Feeders

[MardiMay07]

Doing more research before I try another Veiled Cham...

My questions are about feeders. I've read that variety/dusting is important and that crickets and roaches should be the main staples with worms for supplements.

Are roaches sold at smaller non chain pet stores usually? And do they have to be specifically dubias? I don't really have the room to have a colony, unless they're kept outside which I doubt in PA would work out well. If I have to order small quantities at a time, how long do they live usually?

And what do you guys usually do for the different worms? Are hornworms difficult for chams to digest like mealworms?

What kinds of schedules do you guys have your chams on? I would really appreciate a kind of 'starter schedule' with what to rotate on what days, etc
I was feeding my cham a rotation of crickets, flightless fruit flies, and mealworms but I think he was sick anyways :/

Thanks

 

[xephyr17]

https://www.chameleonforums.com/nutritional-value-insects-132092/

Check that guy out ^ and you'll get an idea of the nutritional value of most of the things people feed their Chams.

I have my Veiled on crickets on a Calcium diet, along with strawberries, carrots, kale, potatoes and avocado. I feed him those every day, along with 3-5 hornworms, one or two butterworms and every now and then I'll switch some items out for a roach (I just use Dubia, I'm not sure what else can be used), silkworm or waxworm and superworms or mealworms.

So far as I know, there is no problem with digestion of hornworms, but I could be wrong. There is something with mealworms in particular that are hard to digest, which has something to do with their hard outer shell...

 

[sandrachameleon]

Doing more research before I try another Veiled Cham...
My questions are about feeders. I've read that variety/dusting is important and that crickets and roaches should be the main staples with worms for supplements.
Are roaches sold at smaller non chain pet stores usually? And do they have to be specifically dubias? I don't really have the room to have a colony, unless they're kept outside which I doubt in PA would work out well. If I have to order small quantities at a time, how long do they live usually?
And what do you guys usually do for the different worms? Are hornworms difficult for chams to digest like mealworms?
What kinds of schedules do you guys have your chams on? I would really appreciate a kind of 'starter schedule' with what to rotate on what days, etc
I was feeding my cham a rotation of crickets, flightless fruit flies, and mealworms but I think he was sick anyways :/
Thanks

I suggest you don't have a staple at all. Instead, aim for variety, having no one feeder prey type make up the bulk of the diet.

But a sample rotation might be:
day 1 - crickets (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 2 - larva day - a hornworm or a silkworm or two, plus a superworm or mealworm (gutoad all, dust the superworm with calcium and vitamins)
day 3 - roaches (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 4 - other larva day - butterworms or soldier fly maggots or whatever you didn't use on day 2 (gutloaded - dusted only if necessary)
day 5 - crickets (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 6 - roaches (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 7 - variety day - try to offer something not given previously in the week - termites, terrestrial isopods, snail, indian walking stick, blue bottle fly, moth, grasshopper, or whatever. (gutloaded - dusted only if necessary)

you might find these example and info useful:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/food-diary/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/74-feeders.html
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/65-supplements.html

 

[MardiMay07]

I suggest you don't have a staple at all. Instead, aim for variety, having no one feeder prey type make up the bulk of the diet.

But a sample rotation might be:
day 1 - crickets (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 2 - larva day - a hornworm or a silkworm or two, plus a superworm or mealworm (gutoad all, dust the superworm with calcium and vitamins)
day 3 - roaches (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 4 - other larva day - butterworms or soldier fly maggots or whatever you didn't use on day 2 (gutloaded - dusted only if necessary)
day 5 - crickets (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 6 - roaches (gutloaded and calcium dusted)
day 7 - variety day - try to offer something not given previously in the week - termites, terrestrial isopods, snail, indian walking stick, blue bottle fly, moth, grasshopper, or whatever. (gutloaded - dusted only if necessary)

you might find these example and info useful:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/food-diary/
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/74-feeders.html
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/65-supplements.html

Thanks guys!

I know it's important to keep variety so they don't get bored/get proper nutrition, but I also wondered because I don't know how long each bug would really keep. My crickets usually lasted the whole week if not longer, and mealworms I just refrigerated, but not sure on the others.

 

[Psychobunny]

I do have a staple, crickets, but the way I gut load them, I can make them different every time I feed, simply by changing my gutload.

But I don't use any one feeder more then a few days in a row, I switch around; roaches on Sunday and Monday, cricks on Tues and Wednesday, silkies on Thurs and Fri, etc.

They also need some fat in their diet, so superworms maybe once or twice a week, along with the other food.
Or maybe a butterworm every few weeks.