Feeding a Jackson

Miss Lily

Chameleon Enthusiast
I will be getting one of my friend's baby Jacksons at some point and I would like some help with food for him. I understand that these guys like more 'wild bugs' type food and love slugs and snails. I know that garden snails are usually loaded with parasites, so what type of snails should I raise, or try to raise? Are these guys more picky than a Veiled or Panther when it comes to food?
 
The Montane species do, as do Jacksons. :D Quite gross I think, but if it keeps the little chap happy then I'll feed them to him, but I won't be able to watch! :o I find slugs and snails quite repulsive!
 
I tell you Miss Lily, my baby Jacksons would eat just about anything that I offered them. Mine were raised for the first 3 months or so on a diet of nothing but micro sized mealworms. Once my pinhead crickets were hatching and fruit fly cultures were producing they fed on those as well. I bougght a couple of Chinese mantid oothes from Kara (Pssh) and they attacked those. All in all, they were never real picky. I've read about the fact that they enjoy snails, but I never have tried them.
 
Ahh, ok! Sounds good if they eat other things just as easily! They are currently being fed fruit flies as far as I know, but are only 3 weeks old yet - will be 4 weeks on Saturday. I can't wait to get mine! :D
 
I would decide food based on his age when you get him. My guy was 6 weeks, he ate small crickets, and tiny silk worms which he dearly loved. I have heard they like snails and slugs also but snails are not coming in my house. I did not get slugs but I did get larve for my baby a couple times when I didn't have silkworms. He was great with that. I bought fly larve from a bait store. I never did figure out what they used something that small for at a bait store, but never had the guts to ask. They always looked at me funny when I would come in and ask for the smallest, freshest the had. The things we do for these creatures we love. Can't wait to see your boy.
 
you just want a common brown garden snail, sometimes referred to as European brown garden snail. there are predatory snails that have a piercing mechanism. ime, local gardening clubs, are more than happy to help you identify, and even offer specimens (they are considered a pest by gardeners, i wouldnt tell them you plan on breeding them)you can find most of what you need to know about them here;
http://entnemdept.ufl.edu/creatures/misc/gastro/brown_garden_snail.htm

they can easily be bred in a 10gal with a leaf litter bottom, ime within 3 generations(place each new generation in a newly sanitized tank), pesticides and pathogens are usually down to acceptable levels.

blue or green bottle flies are also an excellent feeder and a xanth favorite, either as maggots or adult flies, also easy and fast to breed, and probably the best xanth hunger strike breaker.

recommend sticking to relatively smaller feeders, and avoiding crickets whenever possible, especially petstore ones

if you want flies, just breed your own, imo, bait shop maggots are best avoided (they are usually raised on a large dead animal inside of a barn imo, increased risk of coccidia), but there is certainly nothing wrong with buying them as starter culture (again 2-3 generations before use as feeders) although buying them is really not necessary.

even though i am not currently keeping xanths, i still raise flies sometimes, for kokanee fishing (landlocked sockeye salmon) and also for mantis. search my recent posts for more info on fly raising, another great and easy to raise feeder is black soldier fly larvae. ill post links if i get around to it. btw there are vids on you tube of how to raise most common feeders, there also used to be a vid from cf member kenya, of a xanth eating a garden snail.
and dont forget the old stand by , dubia. jmo
 
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Tiff, here is my opinion, only my opinion, forget everything from all the rest of us and go with what John (xanthoman) told you to do. He is just way good with Jacksons and if anyone who has walked the walk and talked the talk is offering information he is the man.
 
Thanks for all the info! I have been asking Xanthoman several questions about these guys already and he has been most helpful!

How long does it take to get 3rd generation snails and bluebottles? I can get 'fly casters' from somewhere on the Mantid forum (Gary1621 will know where to get these. I think I will stick to fruit flies at first as he will still be quite tiny when he arrives. How does one go about dusting fruit flies? Or is it not necessary? I know that Jacksons need less supplementing than Veileds.
 
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