jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
I've always read that they are extremely high in calcium. To be honest I can't find much on it. They do feed on a lot of calcium and protein, so hard to say.
Isopod feeders
- Thread starter BenjiTheCham
- Start date
I've always read that they are extremely high in calcium. To be honest I can't find much on it. They do feed on a lot of calcium and protein, so hard to say.
jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
Problem with tongs for roaches... they only really work for dubia. Most other roach species(the ones chams actually enjoy eating) are too quick or slippery to grab. I didn't like touching them either at first, took me a while, used gloves, etc. Eventually I was desensitized to them and got sick of fooling around with them for 30 minutes a day trying to pull some out. Face your fears 
A little trick you could do is put a dish with food in the roach bin that they can climb into, but not out.
A little trick you could do is put a dish with food in the roach bin that they can climb into, but not out.
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
I don’t mind the baby and younger roaches. I’ll touch those if I have to. It’s their mommies and daddies that I can’t/won’t touch. They’re just too big and something about the wings...~shivers~Problem with tongs for roaches... they only really work for dubia. Most other roach species(the ones chams actually enjoy eating) are too quick or slippery to grab. I didn't like touching them either at first, took me a while, used gloves, etc. Eventually I was desensitized to them and got sick of fooling around with them for 30 minutes a day trying to pull some out. Face your fears
A little trick you could do is put a dish with food in the roach bin that they can climb into, but not out.
JoXie411
Chameleon Enthusiast
Makes you want to lick them?
Klyde O'Scope
Chameleon Enthusiast
You first! 
jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
What about hissers, they don't have those big wings.
MissSkittles
Chameleon Enthusiast
Never saw one irl, but don’t they hiss (hence their name)? I feel bad enough when my discoids squeak in distress as I’m getting them ready to be a cham meal. ?
JoXie411
Chameleon Enthusiast
Only the adults hiss the juvenile ones do not hiss. I get hisser at from just looking at my hisser been sometimes. They have cute little horns like unicorns?
Klyde O'Scope
Chameleon Enthusiast
Seriously, or are you spoofin'? Now that would skeeve me out!
Reptofreak
Chameleon Enthusiast
I like to tease my wife and tell he the roaches are our Armageddon food supply...
jamest0o0
Chameleon Enthusiast
That's amazing. A little too close to a real possibility though eh??
JoXie411
Chameleon Enthusiast
Omg I told my husband the same thing
I told him when we run out of food don’t worry the chameleons will share. He has a shell fish allergy sooo he might not make it
BenjiTheCham
Established Member
Thank you for the info.OK—the skeevy factor. I don't "hand" feed them (difficult for me to hang on to), but I do occasionally feed them using a forceps tweezers. No biggie.
I agree with this, except that dubias of appropriate feeding size remind me more of isopods (roly-polies).
Dubias aren't going to breed in your house unless you live in one of the states where they're illegal anyway (which is why they're illegal in those states). The only ones I've ever had escape weren't big enough to reproduce, and wouldn't survive long enough to. For whatever reason, IME they die within a day or two when outside the colony.
I don't (have to) handle them per se; I either pick them up with the forceps, or tap them into a feeder bowl much the same as a cricket tube, which I find works very well.
The key word was variety. It's probably more a question of interpretation whether I use them as a staple or supplemental feeder. I often (usually?) put both in the feeder bowl together, with a higher ratio of dubias (by weight).
BSFL are fine as a staple (again, variety) and don't require dusting with calcium—they're high in calcium on their own (see nutrition charts). My experiences with them were not good, and eventually, they just weren't worth the trouble for me. Others swear by 'em and I wouldn't argue.
If you don’t mind me asking, what we’re you experienced with bsfl?? I just want to know before I get into something
Lennoncham
Chameleon Enthusiast
Isopods are fine to feed once in a while. The reason not to feed them a lot is because they can be high in iron and other metals.
Reptofreak
Chameleon Enthusiast
I’m teasing her, but I’m quite serious about it lmao. I have been wondering for a while how many dubias a day a person would need to be healthy?
snitz427
Chameleon Enthusiast
Isopods are Charlie’s fav snack. We have a thing where I go to his cage and “ready... set... go!” And he races to catch the isopods when I hold up a piece of cork.
My veileds will hang around the bottom of the cage to hunt them.
Giant Canyon is best bang for the buck due to their size, temperment, and reproduction. I like powder orange, too, as they are super active and reproduce extremely fast... but they are also ravenous so they need plenty of food and plenty of space if in a cham cage.
My veileds will hang around the bottom of the cage to hunt them.
Giant Canyon is best bang for the buck due to their size, temperment, and reproduction. I like powder orange, too, as they are super active and reproduce extremely fast... but they are also ravenous so they need plenty of food and plenty of space if in a cham cage.
Reptofreak
Chameleon Enthusiast
Great minds think alike! Honestly though I think it would be a viable food source.Omg I told my husband the same thing
snitz427
Chameleon Enthusiast
Insect farming is now a booming business!! Many people in the US now eat crickets, mealworms, etc as a source of renewable protein - with less cost and impact than animal protein. I recall seeing a recipe for mealworms sprinkled on salad in place of croutons.
Ew.
JoXie411
Chameleon Enthusiast
Been wondering the same thing
ummmm yes plz, I can’t eat croutons because I’m a snowflake that has a gluten allergy
snitz427
Chameleon Enthusiast
Hope you give my recipe 5 stars! Im super serious though! There’s tons of studies about the nutrition of our feeders because people are now eating them as part of their “normal” diet. Ew!
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