Feeding chickens Japanese Beetles

[Newbees]

My husband traps Japanese Beetles and feeds them to the chickens (and two mallard ducks). They love them. We were wondering if we should limit how much we give them. I assume bugs are "all you can eat" but want to be sure since we catch and feed them probably about a hundred beetles every day. Is this ok?

 

[patman75]

They are a good source of protien. If the chickens get sick of them they wont eat them. MIne love japanese bettles but I dont feed them 100's a day. Maybe start them with 20 a day and see how it goes. If they beg for more and no one is dead then give them some more.

 

[annep]

Mine love them too, but how's he trapping them?

 

[teach1rusl]

Can you send your husband to my house to do some trapping??? Those things are eating everything here!!!

My grapes, crabapple tree, they're even on the green beans in the garden (and they didn't touch those last year). I pick them off and feed them to the chickens too, but they're back as quick as I get rid of them.

 

[Matrix Escapee]

Get a japanese beetle trap with a bag or canaster. Mine has a ziplock type bottom to the bag and I just unzip it and dump into one of my pens. 50-100 oriental beetles will disappear in about 5 seconds, all eaten by less than 20 of 75 birds. Been doing it for 3 weeks now with no problems. i do rotate the one trap that I have amognst my pens, so nobody is getting over-beetled. Hard pressed to thnk you could overdo it. Especially with big/older birds.

 

[ECBW]

One of my reasons for getting chickens was insect control, namely japanese beetles. We had a rash of them 2 or 3 years ago. Since we got chickens, the beetles did not come back, coincidence.

Now we have stink bugs and plenty of ants. The birds don't care much for either.

 

[egg_tastic]

My chickens jump off the ground to eat them off my roses.

The Jap. Beetles are AWFUL this year!!! This is my first growing season at my house so wasn't sure if it was just this year or the new location. They are eating DHs green beans, glads, roses, etc. Also, my dwarf crape myrtles are being demolished.

I guess it is time for chemicals......

 

[tiredmom]

I don't know if it's a coincidence, but we went from getting 10-12 eggs per day down to 4 per day after feeding our girls these nasties. We have a soy bean field across the road from us. Could these bugs be passing on pesticides and herbicides they dined on before coming over to our neck of the woods? Thoughts would greatly be appreciated!

 

[saysfaa]

I don't know if it's a coincidence, but we went from getting 10-12 eggs per day down to 4 per day...

Are your hens molting? Mine are molting slow enough that I don't see bare skin but it really tanked egg production anyway.

The field across your road might have an affect but I don't think the beetles go very far after they find a food source they like unless they are are following pheromones. I think they can; they just don't. Based on trying to deal with unbelievably massive infestations here.