Feeding Crickets to chicks??

[edb]

I have a lot of crickets in my yard. I stopped bagging the back lawn to bring in more. I get my chicks to run behind me every morning as I turn over a few pieces of cloth that I've set out to attract insects. Can I actually feed them too much? They eat about 20-50 fat crickets every morning. Is this good or bad? I might need to take them to a detox center to get them to stop. They sure seem to love it.

 

[Gonzo]

I'm not sure. They say they know what the need.. I would reckon that crickets are really good for them. I would just make sure they have grit, and still eat there regular food. Good Luck! My chickens would be soo jealous!

 

[M To The Maxx]

You can feed them mealworms if they are small enough.

 

[backdoorchicken]

i like the cloth idea

 

[edb]

i like the cloth idea

Like our best ideas I found it by accident. My son has left his shirt on the lawn over night. When I picked it up there were about 20 big black crickets using it as a home. I caught a few and fed them to the chicks. Then I noticed everything I moved had crickets under it. Now I leave several pieces of cloth out for next days feeding.
I wasn't sure if good size chicks could injure themselves by eating a huge number of them. They are growing very fast.​

 

[patman75]

Quote:
Like our best ideas I found it by accident. My son has left his shirt on the lawn over night. When I picked it up there were about 20 big black crickets using it as a home. I caught a few and fed them to the chicks. Then I noticed everything I moved had crickets under it. Now I leave several pieces of cloth out for next days feeding.
I wasn't sure if good size chicks could injure themselves by eating a huge number of them. They are growing very fast.

I gotta try that. I pick up 2 dozen crickets from the pet store once in a while and my hens go nuts trying to eat them.

So you just throw a blanket or something on the ground for a few days and you got lunch for the chicks? That is it?

 

[esjro]

I fed crickets to my babies while they were in the brooder and they loved them. It was so funny to watch them - one would catch a cricket, then run around with it cheeping - chicken keep-away!

 

[Chicks_N_Horses]

Tin, boards, or anything like that will attract cricketts....I go around flipping stuff up all the time and my chickens follow me because they know what is going to run out!

I say your chicks will be fine....let them eat all they want.

 

[AmyRey]

Crickets are probably THE favorite food of my girls.

 

[juliawitt]

We have meal worms on hand that we feed to our peacocks. My husband has been giving the worms to my 2 week old baby chicks.. They LOVE them. I made him stop because I was afraid it was bad for them....Does anyone know?