At present, poultry farms are faced with the urgent task of choosing high-quality nesting material to provide floor birds with a soft, dry and warm bed. This is usually done by covering the floor of the house with a nesting material that changes at the end of the growing cycle or as it becomes dirty and wet. The introduction of industrial technologies for growing poultry in agriculture, characterized by a high intensity of poultry production, makes increased demands on the nesting materials functional properties. We have conducted a study and made an analysis of the main zootechnical requirements of coniferous wood chips for nesting materials: mass fraction of moisture, maximum moisture capacity, thermal conductivity coefficient, and dust formation indicators. Three samples of coniferous wood chips with dimensions of 5-40 mm, 2-5 mm, and 0.5- 1.5 mm were selected for the study at the “OOO Omega enterprise”, Mari El Republic, on the basis of which optimal samples were determined as a nesting material, both for industrial livestock and domestic animals. According to the data obtained as a result of research, coniferous wood chips will reduce unsanitary conditions of keeping animals and birds, and will also facilitate the fight against pathogens of infectious and invasive diseases.