Baby House Geckos - Good Source of Nutrients or Bad for Chams?

[bberry820]

It is baby house gecko hatchling season here in Florida and I keep finding these cute little guys all over the place. They don't look like they would be poisonous and they are so small that their bones seem like they should be digestible. Aside the notion that you shouldn't feed wild caught food, would they be a good or bad food for an adult veiled chameleon? I am sure they would eat them in the wild if they had the opportunity but the house geckos are nocturnal so they probably don't run into each other often.

-Please base your opinion off of the food source and not the fact that these are wild caught. This is a curiosity question more than a practical question, I am not looking to test it out.-

 

[Beman]

So would a chameleon eat them yes. They are opportunistic feeders and will go after basically anything. Does this mean that we should feed them. Not in my opinion. Chameleons are insectivores so their system does not break down all the components of a live animal like this. It is not something that I would add to their diet for that simple fact. THe same as not feeding a Veiled fruit or vegetables. Again because their system does not break it down since they are insectivores. Just because something will eat something does not make it good for them.

 

[Jpeff]

This what I read about it. So every other month. @Beman

 

[bberry820]

So would a chameleon eat them yes. They are opportunistic feeders and will go after basically anything. Does this mean that we should feed them. Not in my opinion. Chameleons are insectivores so their system does not break down all the components of a live animal like this. It is not something that I would add to their diet for that simple fact. THe same as not feeding a Veiled fruit or vegetables. Again because their system does not break it down since they are insectivores. Just because something will eat something does not make it good for them.

I actually will give my veileds some apple slices once every while, its good dietary fiber and has a decent Ca ratio. They are more omnivorous than panthers and I would rather feed them fruit on occasion than have them eat their pothos.

 

[bberry820]

This what I read about it. So every other month. @Beman

I bet theyre rich with calcium because their bones are developing

 

[Beman]

This what I read about it. So every other month. @Beman

yes more typically done with larger species like your Parsons... But again not commonly done. As Bill says it is a fair game thing. There are those that sit firmly on the side of not needed and those that insist on doing it. More commonly argued about then actively supported. lol

 

[Beman]

I actually will give my veileds some apple slices once every while, its good dietary fiber and has a decent Ca ratio. They are more omnivorous than panthers and I would rather feed them fruit on occasion than have them eat their pothos.

That is up to you. But they do not process sugars... It is one thing to give them a leafy veg to munch on since that is plant matter that easily goes through their system but it is not recommended to do any fruit at all due to the sugar content.

 

[Jpeff]

I actually will give my veileds some apple slices once every while, its good dietary fiber and has a decent Ca ratio. They are more omnivorous than panthers and I would rather feed them fruit on occasion than have them eat their pothos.

Now on same page I got last pic of. Bill did have a whole thing about veiled. He said do not feed veiled anything but bugs. Had reason and reason y they think they do in wild so only bugs. It different when they eat ur plants

 

[kinyonga]

You might find some interesting information in this thread.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/food-for-thought-and-chameleons.188269/

 

[bberry820]

That is up to you. But they do not process sugars... It is one thing to give them a leafy veg to munch on since that is plant matter that easily goes through their system but it is not recommended to do any fruit at all due to the sugar content.

haha I just realized when I typed Ca : P ratio it thought I meant this emoji

 

[Lindasjackson]

the baby geckos are too cute to feed to anything! Save the baby geckos! Lol!

 

[bbyoda]

My vet has said feeding a pinkie mouse to a female chameleon that's just laid eggs can help replenish calcium levels. Other than helping with calcium, I'm not sure what nutrients the baby house gecko would provide, given that it's not being gutloaded.

 

[MissSkittles]

the baby geckos are too cute to feed to anything! Save the baby geckos! Lol!

YES!!! I love the little house geckos and their babies are too adorable. Love their little squiggly movements. The anoles however…. Those remind me of the compy dinosaurs in Jurassic Park that ate the little girl on the beach. Still wouldn’t feed them to a cham though.

 

[Motherlode Chameleon]

Ardi Abate and other CIN members have documented chameleons feeding on vertabrates (gecko's and baby chameleons) and plants in some chameleons species native habitats. That is especially Furcifer pardalis and Furcifer oustaleti (the CIN video "Madagascar A Land LIke No Other" is a good referrence). There are more than a few larger species that seem to relish making a meal out of vertabrates of appropriate size (personnel observations and article). That meaning these species seem to not be an unfamiliar part of some chameleons species diet. I think chameleons species making a meal out of vertabrates is a good way for them to load up on a natural source of calcium, preformed vitamin A, and in some scenerio's water.

Best Regards
Jeremy A. Rich