Have you ever heard of a maggot farm? Most likely not. We had not either before the G & E Ranch. There are a lot of animal losses in this business, and we wanted to figure out a way to utilize those losses rather than throw them in the garbage. We have animal loses for many reasons: old age, injury by intruders like racoons, drownings in the duck pond, losses at birth, etc.
Maggot farming utilizes a cycle of life that benefits the chickens. Rather than feeding chickens and hogs dead animals, we turn those dead animals into a chicken’s favorite treat! Maggots!!
Did you know maggot are an amazing source of protein?
This is how it works. We place dead animals onto the chicken run that is covered with chicken wire. Flies lay their eggs on and in the dead animals. The eggs turn into tiny maggots that start to eat on the carcass. Those little maggots will eat until maximum size and leave their food source. At this point, they fall from the carcass through the chicken wire and onto the ground. This is the stage that they normally would turn into flies, however, our anxiously waiting chickens eat them before they transition. This provides the chickens with a wonderful protein filled snack.
In the summer months when flies are the most active, their children can devour a full-size chicken in one week. At this point, the dried and expired carcass is disposed of in the trash.
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