Dubia Introduction

[Rango_TheManEater]

I’ve been attempting to introduce dubia roaches into my veiled’s diet for maybe a day now. I avoided them because… well… they’re roaches, but I’ve also realized that they’re important for his diet, so I set aside that fear.

Rango ate one roach and a hornworm treat before calling it a day. They’re medium-sized roaches, since he isn’t a big boy yet, and I was worried about large shells being too hard for him to crunch down.

Is it normal for chams to not like roaches? Then again… it’s a new bug, so maybe I should just give it time?

 

[LizardLurkin]

The thing about dubias is they like to retreat into a corner and then not move. Some people introduce roaches by adding a lot to their cup so there's more movement, which is attractive to chameleons. It took my guy over a week to finally come around to them. I honestly think they're one of his favorite feeders because of the little crunch! He singles them out during cup feeding.

Of course, if you have more attractive bugs in the cup, Rango will likely just pick out what he knows he likes. I would try cup feeding with several roaches in the cup and see what happens. Since he did get one, I believe he'll earn the taste. People compare them to the broccoli of feeders, and that the chameleon is like a child trying to avoid it lol

 

[BleuSaphir]

My Veiled chameleon LOVED Dubias roaches in the beginning. But when he got bigger , he seemed to completely lost interest for crickets and superworms. He loathe hornworms. But now it reversal. He LOVES hornworms and Dubia roaches. But the roaches have to make a lot of movement to get him interested. Nothing comes close to crickets and locust though. That is my veiled absolute favorite. Those DO NOT have to many any movement either. LOL
I would buy the feeder bug that allow the roaches to climb.

And also the smaller size roaches. Maybe it too large.

 

[MissSkittles]

I have no experience with dubia (they’re illegal in Florida) but I do know discoids are very similar and have heard that they are more active than dubia. I think for some chameleons, roaches are an acquired taste. Most will mix a roach in with the regular feeders and go from there. Size of the bug is important. The largest sized roach I will give to my fully grown chameleons is about 1/4” to no bigger than 1/2”. Actually I follow that size for all feeders. Just keep trying and hopefully soon your cham will start enjoying them.

 

[insectovore]

If you only have a coulple of lizards you can just buy crickets at petco. They are more active and more likely to trigger a feeding response. If you have 20 lizards, you would be wise to get as many as possible on dubia because they are less space intensive to raise and there's less effort/thought required.The lizards, just like the dubia, should be gutloaded for 48-72 hours prior to feeding. The marketing stuff "more meat to shell" and so on is just silly. I started keeping reptiles long before dubia roaches was a word anyone had ever heard of. We used crickets and mealworms along with field sweeping and light traps. Having said that for any medium or larger sized lizards that will take them (and most will) dubia are the most convienant staple feeder to raise..

 

[jamest0o0]

If you only have a coulple of lizards you can just buy crickets at petco. They are more active and more likely to trigger a feeding response. If you have 20 lizards, you would be wise to get as many as possible on dubia because they are less space intensive to raise and there's less effort/thought required.The lizards, just like the dubia, should be gutloaded for 48-72 hours prior to feeding. The marketing stuff "more meat to shell" and so on is just silly. I started keeping reptiles long before dubia roaches was a word anyone had ever heard of. We used crickets and mealworms along with field sweeping and light traps. Having said that for any medium or larger sized lizards that will take them (and most will) dubia are the most convienant staple feeder to raise..

I’m convinced there is a strong correlation between reptiles getting parasites and feeding off crickets from stores that also sell other reptiles.

I don’t think anyone could change my mind on this. Crickets are great, but I’d go with a place that specializes in crickets/feeders.

 

[ChameleonBoy26]

So first, I don't know how old your chameleon is, but to give him the right size, the gap between their eyes is the size of the roaches you feed them, so it might be too big. Also, what is your gut-loading situation? Also, they are not regulated in Rochester. Like a cockroach, the temperature for them to breed is 80 to 95 degrees, so it's a little difficult

 

[insectovore]

I’m convinced there is a strong correlation between reptiles getting parasites and feeding off crickets from stores that also sell other reptiles.

I don’t think anyone could change my mind on this. Crickets are great, but I’d go with a place that specializes in crickets/feeders.

It's definitely a concern. A store gets a combination of wild caught and mass produced reptiles. They are in the middle cleaning the cages and someone calls back "grab some crickets...."

 

[MissSkittles]

I totally agree with @jamest0o0 about the pet store crickets…I don’t trust them. Many of the in line feeder vendors sell variety or combo packs, which are perfect for those who may have just one or two insectivores. They not only are getting a better quality of feeder bugs, but enough variety to keep an animal happy and healthy.

 

[Rango_TheManEater]

UPDATE:

It took a bit of wiggling around (gently shaking the roaches in a bowl where Rango could see them), but he finally ate three of them!

He got some extra Reptivite nutrients from it, too, since it’s that time of the month.

 

[jamest0o0]

It's definitely a concern. A store gets a combination of wild caught and mass produced reptiles. They are in the middle cleaning the cages and someone calls back "grab some crickets...."

Exactly my thoughts!