Catching bugs

[ManyQuestions]

Hey all,

Just wondering does anyone have a good way to catch bugs of all sorts, to feed to my ladies?

Also, just wondering now, but does anyone else wish they had a bug problem in their backyard, just so the ladies have some food? I dont know if its part and parcel of becoming a proud keeper, or...well.....just a sign of craziness?

 

[The Chicken People]

I just let my chickens out of the coop they find their own bugs and worms!

 

[lane-h]

My 3 sons are pretty good at catching them

 

[lunkerchicken]

Every now and again I will bring my girls out for a free range stroll in the backyard and they take full advantage and gobble up as many bugs as they can!!! Most of the time they are in there coop/run and don't free range.

 

[JLMom]

YES!!
I wish I had more bugs, too! A few weeks ago we had lots of tiny caterpillars, and my children would pick them up from their climber/swing set and feed them to the chicks.

I generally get my kids and their friends to collect bugs. If you do not have children, maybe you can bribe some neighborhood children?

Where in Dublin are you? I have about 6 neices and nephews you could borrow!!

Good Luck

 

[felidaet]

I was thinking about looking on the Internet to see what I can come up with for a bug catching net. I would like to find something inexpensive. I am thinking of something like a butterfly net with a fine mesh. In a few weeks I will have lots of bugs in my garden but no easy way to catch them. And I won't really want the chickens in that part of the garden. I grow about 700 dahlia (flowers) plants. The bugs love to chew on the flowers right before I want to cut them to show in competition. One bug bite pretty much eliminates a bloom from an awards. I sure hope the chickens like cucumber beattles. This is my worst problem bug.

 

[Chicks_N_Horses]

Most of the time ours find them on their own outside. We have bizillions of pine trees down here and lots on our property. For about 5 straight years we have been slowly cutting them back to clear out places and we leave them laying there until they dry. Well, termites just loooove these dead trees on the ground and you can peel back the bark or chop into it with an axe and you talk about some happy chickens!!

 

[Garden Gal]

We are inundated with Japanese Beetles at the moment so I'm catching lots of those and giving to the chickens - they LOVE them! I can't free range either - too many predator issues, so taking them bugs from time to time is a nice treat. I'm going to try raising meal worms for them as well.