Goatloading with oats

leedragon

Chameleon Enthusiast
Could someone remind me why I can´t use oats as the bulk for my dubias gutloading/ crickets gutloading?
 
Oops...calcium. How did I miss that!☹️
really? what I read it is that as opposite to other sereals and seeds oatmeal was low on that and that´s why being a good choise? ( oxal accids I think it was and other thing). What it may have that isn´t that good is high phosphor? But couldn´t high phosphor just be fied by dusting your feeders with calcium when your are gonna feed them to the chams?
 
This is just one site that talks about it...
https://bottomlineinc.com/health/diet-nutrition/stop-flushing-your-calcium-down-the-drain?print=true

I was told many years ago by a knowledgeable zoo person that I shouldn't use oatmeal.
I´ll have read.
I think back in the days here people used oats for keeping dubias alive. Protein and carbs in it. and then feed them with fruits and vegetables when you were to feed them to your chameleons.
Oats are cheap and can find it with dry fruit and nuts so it would have been convinient to use.
Some old knowledge can be changed thou with time either ours or the zoo person. Kinda like nowdays atleast here dog food and fish food is not recomended for gutloading.
But I got to read about. And thank you for all the input btw.
 
@leedragon said..."Some old knowledge can be changed thou with time either ours or the zoo person. Kinda like nowdays atleast here dog food and fish food is not recomended for gutloading"...true that things do change even for zoo people. I never used dog food or fish food back in the days when others did either. I've always fed insects that eat greens and veggies that and others what I thought they would normally eat whenever possible. Also didn't feed chicken chow/layer food to the insects because it container formaldehyde and seemed to be harmful to the chameleons.
 
For dubia producers...

They use whatever is cheapest. "alot" of them use use super high protein fish and poultry food for "rearing". However till they "get the good stuff" those dubia will be high in calcium binding and uric acid(how bugs store excess protein like mamals store excess fat).

So you are free to have a "bulk bin" and feed whatever. But you need a "feed off" bin that has been on the good stuff for at least a week before you feed them to your extended family members. Just long enough to clear the gut of the old bulk food.
 
@leedragon said..."Some old knowledge can be changed thou with time either ours or the zoo person. Kinda like nowdays atleast here dog food and fish food is not recomended for gutloading"...true that things do change even for zoo people. I never used dog food or fish food back in the days when others did either. I've always fed insects that eat greens and veggies that and others what I thought they would normally eat whenever possible. Also didn't feed chicken chow/layer food to the insects because it container formaldehyde and seemed to be harmful to the chameleons.
that´s interesting. Didn´t know that contained formaldehyde.
 
For dubia producers...

They use whatever is cheapest. "alot" of them use use super high protein fish and poultry food for "rearing". However till they "get the good stuff" those dubia will be high in calcium binding and uric acid(how bugs store excess protein like mamals store excess fat).

So you are free to have a "bulk bin" and feed whatever. But you need a "feed off" bin that has been on the good stuff for at least a week before you feed them to your extended family members. Just long enough to clear the gut of the old bulk food.
That´s some smart thinking. Like have a bin for productionsand small one wich the get like spirulina. arugula. zucchini, bee pollen orange and apples for a week and goes into the chameloens cage.
 
Part of that article that caught my eye is the end of the paragraph on Phytates:
Phytates. Found in high-fiber foods such as berries, corn, nuts, oatmeal, rye and especially wheat bran, phytates are substances that bind calcium, reducing its absorption. Fiber-rich foods have many health benefits, so of course you don’t want to shun them…but if you’re increasing your fiber intake (for instance, to help regulate digestion), be sure to increase your calcium intake, too.
I would think all the supplemental calcium our reptiles get daily should be more than enough to compensate for the phytates in oatmeal, not to mention they'd likely be used up in the feeders' metabolism, so little—if any—would be left for a reptile's metabolism to be affected.
 
You'll find oats mould over quite quickly too as another reason with humidity off Dubia substrate 👍
Something that cost me a few white worm colony's for my discus, unless you change food daily.

Interesting to hear wheat bran not a good feeder as thats what my locust have to counter Cruciferous greens it stops them getting toxic stomachs. Also been giving my baby lobster roaches Weetabix oops
 
you said..."I would think all the supplemental calcium our reptiles get daily should be more than enough to compensate for the phytates in oatmeal, not to mention they'd likely be used up in the feeders' metabolism, so little—if any—would be left for a reptile's metabolism to be affected"...but isn't the calcium were giving supposed to balance the phosphorous in the insects...so how does it compensate for the phytates in the oatmeal too? Are we giving enough for both?

Phytates also stop the absorption of iron and zinc.
 
Last edited:
Something that cost me a few white worm colony's for my discus, unless you change food daily.

Interesting to hear wheat bran not a good feeder as thats what my locust have to counter Cruciferous greens it stops them getting toxic stomachs. Also been giving my baby lobster roaches Weetabix oops
Can you explain how it stops them from getting toxic stomach please. What do you mean by toxic stomach?
 
Locust if you just feed Cruciferous they get a black stomach and die like a plague think its gas build up.
I believe they are farmed on cabbage and bran so the can get optimal growth. The bran must be like fibre to help them pass the wet foods which cause the black stomach deaths in desert locust
 
Last edited:
Back
Top Bottom