Chicken cleanup

I didn't look forward to cleaning the broilers' pen, but it's nice now that it's done. I believe the chicks are 4 weeks old today and that is half way through. They will be processed at 8 weeks on October 21st. I haven't lost any more since the original 3 chicks which died during the first couple of days, so I am holding steady at 38. That is 76 chicken wings I told my daughter last night! I am having less problems this time with chickens blowing their legs....ie unable to walk. I thought that was due to rapid weight gain, but I was told that the problem could be a bacterial infection resulting from wet/contaminated bedding. I have them on the same feed that the processor uses. This time around, I have one bird that is having problem walking but isn't totally down, and I removed her from the pen and put her in a wire cage. Paul helped me scrape down their pen and put in new shavings. We're also trying to minimize spillage from their water container. Hopefully that will all help. The bigger they get, they more often their pen will have to be cleaned. I thought I'd scoot them all outside in the pasture while I cleaned it out, but they were petrified to be away from their usual surroundings and did not want to be herded outside, in fact they would hurt themselves trying to get back in. This is in total contrast to the turkeys who enjoy being outside so much that they will pine if they are left confined inside the barn. I'm going to have to rig up something outside forthe broilers to forage in that will keep them contained so they can eat greens and bugs.