start off using a soft-bristled brush to dislodge it.
Create a solution made up of one teaspoon of dish soap to two cups of water. Add the solution into a spray bottle and spray the solution onto the mold and the surrounding areas on the wall.
Scrub the affected areas using a soft-bristled brush and soak up any excess water using paper towels.
Repeat the above steps on the moldy areas if necessary removing all the mold and stains.
Doing this will get rid of the mold in your bird’s coop but you would also need to kill off any of the underlying roots of the mold. You can do this by using a borax solution on the area.
To make the solution combine 1 tablespoon of borax with one cup of water. Apply the solution to the moldy area as well as the surrounding areas using a soft-bristled brush and allow it to dry into the wood.
Very stubborn mold will need to be removed with 100-grit sandpaper.
Bleach won’t work in the case of wooden chicken coops as bleach can’t penetrate and absorb into wood, but, a dilute bleach solution can be used if you want to remove the mildew stains.
Check all the corners of your chicken coop, especially areas where there is high moisture, for mold.
The birds will need to be kept out of the coop for about a week because the fumes of the bleach are not good for the birds.
How to prevent mold in a chicken coop:
Mold exists on all feed but it only grows where it has water and food to sustain it.
The best way to keep mold from growing in your chicken coop is to store your feed well, do this right after you buy it. Ensure that it is contained and can’t be rained on, isn’t exposed to moisture and it can’t get wet in any other way.
If there is already moldy feed in your bird’s coop then you’d need to replace this with fresh feed.
If the roof of your chicken coop is dripping water into the coop then you’d need to repair the roof to keep the coop from getting wet.
Regular sanitation should be good enough to keep mold from growing in your bird’s coop.
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