Stocking your Dam With Yabbies

When you have a dam on your property there is nothing better than wandering down to

your waterhole, often with a coldie

in one hand a net or two in the

other returning with a feed of

delicious blue claw yabbies

Ensuring a continued supply of these delicious critters depends on the stocking density you started with, bearing in mind it wont only

be you snacking on these delicious morsels.

Water rats, eels, cormorants, herons, turtles, carp etc also have the humble yabby on the top of their menu

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How Many Yabbies do I need?

The number of yabbies you will need is based on a number

of factors such as m2 size of dam, existing fish eels etc,

feed ie vegetation, bird life etc.

Adding 1 female and 1 male to a 1000me dam is

pointless as they will never likely meet up.

1. Rule of thumb

We recommend a minimum of 1 yabby per 10m2

or 100 whichever number is greater this ensures

a sufficient mix of male and females

to build a sustainable population.

Yabbies are not a schooling critter like fish.

For this reason for dams less than

200m2 we recommend you call

us for advice.

2. Food availability in the dam

Yabbies are able to metabolise meat and vegetable protein, so reeds, plants grass are all ideal food sources.

For newly dug dams you will need to add food such

as lucerne hay as soon as practical.

Hay is used by most commercial yabby farmers as a base food source. Lucerne hay is best however any hay is sufficient.

Chicken / pig pellets and lupins are also

a good supplementary food

For small hay bales stake bale in dam until water logged them cut the ties and spread through out. Hay should be added at a minimum of 6 small bales per year per 1000m2. 

3. Predators

If you have fish/eels in your dam you should double

the Rule of Thumb number of yabbies.

4. Harvest Expectations

Stocking density also depends on how many and how 

often you want to feed on these delicious critters.

If your idea is to have them as a main course rather than a garnish for a rib eye or scotch fillet we recommend double the minimum.

To give you an idea, commercially we stock our ponds

at 5 or 6 yabbies per square metre.

Remember if you stock at a greater density you will need to increase feeding rates accordingly.

Questions?

Call us 02 4997 5415 or email us 

enquiries@yabbydabbadoo.com

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Happy Farming