Mold is lethal to chickens. Toss your meal worm bedding that got moldy, but you can rinse your worms under tepid tap water then pat dry. They won't mind a brief shower. I've laundered both adult beetles and worms with no ill effect when I had to get rid of a heavy grain mite infestation.
I use wheat bran, rolled oats, and mill run feed which is as cheap as bran and is a bi-product of milling wheat for cous-cous and is available at feed stores. I use only raw carrots for a moisture source. Other veggies and fruit are just too prone to go moldy.
I have a beetle tray with a screened bottom that lets eggs sift through the oats into a tray beneath. I use bran for growing out lavae that I want to use as reproductive stock. I alternate with grow out trays with the mill run in them as these larvae grow half again as large as larvae on bran. As larvae pupate and morph into adult beetles, I pick them out and place them in the beetle tray. Occasionally, I clean all the dead beetles out when they start to smell acrid. The chickens enjoy these dead beetles as much as the worms.
Another annoying risk to having the feed on the damp side is grain mites. You can avoid these pests, which often escape the trays and go on walkabout in your house, by freezing the feed at zero F or below for a few weeks before using. Then leave the trays open without lids so excess moisture can escape since freezing rarely destroys all grain mite eggs.
You'll learn a lot about meal worms by reading this thread from the beginning. Lots of terrific ideas and knowledge here. Make it bedtime reading or bathroom reading.
I use wheat bran, rolled oats, and mill run feed which is as cheap as bran and is a bi-product of milling wheat for cous-cous and is available at feed stores. I use only raw carrots for a moisture source. Other veggies and fruit are just too prone to go moldy.
I have a beetle tray with a screened bottom that lets eggs sift through the oats into a tray beneath. I use bran for growing out lavae that I want to use as reproductive stock. I alternate with grow out trays with the mill run in them as these larvae grow half again as large as larvae on bran. As larvae pupate and morph into adult beetles, I pick them out and place them in the beetle tray. Occasionally, I clean all the dead beetles out when they start to smell acrid. The chickens enjoy these dead beetles as much as the worms.
Another annoying risk to having the feed on the damp side is grain mites. You can avoid these pests, which often escape the trays and go on walkabout in your house, by freezing the feed at zero F or below for a few weeks before using. Then leave the trays open without lids so excess moisture can escape since freezing rarely destroys all grain mite eggs.
You'll learn a lot about meal worms by reading this thread from the beginning. Lots of terrific ideas and knowledge here. Make it bedtime reading or bathroom reading.
