meal worms

[sargent spurs]

I am thinking about raising meal worms to feed to my chickens I have heard that they reproduce very fast and are very easy to handle, I know that you are supposed to get a shoe box size container and put about one inch of chicken scratch or something equivalent of that, and then you put potatoes, apples or something like that in there for moisture. But my question is do you have to move the adults to there own box or can you leave them in the same box with the worms. I also wondered what the space per hundred worms is.

 

[Cornelia]

Last year I think I kill one of my chickens with too many meal worms (20+ per day). My veterinarian said the worms are the juvenile state and are full of fat to aid them in metamorphosis. Please use caution regarding how many you give each chicken. It's easy to get carried away because they love eating them so much.

Good luck!

 

[sargent spurs]

Thank you.

 

[Tivona]

Last year I think I kill one of my chickens with too many meal worms (20+ per day). My veterinarian said the worms are the juvenile state and are full of fat to aid them in metamorphosis. Please use caution regarding how many you give each chicken. It's easy to get carried away because they love eating them so much.

Good luck!

Cornelia. Mind if I ask if you grew the mealworms or bought them? If you raised the mealworms what did you grow them in? I am curious because I know that what the mealworms are fed will determine the nutritional value to a certain degree. I am planning to start grow some and your post on them being high in fat is good information to know.

 

[vclark321]

Sargent Spurs greetins! I started raising my own mealworms last November and there is a wonderful thread here under mealworm farming. It is filled with a lot of information. YouTube has videos as well. I ordered my worms from a poster here, Amy @ west knoll farm and I will have a set up for over 4,000 +! To date most of my mealworms have turned to pupae and beetles and the beetles are maturing and mating and laying eggs that will become the next generation of meal worms. I wanted to freeze some for winter protein for the girls. I have 3 layers and 3 chicks. I have storage bins and in the beetles I have toilet paper tubes for them to hide in. I use wheat bran for substrate with ground chicken feed or quick cook oats. The beetles like apples, carrots and potatoes. The meal worms like apple and potato. I buy the worms from Amy to support my fellow farmer and local small business. Her worms are big, healthy, shiney and I know they were raised by Amy with extreme care and attention.

You may find raising your own mealworms a fun project! Look up the thread here and grab a cup of something and a snack, it is a lot of information!

 

[kilby]

Hello,
Just my two cents. I have worms now. two beetles a day popping. The meal worm forum has 400 pages on it so go there also.
I would suggest to see how much they can eat at one sitting and then divide that by three and feed it three times a day. Depends on how much time you are at home and I am home all day. Adjust for yourself. Your welcome.

 

[Di Gibbs]

Ok I am laughing about grabbing a snack while I watch a meal worm video...ha!

~Di

 

[CHICKENJOHN42]

Ok I am laughing about grabbing a snack while I watch a meal worm video...ha!

~Di