Roaches

[SCMommaHen]

This may be an odd question. Is it safe for chickens to eat poisoned roaches? I have those giant cockroaches around my deck and they freak me out at night when I'm trying to use it. It's like they're not even afraid of me. But they slip between the boards before I can squish them. In the past I've sprayed and baited. But since I got chickens I've been afraid to spray for fear if poisoning them. The chickens are all up under the deck and I hoped they would take care of them. But I guess they're hiding somewhere they can't reach.

I was thinking just baiting so they would take it back to their nest. Safe or not?

 

[Tonyroo]

Do not give them poisoned roaches, even though there dead the chemical that killed them is still active.

 

[3KillerBs]

Where, in general, are you located?

Those big, black roaches in the southeast that we call Palmetto bugs are harmless -- nothing like the nasty pest roaches.

Ugly, yes, and we don't want them in the house -- like any other bug -- but outdoors they're an important part of the ecosystem, eating plant detritus and contributing to nature's composting process.

 

[3KillerBs]

South Carolina. Yes they don't come in the house unless I leave a door open. I did find an egg hatch in an outdoor plant I brought in for winter once so now I check all my plants. I like to use my deck at night and right at dusk when the chickens go to roost they come out otherwise I'd leave some on the deck to catch them. I've been blowing the leaves out from under my deck but that hasn't made any difference. Roaches really freak me out.

I consider them just part of the normal outdoor wildlife like the toads and grasshoppers.

Keeping the area dry and free of debris cuts down on their numbers. But they're harmless to people and beneficial to the environment.

 

[Tonyroo]

These are the black roaches or water bugs. I call them tree roaches cause I see them living in trees and they eat leaves. So their food sources are everywhere here. I know I'm fighting a losing battle but I'd like to cut down on the numbers around my deck.
What would be an indication of a poisoned chicken?

Like most animals they have convulsions, vomiting, and jerky movements after consuming poison.

 

[Tonyroo]

If your chickens like palmetto bugs have them clear the area where you want them gone. I would skip the poison bait traps.

When I started keeping chickens, bug control was top of my list of why I wanted chickens.

I don't like using insecticide or baits, and I've been poisoned before from spraying insecticide on a breezy day.

 

[SCMommaHen]

That would be ok just as long the chickens are not in the baited area. Roaches rarely travel far when they found a food source.

These are the black roaches or water bugs. I call them tree roaches cause I see them living in trees and they eat leaves. So their food sources are everywhere here. I know I'm fighting a losing battle but I'd like to cut down on the numbers around my deck.
What would be an indication of a poisoned chicken?

 

[SCMommaHen]

Where, in general, are you located?

Those big, black roaches in the southeast that we call Palmetto bugs are harmless -- nothing like the nasty pest roaches.

Ugly, yes, and we don't want them in the house -- like any other bug -- but outdoors they're an important part of the ecosystem, eating plant detritus and contributing to nature's composting process.

South Carolina. Yes they don't come in the house unless I leave a door open. I did find an egg hatch in an outdoor plant I brought in for winter once so now I check all my plants. I like to use my deck at night and right at dusk when the chickens go to roost they come out otherwise I'd leave some on the deck to catch them. I've been blowing the leaves out from under my deck but that hasn't made any difference. Roaches really freak me out.

 

[rayrose]

I feed my chooks roaches I've sprayed with Raid all the
time. It's their favorite treat. Doesn't harm them at all.

 

[Tonyroo]

I was thinking just baiting so they would take it back to their nest. Safe or not?

That would be ok just as long the chickens are not in the baited area. Roaches rarely travel far when they found a food source.