Charlie wont eat...

[amanda509]

ive had charlie a little over a week now, and i swear he has only eaten 4 crickets. ive been keeping them in a cup hoping he will get used to it and go to it to eat, but no luck. ive let a bunch run loose and he has snagged those 4, he missed a few (due to his calcium imbalance which im working on correcting), and the rest have escaped. i dont know how, ive taped every little hole in that screen, but theyre escaping. its hard to correct his calcium imbalance because he's not eating his dusted bugs, so he has to stay on the liquid calcium until he does and goes on a normal dusting schedule.

i want to try silkworms, i think they are a lot slower and much more nutritional for him, but i cant find them anywhere! every single website is out of stock. and im not paying out of my behind for them or shipping because im unemployed. ive seen a lot of great deals on silkworm cups and such, but all are out of stock. id like to try my hand at breeding them, or even just hatching eggs, but theres no mulberry trees around and im just unsure about it all.

what should i do? ive never had a cham not eat....linus and ziggy were pigs.

 

[jannb]

Try superworms. They are easy to find and much cheaper. Most chams really love them.

 

[amanda509]

Try superworms. They are easy to find and much cheaper. Most chams really love them.

ive always thought they werent much better than mealworms in regards to nutrient content? im looking for something i can feed him on a regular basis without having to wworry about impaction until (if he ever) eats dusted crickets out of the cup. ill deff give them a try though, ill pick some up tomorrow to see if he likes them.

 

[jannb]

Super worms, if gut loaded properly can be a very good feeder. I use supers along with a wide variety of other feeders.

 

[amanda509]

Super worms, if gut loaded properly can be a very good feeder. I use supers along with a wide variety of other feeders.

what would you suggest i gutload them with? sorry for the questions, been awhile since ive had to do this, and ive never really used superworms before... Thank you for replying though

 

[jannb]

what would you suggest i gutload them with? sorry for the questions, been awhile since ive had to do this, and ive never really used superworms before... Thank you for replying though

I use basically the same fruits and veggies that I use for crickets. Green leafy vegetables such as kale, collard greens, dandelion and endive. Butternut squash, sweet potato, bell pepper, carrot, apple (no seeds) and orange. I also mix some dry gut load in with the oatmeal that I use for their bedding. Sandrachameleon has some excellent blogs about gut loading. You might want to look those up.

 

[Seiryu]

Supers have much more nutritional value than mealworms for sure when gutloaded properly.

They are just fatty and have a decent amount of shell which is why it should be more of a supplement to a diet and never a staple.

 

[CarlC]

I have a ton of silks right now. More then I can use. I'd be glad to send you a bunch. If you buy some food you'll be all set.

Let me know. I can get them in the mail today.

Carl

 

[shea]

I would suggest if he's eaten free roaming crickets continue to feed those. Gut load your crickets and keep offering even if he's missing.

Many chameleons in varying states of health & stress aren't down with cup feeding. Getting worms that aren't going to flee quickly, and also fed out of a cup, may not solve the problem.

Shea Peterson

 

[pssh]

I also recommend just free feeding if that is how he will eat them. You can also try putting them in a shoe box sized plastic tub and he may be more likely to eat them from there. The bugs can still run around so it seems to stimulate the chameleons more than a small cup would.