Feeding Dried Mealworms To Your Chickens

There is no doubt that chickens love dried mealworms. Are they, however, healthy for your flock? In this article, we discuss the benefits of feeding your backyard chickens dried mealworms, and much more…

Reasons to Feed Your Chickens Dried Mealworms​

Maybe you've decided to grow your own live mealworms or have found a reliable source of mealworms for your flock. What are the benefits of feeding your girls mealworms?

To Train Your Birds​

Chickens can be trained to do amazing things, especially when they are rewarded with mealworms! Treats have been used as bribes to teach hens to run obstacle courses, perform tricks, and even modify some anti-social behaviors. It is also an easy way to convince hens to enter the coop when they are reluctant. The snack is more appealing than the party outside.

If there is a reward at the end, chickens can easily be trained to do anything, after all, nobody works for free!

They're Good for Feathers​

Feeding mealworms is most useful during the molting season. Molting depletes the bird of a large amount of protein. Molting causes the body to use a tremendous amount of protein to replace the old feathers with new feathers and puts a strain on health. Although your birds will survive the molt without high protein snacks, they do need extra protein somewhere, so why not give them a special treat to brighten up their day and boost their protein intake?

Other high-protein snacks may be offered during this period as well, but use common sense. You can alternate between high-protein snacks - maybe hard-boiled or mashed eggs one day, mealworms the next, pumpkin seeds the third day, etc. Variety is key!

Can Be Used as Medicine​

If you have an ill hen or one that has been injured by a predator, she'll need some extra protein to help heal the injuries. Given these circumstances, it would be acceptable to supplement her diet and give her one teaspoon of them every day. The only exception to this rule is if the hen has impaired kidneys in which case her protein should remain between 16 and 18%.

As A Simple Treat​

The truth is, we all like to be spoiled from time to time. It's no different with our hens - they deserve treats for laying those beautiful eggs nearly every day. As long as it is in moderation, spoiling your girls is fine. Feeding your girls too many treats will cause them to gain weight; obese chickens lay fewer eggs and have more difficulty laying.

Mealworms contain various vitamins and minerals. However, one or two beakfuls are sufficient; don't listen to the hens!

Simple Way To Increase Their Protein​

All living creatures require protein. A lot of protein, however, can be harmful. As with too much calcium in the diet, it can cause kidney problems for your ladies. The protein content is 50% when they are dried and 30% when they are alive. In terms of health, the protein content of live worms is less concerning. As long as they're fed in moderation, dried ones are not a problem.

They'll Keep Them Healthy and Active​

You can get your hens to work for their protein by tossing them in the bedding and watching them rearrange the coop. There will be hours of fun as they probe and peck every corner of the coop just in case they missed anything. What a great way to get the kids to clean their rooms!

Several Ways To Feed Dried Mealworms to Your Chickens​

Your chickens can be fed dried mealworms in several ways:

1. They can be used to turn the coop bedding over. Toss some into the bedding and your chickens will rummage through it like crazy. It also makes them last longer since it takes time for them to locate them buried within the bedding, especially if you use the deep litter system.
2. In case you don't want their bedding turned over, you can also throw it on the ground outside and watch them demolish it in no time at all.
3. You may even be able to feed your hens from your hand if your hens are extremely friendly.

As for how many dried mealworms you can feed them and how often - the amount of treats your chickens consume should not exceed 10% of their daily food intake. One or two beakfuls of dried are sufficient for a day. However, you should rotate the treats, so give them mealworms no more than twice a week.

Alternative to Dried Mealworms​

Mealworms become Darkling Beetles when they grow up. Since they may carry disease (they have been linked to Marek's Disease), you probably don't want the adult beetles near your chicken coop and many people have turned to raising crickets or dubia roaches because of this. Crickets are well-known, but what is a dubia?

Dubia roaches are tropical cockroaches that are rich in protein and aren't quite as bad as regular cockroaches. Darkling beetles eat each other, but these little guys seem very peaceful. Unlike crickets, they are not noisy.

Check out our definitive list of chicken treats for more ideas HERE!

Summary​

While we've given you a few excuses to spoil your chickens, remember that, just like chocolate for humans, too much of a good thing can be bad. That applies not only to mealworms but to any high-protein snack - be it a seed, an egg, or an insect.

Training your chickens to do tricks is an enjoyable pastime you and your hens will enjoy if you have several chickens and lots of time. Everyone will be amazed at your smart chickens!

Do you feed mealworms to your chickens? Let us know in the comments section below…