Julie Wilhelmi

Julie Wilhelmi is the owner of Farmer Bob's Tiny Raptors, since chickens ARE tiny raptors!

Her homestead raises American Bresse chickens in black, blue and white.

Additionally, she also raises her own mealworms for chickens, so she can give her chickens snacks and treats, and also support their nutritional status without breaking the bank.

She shared her mealworm farming expertise with Ambresse on the page, Mealworms for Chickens.

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About Julie Wilhelmi

As Told by Julie Wilhelmi to Karen at Ambresse Acres

I will tell you a bit about myself and how Farmer Bob's Tiny Raptors came to be. 

I moved from Idaho to Georgia after my mother passed because my husband and I had wanted to relocate back to the South before we officially retired. Due to my health reasons the Idaho winter weather was not kind to me.

It was hard to leave family behind but my father understood and as always, supported me. He didn't want any of his kids to live their lives for him but to do what was best for them. His name was Bob.

My one requirement on a new home is that I be able to raise chickens. We found that house in Monroe, GA.

My father passed a year after we moved. I had the greatest parents a kid could ever hope for. I miss them dearly. With my portion of the funds from the estate, I was able to add on to my little chicken farm, which I named in honor of my dad. Farmer Bob. His last name was Bauer which means Farmer in German.

My parents were the most giving people I have known. I pay this forward to anyone who asks for advice or help in raising their poultry. I have even donated egg layers to worthy causes and hatching eggs for student projects. I also teach people how to process poultry.

How Farmer Bob's Tiny Raptors Came to Be....

As for my little farm: Since 2022, Farmer Bob's Tiny Raptors is dedicated to the breeding of American Bresse (white, black, and blue) according to the Standard of Perfection (SOP). 

The farm has recently acquired a pair of Gauloise Doree that we are hoping to expand upon. We also raise Coturnix Quail and Muscovy ducks.  We help members of our community to learn how to process poultry to provide for their families.

Chicks and hatching eggs are available for local pickup only. (I currently have a waiting list for Bresse.)

My full time profession is as a registered nurse, but I totally enjoy spending time with the flock and my garden and orchard.

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Current Projects at Farmer Bob's

Farmer Bob's is working hard to improve upon the blue American Bresse. My blues currently tend to be smaller than the black Bresse. Our goal is to improve the color of my current birds as well as the size.

Roo-Tisserie is our blue American Bresse rooster. He is big for a blue, but his color is not correct for the breed. His temperament and attentiveness to the ladies is exceptional. We are hopeful future generations will acquire his good points but develop much better coloring. The black Bresse are a key part to this project.

We are also excited to see how our pair of Gauloise Doree grow out. In France, the Gauloise Doree is said to be the breed that started all the other French breeds. They share some genetics with American Bresse.

Chicken Snacks (Mealworms) at Farmer Bob's Tiny Raptors

As of early 2025, my mealworm enterprise is going well. I am harvesting roughly two cups of mealworms per week, and these go to my flock of 19 adult and 15 juvenile chickens. 

To actually feed them to the adult chickens, I put the live mealworms into chicken treat balls. (See below.) Make them earn it a little! The ones I use are hollow plastic balls you can open and there are holes at either end from which the mealworms can escape.

If the mealworms are frozen or dried, the chickens naturally peck and knock around the balls or the green treat roller, and the mealworms fall out onto the ground. It's quite entertaining to watch, and the chickens love it.

I also have a large garden, and make trays of sprouted seeds to give them as snacks in order to alternate what I give the chickens.

Chick season is just around the corner.

In late winter and early spring I work to boost production to more like 4-6 cups per week so that I'll have enough meal worms to offer to the chicks. Boosting production entails keeping those 2 cups of mealworms in the mealworm farm, and allowing them to pupate into adults which will then produce more larvae. 

I basically go by volume of worms in the bin. If it looks a little crowded, I remove enough to add space. The ones I remove either go into a new bin in order to increase production, or they go into the refrigerator or directly to the chickens.

Contact Julie Wilhelmi and Farmer Bob's Tiny Raptors!

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