Is 4 or 5 crickets a day enough?

[lovepicasso]

I don't want to feed him more than he wants and I don't want to hold food when he is hungry, having to force feed I don't know if he is getting enough or not.....4 or 5 large crickets a day and sometimes only every other day, along with a super worm most days.....is this enough for him or not for an 8 month old veiled?

 

[jshaffer740]

I don't want to feed him more than he wants and I don't want to hold food when he is hungry, having to force feed I don't know if he is getting enough or not.....4 or 5 large crickets a day and sometimes only every other day, along with a super worm most days.....is this enough for him or not for an 8 month old veiled?

According to this site's care sheet:

"Juveniles 6-12 months of age: 10-12 medium crickets every other day.

Which makes me tend to think that 4-5 large crickets every day or sometimes every other day would be roughly equivalent to the guidance given there. However, I am admittedly not an expert, so others may want to chime in. I just thought I would post that from the care sheet for a little reassurance.

 

[pssh]

Wait, is he eating on his own at all? Why do you have to force feed him?

 

[lovepicasso]

According to this site's care sheet:

"Juveniles 6-12 months of age: 10-12 medium crickets every other day.

Which makes me tend to think that 4-5 large crickets every day or sometimes every other day would be roughly equivalent to the guidance given there. However, I am admittedly not an expert, so others may want to chime in. I just thought I would post that from the care sheet for a little reassurance.

Thanks for the info!

Wait, is he eating on his own at all? Why do you have to force feed him?

He does not eat on his own, he has only a fraction of his tongue because on Christmas day he burned it so bad that a little bit at a time would die off....he is still trying to figure out how to catch his prey like a normal lizard does, and when he does get his mouth on them he can't keep them in his mouth.

 

[pssh]

He isn't able to chew them? Or do you mean he can't really swallow them without his tongue? Does he voluntarily drink the bug juice (or are you feeding him the whole crickets and just helping him out?) Sorry, I haven't read through the whole thread/all of the threads you posted so I don't remember/know how you are dealing with food.

Are you weighing him? I would weigh him and decide what to feed him based on his weight. If he isn't growing the way he should be/is getting skinny, then feed him more. If he is gaining too much weight AND looking fat, then feed him less. If he is gaining a lot of weight, but is also growing and not looking fat around the hips/cheeks/casque then I wouldn't decrease the feeding. I think that would be the best way to go about it. Skipping days is fine as long as he is getting enough food on the days that he is being fed.

 

[lovepicasso]

He isn't able to chew them? Or do you mean he can't really swallow them without his tongue? Does he voluntarily drink the bug juice (or are you feeding him the whole crickets and just helping him out?) Sorry, I haven't read through the whole thread/all of the threads you posted so I don't remember/know how you are dealing with food.

Are you weighing him? I would weigh him and decide what to feed him based on his weight. If he isn't growing the way he should be/is getting skinny, then feed him more. If he is gaining too much weight AND looking fat, then feed him less. If he is gaining a lot of weight, but is also growing and not looking fat around the hips/cheeks/casque then I wouldn't decrease the feeding. I think that would be the best way to go about it. Skipping days is fine as long as he is getting enough food on the days that he is being fed.

Thanks for your reply and interest......he is growing and doing great, he did have a hard time swallowing but now can do that pretty good, his biggest problem is catching prey, he gets very uninterested after he can't get them into his mouth after about 3 tries....no trouble chewing, we just have to open his mouth and insert a cricket or worm, I'm hoping he will be able to feed himself soon....he does free range and goes all over the house and loves it.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

This is the cup George uses (he can't shoot his tongue either:

He can climb right in and they can't run away from him very far so he can catch them easily. So he just chomps them like a regular lizard.

 

[lovepicasso]

This is the cup George uses (he can't shoot his tongue either:

He can climb right in and they can't run away from him very far so he can catch them easily. So he just chomps them like a regular lizard.

I have a new cage ordered and that is a great idea for me to use, I will go today and find a container deep and wide enough for him to get down into and eat like George does.....thank you very much Dayna.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

That one is a take out container I got from the deli department at the grocery store.

 

[KiloTheChameleon]

omg such a great idea!! Kilo likes to hunt them, but when he shoots his tounge he gets excited and hops a little and looses balance, so i think maybe i should get one of these too!!! hmmmm

 

[pssh]

Well there you go! Get a tub for him to feed from, and weigh him periodically to make sure he is growing well. I think that would be the best method to go about it.

 

[lisagr07]

Sherri, I think 4-5 large every day or ever other day is fine...
From the pics I've seen of him lately, he looks very healthy to me!!!
I got a digital food scale that weighs in grams at Walmart... Weigh him weekly or every other week and It will give you a good idea as to whether or not he's getting enough... You'll be able to tellnif he's holding his weight or not.

 

[lovepicasso]

That one is a take out container I got from the deli department at the grocery store.

My husband got one today from the walmart deli, he said he had to buy some pop corn chicken to get the cup, I'm sure that is the only way he could get it.

Well there you go! Get a tub for him to feed from, and weigh him periodically to make sure he is growing well. I think that would be the best method to go about it.

Got it!

Sherri, I think 4-5 large every day or ever other day is fine...
From the pics I've seen of him lately, he looks very healthy to me!!!
I got a digital food scale that weighs in grams at Walmart... Weigh him weekly or every other week and It will give you a good idea as to whether or not he's getting enough... You'll be able to tellnif he's holding his weight or not.

That's kind of what I was thinking Lisa, maybe 5 a day, I don't have a scale to weight him with but I will have one tomorrow, sending Steve back to walmart....just what is ideal weight for a 8 month old veiled?

 

[pssh]

I wouldn't go by the "normal/ideal" weight because he just went through some fairly serious issues and may or may not be in the "normal" range now. (Though there isn't really a "normal." My 4.5 year old male is the same size as some 12 month old veileds because there is such a big range in "normal" weight.) As long as he is gaining weight and growing I would say he is just fine.

 

[lovepicasso]

I wouldn't go by the "normal/ideal" weight because he just went through some fairly serious issues and may or may not be in the "normal" range now. (Though there isn't really a "normal." My 4.5 year old male is the same size as some 12 month old veileds because there is such a big range in "normal" weight.) As long as he is gaining weight and growing I would say he is just fine.

Thanks Kara, hope to get the scale today and start a growth chart....I guess that is the only way to know for sure.

 

[pssh]

Yeah. Just buy a cheap kitchen scale. I got my first one for something like $10 or so at a target or somewhere similar.