Treat for chickens

[Chicked James]

If you are not faint of heart you get a plastic bucket, drill holes in the bottom and about two inches up the side all the way around, hang it about 1 1/2 ft. off the ground and place anything that will attract fly's. The flys will lay eggs on it [I have used raw chicken[can get really smelly] or canned dog food, the cheapest you can find.] anything that will attracts flys. the eggs will turn into maggots, once they are big enough they will crawl through the holes and drop to whatever you have under the bucket. The chickens LOVE them. pour the remains into the garbage and wash out the bucket and start over note only works when there are flys out. J.D.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Hello, welcome to BYC.

Sometimes maggots can give birds botulism, especially when the maggots are feeding on a rotting carcass. I personally wouldn't risk it, but I don't control what my birds come across when free ranging, so I'm sure they end up eating a few along the way.

 

[gtaus]

There are a number of YouTube homesteading videos of how to setup a maggot bucket like you mentioned. The YouTubers seem pretty positive about the maggot buckets and don't mention any problems, other than the smell which lasts for a few days before the carcass is totally consumed by the maggots. I have never tired it. But I have also read that maggots can give birds avian botulism if the maggots eat infected food. So I can understand the people here on BYC who advise against it.