ATTENTION: MAGGOT FARMERS! Think this will work?

[RachelFromTheBlackLagoon]

I was looking around my garage and shed for a bucket or other materials to make a fly trap/maggot feeder and I stumbled across this automatic dog food dispenser. I cut a piece of hardware cloth and placed it in the bottom of the jug, over the hole where the dog food falls into the attached bowl. Then I cut the bottom off of a plastic container I had laying around and placed that on top of the hardware cloth. This is where I'll keep my fly "bait". I'll be using wet cat food for that. The attached base is sloped so the food will spill right into the bowl. I'm hoping this will work well to keep the maggots tumbling down from the jug, but if not I can detach the base and hang the jug so the maggots would fall onto the ground instead. Here are some photos....

Think it will serve its purpose well?

 

[RachelFromTheBlackLagoon]

Well, guess I'll find out in a couple of days, huh?

 

[delfargo]

ok, maybe this is a stupid question, but.... why on earth would you WANT maggots in the first place?

 

[helloroe]

I will be anxious to see if it does as I have one of those laying around.

She wants maggots 1)to cut down on the amount of flys around as when the larvae fall from the food, where the fly laid them, the chickens eat them ending the cycle 2) which ends up being a chicken snack. Just a different bug for them. There are many threads on the subject.

 

[delfargo]

thanx for the info. ya learn something new every day.

 

[Oven Ready]

Please keep us informed with daily photos.

The last topic I saw that mentioned them 'Post Holocaust Coop' I said "The only time you'd ever need to use the word 'Maggotry" is when you are repeating the phrase "I will never have a Maggotry" over and over", but in the past few weeks I've been considering how useful it could be.

We could put a couple over the pond to feed the fish and a couple to feed the chickens too. And major bonus if it reduced the fly population.

 

[RachelFromTheBlackLagoon]

Yes, LOL, that's why I want maggots.

I was also very anti-maggot at first. They SKEEVE me! However, my chickens will absolutely love them, and when they're happy, I'm happy.

I will certainly keep you updated!

 

[RachelFromTheBlackLagoon]

Well, today we have maggots! There are several flies in the canister and a few maggots in the dish. When the bait becomes more infested with maggots are they supposed to spill over the sides of the plate?

 

[Oven Ready]

I think what is supposed to happen is that as the maggots mature they leave the food and look for somewhere to pupate, in your case that should mean slipping down the feeder into the waiting arms (or beaks) of your chooks.

Hmmm yummy, cat food flavored maggots. Here's a different link, notice that there is a warning at the bottom about overfeeding maggots.
Gotta luuuurve them maggots

Notice also that the writer suggests that Black Soldier Flies ward off HouseFlys AND they don't need meat so a 'fresh' (relative term I would think) smelling maggotry.

ETA : Here's another link suggesting not to feed them on meat, but fruit instead for the best smelling maggots in town Maggot - the new fragrance from Coco Chanel

 

[missred871]

too funny, I went to the link you posted and found out that you want to use black soldier fly larvae and i was like WHERE CAN I GET THAT?!?! I was like OH SNAP when I binged it I figured out that the existing poo wheelbarrel compost was already FULL of that exact larvae too funny. I thought they were funny looking maggots cause they are kind of fat unlike house fly maggots. NIFTY INFO. I worried when I my yard roos were chowin down on em but apparently thats what they are supposed to eat anyway! I always just got meal worms from the bait store, i am much more comfortable touching them since I had to feed a chamelion the meal worms in middle school cause I took him home on spring and fall breaks. LOVE IT! Thanks for the info....