I only use lime in the chiken coop in the summer, and sparingly at that--you get it at a feed store in a big 25lb sack, it is irritating to your skin, eyes, and nose, but it stays down on the ground and the chickens don't mind. It keeps down the flies.
Thanks to my mild climate, I have hutches out doors with no pans, and I love NOT cleaning. I built the hutches right over my compost bins and just turn the spilled hay and manure once in a while, and then put it on the garden when I need it. It doesn't smell except in the middle of August, when I water it and it goes back to being not-smelly compost immeadiately.