What should i use to cover the floor of my patio chicken run?

[tazderazzer]

We are new owners to four baby chicks, and they are well cute, enjoying every minute watching them sleep and play in there brooder.
We had two built in dog kennels at the bottom corner of our garden so we have built the coop in there and chicken wired all the way around and the roof, so we have a walk in run for them, the flooring is patio though. So we have put a kick-board all around sides, leaving some gaps for drainage, and was wondering what to put down? I thought bark would have encouraged scratching and rummaging but have read it can harbour harmful spores and bacteria. I don't want to leave it bare, even though they will come into garden for play time. The run isn't covered, and am now thinking maybe we should have built that into the design but we are hoping not to have to? Can anyone advise best for chickens comfort and hygene? I'm so confused reading so many options out there.
We do have a sheltered area with perches and its a large run for four chicks.

Thanks, Taz

[Scarlet]

If the flooring is slabs I would leave it as it is and add a couple of trays of mud or sand for dust bathing. ( cat litter trays are ideal) You can add some wood chips to top dress the slabs and to give them something to scratch about in. My local tree surgeon drops mine off. A sheltered spot does come in handy! It doesn't 't need to be too complicated, a piece of corrugated plastic, a tarpaulin or anything that will give them shelter and somewhere dry have their food and water out.

[tazderazzer]

Thanks that's reassuring, it is slab flooring. I have a sheltered area for them and am thinking up lots of playtime ideas, and a sand tray sounds great. Is it ok for chickens to run on hard ground then? It's not to hard on there feet/joints? Will certainly be easier to hose down the patio and keep clean that's for sure.

[chris]

I have mine on a concrete floor - and I put down wood shavings/chip.