Black Widow Spiders

[BubbaLikesIt]

My chickens will hunt through the firewood nearly everyday and eat bugs. We have no problems with insect pests or mice, the chickens eat them all. Now, I've seen this several times but I never asked about it, how can a chicken eat 3 large black widow spiders and not effect them in the least? As they attack, the spider is ripped into pieces and consumed quickly and if a chicken is by herself the spider gets gulped down without hesitation. I wouldn't do it for sure but it doesn't seem to bother the chickens any.

 

[Snow bunny]

Hi BubbaLikesIt, I have noticed this too, I have thought that seeing as the red back has to bite to be effective, it doesn't get a chance to bite the chicken. Once it gets into the gizzard it gets ground up, and on the way down it just dies before it can bite. If it gets ripped apart it is dead before it knows it. I doubt very much if a red back could get through all those feathers without being seen by another chicken either, so bad luck to the spider. What do you reckon?

 

[Snow bunny]

Sorry, black widows. I don't know why I thought it was red backs (maybe because we don't get them). But I think the same for them too.