Can chickens eat dead bees?

[Big Red 819]

Hi there,

New here & found conflicting answers to this online. But we have honeybee hives & there are always lots of dead bees on the ground near the hives. Can I feed them to my hens or could that harm them?

 

[rachelsflock]

Watching to see why not. My gut says you can, especially if they weren't sprayed to death with spray or anything like that.

 

[Big Red 819]

No chemical sprays in our yard, but bees can travel long distances & I have no idea what my neighbors are up to...

 

[rachelsflock]

I'm no expert, but bees are bugs, and I'd say let them at the dead ones.

 

[Dawnclucks22]

You could try. My birds have no interest in anything dead though. They like the thrill of the chase!

 

[IamRainey]

We use a DynaTrap to eliminate mosquitoes. It uses a pheromone lure, UV light, CO2 and a powerful fan to trap insects. We get mosquitoes, moths and the occasional fly. Since there's nothing toxic involved, when I empty the reservoir/trap I always do it in the coop. They're as happy with dead and dried out insects as they are dried mealworms.

Can't see why they wouldn't enjoy bees.

 

[ngennetta]

Yes! We have bees too. As long as they died naturally (i.e. no poisons), let them eat all they want

 

[Big Red 819]

Thanks, everyone, I'll go ahead and feed them the bees!

 

[Hyper_Chicken05]

What if they accidentally bite the stingers?

 

[Pensmaster]

I feed mine the meat bees from the trap and the bugs from the zapper bucket all the time. Hasn’t been a problem. Bugs to the week old chicks while still in brooder they love it. Haven’t tried meat bees to chicks yet.