Red Wigglers - how fast reproduce as part of feed?

[CaryHaven]

I’m trying my hand at making my own feed since organic has gone up so much. Among vegetation and grain, I have also considered adding red wigglers as part of the protein profile. I have been thinking about getting them anyway as a supplement to my compost for my garden. I’m wondering how many I would have to start with and how much food and upkeep I would have to give them for them to be feasible as a good portion of the protein for 4 to 8 birds (which is our comfort zone as far as number of birds). If anyone has any experience raising worms, either partially or for the sole reason of chicken food, I would be interested to hear if it takes too long, or is too slow of a process to make any impact. I have been reading some posts about it, but didn’t really see anything specifically stating whether it produced enough to be worthwhile. As interesting as it would be as a hobby, I have enough hobbies. It would have to make it worth my while in numbers and consistency (as long as I am consistent in upkeep). I have also thought about mealworms, but I prefer wigglers if I could get the same or better numbers in production. Thank you!

 

[CloneFly]

Following! I'd like to try and grow some wrigglers and mealworms for my girls as well

 

[nuthatched]

Who's recipe are you following for formulating? Not all recipes are healthy or safe.

 

[WestTNriverrat]

I would start with a pound (1000)ish. They can double their numbers in a month and a half easily if given the proper conditions. I raise them my chicken hate them the only interest the chickens show in the worms is to roll around in the beds or pick out the occasional cricket. Red wigglers enjoyable to raise. They are great at breaking down cardboard and food scraps and make great plant soil additives but I would go a different direction for an alternate food source. They may work perfectly for you if your gonna mix then into a feed or something but my chickens won’t eat them whole.

 

[WestTNriverrat]

If your serious about the worms. Bentley “compost guy” Christy has a very informative website Redwormcomposting.com. Granted he doesn’t have anything much on using them as a feed additive.

 

[Red-Stars-in-RI]

My chicken run compost pile is teeming with worms, both red wigglers and the larger earthworms. My flock really enjoys both, and spend hours scratching around to find them, and they come running when they see me heading their way with my compost fork.

The worms will give your flock a protein boost and add some entertainment value. If you're growing the worms and then feeding the flock, you probably want to start small and keep the total percent of their diet small - think treat or supplement, not replacement for their regular ration.

I let the chickens self-regulate out of the compost pile. I never turn a ton of compost at a time. I tell myself it's to limit the flocks intake of worms, but in reality it's because I get winded pretty quick when turning compost. It's a workout!

If you can get a self-perpetuating colony of worms going in the chicken run, that's another option as opposed to growing them separately. The key is to have enough "safe" places for the worms to live without getting decimated by the chickens. In my case, the compost piles are deep enough, but you can do the same by covering an area with milk crates, scrap wood, etc.

You'll get replies to this thread with lots of ominous warnings about the horrible fates that can befall a flock from eating worms, but I can't recall ever hearing of an actual documented case of this happening - happy to be proven wrong if someone has one to share that isn't from their grandma's friend's former neighbors ex-boss. I mean, chickens have been eating worms since, well, there have been worms and chickens.

Good luck with your endeavor, and if you do try it, let us know how it goes and what you learn!

 

[raingarden]

I have runs that have been bare dirt for a long time. But they still support quite a few earthworms. We dig them to feed the Shama Thrush when they're nesting because Shama will not eat dry feed.

 

[saysfaa]

Evidently, many species are called red wigglers. Some are native to North America; some common commercially available species are invasive species in the western hemisphere.

At least some species have a noxious substance in their slime coat (a problem for raising them for feeding reptiles - maybe that is why WestTNriverrat's chickens wouldn't eat them.)

 

[WestTNriverrat]

Evidently, many species are called red wigglers. Some are native to North America; some common commercially available species are invasive species in the western hemisphere.

At least some species have a noxious substance in their slime coat (a problem for raising them for feeding reptiles - maybe that is why WestTNriverrat's chickens wouldn't eat them.)

I would assume your correct Eisenia fetida or what I consider red wigglers can give off a slimy substance if irritated. Tho they are not a worm that will cause significant environmental issues if accidentally released.

 

[saysfaa]

...Tho they are not a worm that will cause significant environmental issues if accidentally released.

How do you know they don't?

I know many places simply state that - not many give more information. These sorts of statements are often wrong - people assuming there is no issue because they don't notice the issues.

That a different red worm species is active under the leaf mold, isn't something many people would notice.

Maybe it doesn't matter. And maybe there are parts of the ecosystem dependent on something about the native worm only.

This article does give more information. It is a commercial site but cites sources. It is also written by someone making a living from vermiculture.

https://www.redwormcomposting.com/g...ting-worms-pose-a-threat-as-invasive-species/

"...Concern over the potential for non-native earthworms to become invasive, and have a negative impact on ecosystems in various parts of North America has gained considerable attention in recent years. The full scope of the problem has yet to be determined, but there is substantial academic research evidence to suggest that various species of earthworms have been significantly altering native ecosystems in regions where they’ve been introduced..."

I also probably should have said, "potentially invasive", to not weaken the term. It needs to be strong for things like garlic mustard, giant hogweed, Asian long horned beetle, and spotted lantern fly.