Do chickens eat ants?

[Lori Anne]

3 weeks ago I bought 5 day old Brown Leg Horn chicks in the hopes that they would forage in the back yard and help us battle our Thatcher Ant problem. So far I haven't seen them eat a single ant. They readily eat blackflies and moths. When they see an ant, they just watch it walk away. I saw some You Tube videos of chickens demolishing ant hills. Is it something they will do when they are older? I really pictured chickens eating all bugs they see. Perhaps I should have tried a different breed of chicken?

 

[WYNot]

This is how you deal with fire ants.

 

[beginnergirl]

Sadly, my hens will not touch ants. We live on an ant hill but they are not interested.

 

[Coffee 1st]

i have 6 different types of chickens and i have no dirt we live on sand and my backyard is one big ant hill. i was also hoping they would eat ants,,,BUT NOPE they don't touch them...

 

[mcbrown7513]

i have 6 different types of chickens and i have no dirt we live on sand and my backyard is one big ant hill. i was also hoping they would eat ants,,,BUT NOPE they don't touch them... 

I have 1.5 acres of sand and red clay. Try bribing your ladies like I did. I also have a mix of ants and all are on the menu now. Good luck.

 

[lazy gardener]

Fire ants

... who can blame them? However, I found my girls working a yellow jacket nest yesterday. I had a lot of ant colonies in my back yard. Every summer, I open the hills with a shovel. The ants come pouring out, and there will also be hordes of winged queens, lots of larvae and eggs. When I open a nest, there's a feeding frenzy. Hubby doesn't much like it when he comes home and sees the back yard turned into a moon scape! But... while hubby's away, the girls and I will play! ("Sorry Honey. We're just getting rid of those pesky ants so they won't get in the house.") To anyone who's birds won't eat ants (excluding fire ants), I suggest that you remove their feed, and let them forage for insects in the morning. Hungry birds are more apt to try new food experiences.

FYI, since the ant population, and most likely the overall insect population has decreased in my yard,

there are no where near as many dragon flies dancing in my yard as there used to be.

 

[Jesusfreak101]

Is it safe around livestock chickens, cows and what about cats and dogs and children and pregnant women?

 

[Jesusfreak101]

Thats um commitment eww lol

 

[slingshotandLAR]

They should....

Mine eat anything they can get in thier beaks, I'm a bit surprised the chicks watch them without pecking at them. Give them time, they should start eating them

 

[hawsecav19d]

I think for most part they are not a preference food because of high acidity.