Crickets/Meal Worms

[PeanutnCashew]

My Silver Appleyard is a bug hunter but I know he cannot find much in my yard.

Should I go buy some crickets and meal worms from a bait store? The thought of it is ewwww to me, but I will! How do you store these..things?

 

[Missy60]

You have to be careful of bait shop millworms some of them have something on them that's not good for ducks. Sorry but I can't remember exactly what it is

 

[PeanutnCashew]

Oh no! Glad I asked. Thanks

 

[PeanutnCashew]

I found a thread that says:

...worms from bait shops can have chemicals or toxins in them from farming them.

I would think the crickets from pet store would be ok?

 

[Missy60]

Ok that's exactly the post I was talking about its in the sticky at the top of the forum. I tried to find it by searching but I couldn't find any where else saying they were dangerous. I did find a lot about growing your own. It seems very easy if you could stand it just a container 10 inches tall, bedding and newspaper.

I buy the dried one to feed mine because I don't like the creepy crawlers....lol. My son had a lizard that eat them from the bait shop all the time with no I'll effect, but then that's a lizard.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Ok that's exactly the post I was talking about its in the sticky at the top of the forum. I tried to find it by searching but I couldn't find any where else saying they were dangerous. I did find a lot about growing your own. It seems very easy if you could stand it just a container 10 inches tall, bedding and newspaper.
I buy the dried one to feed mine because I don't like the creepy crawlers....lol. My son had a lizard that eat them from the bait shop all the time with no I'll effect, but then that's a lizard.

I buy meal worms dried then you don't have to worry about the chemicals or yuck

 

[duckmamma]

If you buy or breed mealworms, make sure they are for a treat but don't give your duck more than a few a day. There is the tendency to give your duck too much of them. Mealworms are the equivalent of duck crack, and the ducks will beg you for them at every opportunity. They will sit on the mealworm bins and figure out every way to try to manipulate you into giving them more.
The mealworms are very rich, and in excess they can cause fatty liver disease, or even throw off the balance of bacteria in your duck's intestines and start excess growth of the bad bacteria called clostridium perfringens, which can then cause your duck to have enteritis. You'd then need to give your duck antibiotics such as penicillin to clear that up.

 

[Missy60]

I do use the dried meal worms for a treat for my ducks. Thanks for the warning about over feeding them. I tried to control it but it seems like we go thru a lot of them. I will have to caution the rest of the family again about over feeding them.

 

[PeanutnCashew]

Ok that's exactly the post I was talking about its in the sticky at the top of the forum. I tried to find it by searching but I couldn't find any where else saying they were dangerous. I did find a lot about growing your own. It seems very easy if you could stand it just a container 10 inches tall, bedding and newspaper.
I buy the dried one to feed mine because I don't like the creepy crawlers....lol. My son had a lizard that eat them from the bait shop all the time with no I'll effect, but then that's a lizard.

LOL about "home growing meal worms"...ummm..that would be a no!

I guess I will buy some live crickets..eek...and get the freeze dried worms.