As anyone who uses wood products knows right now, the price of it keeps rising substantially. Last year, I paid $11.99 for a bale of aspen wood shavings (compressed to about 50L) that weighed about 20 to 25 pounds, if I remember correctly. Now it is almost $30 for the same sized bale. A bale typically lasts me about two months. I stocked up last spring when I noticed that the prices were increasing, but apparently, the prices have not stabilized at this point. I go through a lot of shavings when I'm brooding chicks so a bale only lasts me for about a month while I use about half a bale per month in the coop.
A lot of people use the less expensive pine shavings or fir shavings. BUT, I refuse to use any other type of wood shavings because of the smell/toxicity factor.
While many people who raise chickens swear by the large grain sand; our coop design, being a tractor pull, can't handle the weight of the sand, and I don't even think it would stay inside on the coop floor without a special fitted tray. So.... doing my research, I wondered about hemp bedding.
According to this well written article, they can't try the hemp for legality reasons, but it may be the next best option for us as long as there is no mold or smell to it. Hemp bedding is about half the price of the aspen shavings at the moment.
IF I don't like it, I'll make the switch to straw, even though I have never liked dealing with straw. On the positive side, the hemp, like straw, is more biodegradable than the wood shavings, (wood shavings take a couple of years to fully break down so I can't directly add them to my compost pile). That would be sweet to be able to throw the hemp materials into my compost pile loaded with the chick pooh. Comparison of Chicken Bedding
UPDATE March 2022. The Shredded hemp is working very well. It's a bit finer than the aspen shavings, and has a distinct odor, but not overwhelming, nor bad. It is very absorbent and spreads well. Although the price is steadily rising, so is the price for the aspen shavings. The hemp lasts longer. I can get by with using less because it is more absorbent. In the baby chick brooder, I am using "puppy pee pads" under the shavings, and that is helping to protect the wood flooring better. So far and first week in, it has been very good.
