# Problems with Ammonia



## breezy2u (Feb 1, 2018)

I have a small herd of goats. One billy, three nannies, two wethers, and one baby born 1/1/20. When I first got them I just purchased a child's playhouse for them to use for shelter but it was too small. Last summer I invested in a shed that I put a dog door on for them to use. The problem is it has a water resistant floor and after just a day or two, when I go in there the ammonia smell is overwhelming. I've started not putting wood shavings on the floor and instead have been putting down a diatomaceous earth that is supposed to control the smell but it still gets over powering very quickly. I don't know what else to do. These are just hobby goats/pets so I would rather not have to clean out the shed every day. Is there anything I can do to fix this problem?


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## SalteyLove (Jun 18, 2011)

The doe and baby are REALLY gorgeous!

How large is the shed? 
Is there air flow out through the eaves or ceiling?
How thick were you putting down the shavings?

With 7 goats (and more on the way?) you may just have to do some daily mucking of the wet areas, it kinda comes with goat-owning.

A few things you could try:


Barn Lime, or a product manufactured to control Ammonia such as Sweet PDZ, StallFresh, etc. (many many options at any store with horse supplies) underneath the wood shavings. I have never heard of Diatomaceous Earth being useful for odor control.

On very good weather days/weeks you could lock them out of the structure.

Depending on the structure size, put lime and shavings in only one portion of the shelter for them to use as a potty area. Then just sweep droppings from the dry floor areas in other parts. Some folks use kiddie pools or other plastic low containers as "litter boxes" of sorts - or a 2x4 lumber divider could keep the shavings in one part.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Good questions and suggestions. :up:


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## goatblessings (Jan 6, 2015)

Yes, with seven, how big is the shed area? You may try stall mats and shavings, but with a small area you may have to go with daily cleaning. I clean every day, and I find if I keep up with it, it's not as bad. I use barn lime or sweet pdz for ammonia, but I only have to use it once a year - I do have large areas - usually a minimum of 5x6 for one goat, larger for moms and kids or a loafing area. Depends on how many you are trying to keep within your area.


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## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Yep, daily clean outs, pine shavings and PDZ are a life saver when it comes to smell. Ammonia smells are really hard on goats especially little ones.
I put a semi thick layer of PDZ down then a layer of shavings then every day I use a dust pan to scoop out the wet areas and put down more PDZ and shavings. I do a total shed/barn clean out once a week. 
However you MUST have good ventilation so no one develops pneumonia


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## Robinsonfarm (Jul 17, 2015)

Do you feed them in the shed? 

I have found that my barn stays much nicer if I feed and put water outside, the exercise is good for them as well. Even in rain and snow they have to go out unless its horribly windy or nasty out. I have covered feeder so their hay stays dry and they dont stand around and poop and pee inside all day.


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## Sfgwife (Feb 18, 2018)

You have great advice so far. Ventilation is super important! We do deep bedding in winter here. The cast off hay is spread on the dirt floor. It piles up but it also makes heat because it composts. There should be no smell this way either. When it is crazy rainy like now i occasionally get a whiff and i put down pdz and it is gone within a few minutes. But i also clean daily still big piles of poop or wet wet spots. You really need clean daily. It only takes a few minutes.


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## GoofyGoat (Sep 21, 2018)

Just so you know DE is really hard on the lungs and nasal passages of animals and can cause problems for them and you.


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## Goat Whisperer (Dec 3, 2018)

I second what the others suggest. 

Sweet PDZ is also a wonderful product! Much better than DE. I use the granules. 
Mix it with the bedding, it'll help keep it dry and cuts the ammonia down.


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