So I have been giving my guy a huge variety of food choices. Crickets, hornworns, mealworms, Silkworms. I decided after, much debate with myself cause I find them totally gross, I purchased some dubia roaches. I placed one in the feeder cup, no interest. I set one free in his enclosure, still no interest. Ugg please tell me I am not stuck with 25 disgusting ROACHES!
My Melleri and Roaches
- Thread starter mdior
- Start date
Dave Weldon
Avid Member
Howdy Megan,
You'll never be completely stuck with dubias since you can always bring them to one of our South Bay Chameleon Keeper meetings
. There are usually keepers who either buy or trade or give away dubias. Other than that, just give it some time and maybe try letting your chameleon get a bit more on the hungry-side when you want to try them again. Some chameleons can't ever get enough of them while others keep their tongues rolled-up 
. Were they too big?
You'll never be completely stuck with dubias since you can always bring them to one of our South Bay Chameleon Keeper meetings
. There are usually keepers who either buy or trade or give away dubias. Other than that, just give it some time and maybe try letting your chameleon get a bit more on the hungry-side when you want to try them again. Some chameleons can't ever get enough of them while others keep their tongues rolled-up . Were they too big?
Sepioteuthis
New Member
All I can say is that all my melleri LOVE dubias. However sometimes the roaches aren't active enough to get the chameleon's attention. Try holding the cup in your hand and tap or turn it to keep the roach moving.
BTW for me it helped to think of roaches as flat praying mantises. The head is the same shape and, well, praying mantises are cool.
BTW for me it helped to think of roaches as flat praying mantises. The head is the same shape and, well, praying mantises are cool.
Eric Adrignola
Avid Member
Try hand feeding them first - ok with tweezers, not hands... they take some getting used to, roaches they are, after all.
Use males at first, the wings seem to get their attention - especially if you can get them to move around. Soon, they'll love them.
My WC wasn't crazy about them at first, now he loves them.
Use males at first, the wings seem to get their attention - especially if you can get them to move around. Soon, they'll love them.
My WC wasn't crazy about them at first, now he loves them.
RhettusMaximus
New Member
molted
Color seems to be a factor with my chams as well. When you find a dubia that is freshly molted (all white roach) it's almost irresistable to chams. Normally my veileds won't touch Eublaberus distanti, but throw a molted roach in there and theyre attacked immediately. I think it's because the freshly molted guys just seem so helpless so the chams go nuts for them.
Color seems to be a factor with my chams as well. When you find a dubia that is freshly molted (all white roach) it's almost irresistable to chams. Normally my veileds won't touch Eublaberus distanti, but throw a molted roach in there and theyre attacked immediately. I think it's because the freshly molted guys just seem so helpless so the chams go nuts for them.
So Pirate55
Member
if you're willing to ship them, i'll buy them off you. i've bumped 2 roach threads in the misc. for sale but haven't gotten any response yet. i was just looking for about 10 adults but everything i see for sale on the distributor sites are 100 lots. That is of course if you can't get your cham to eat them.
WC and Roaches
I rescued an adult WC Melleri about a month ago. It had been in the States for about a month. It had been only given crickets during that time. I started putting an adult male roach in the feeding bucket along with four or five adult crickets. The Melleri would eat all the crickets quick, and then would look at the roach for a long time, then move away. Later in the day, I think when the Melleri became hungry, it would return to the bucket and look at the roach for awhile, then a test shot, then a strike. I do not know if it is the size, or that if looks, well, like a roach, but it was not the first thing to eat in this Melleri's list of things to eat.
One month later, the same pattern. This Melleri will eat adult male roaches when the crickets are gone. No longer does a test shot, I think to make it move around more. When it strikes a cricket, sometimes she (we think it is a female) will hold it in her mouth for a time before chewing it. Not so with the roaches. Strike, chomp, chew quickly, head slightly up, swallow.
I hope she will keep eating them, as roaches are so easy to keep and grow.
I rescued an adult WC Melleri about a month ago. It had been in the States for about a month. It had been only given crickets during that time. I started putting an adult male roach in the feeding bucket along with four or five adult crickets. The Melleri would eat all the crickets quick, and then would look at the roach for a long time, then move away. Later in the day, I think when the Melleri became hungry, it would return to the bucket and look at the roach for awhile, then a test shot, then a strike. I do not know if it is the size, or that if looks, well, like a roach, but it was not the first thing to eat in this Melleri's list of things to eat.
One month later, the same pattern. This Melleri will eat adult male roaches when the crickets are gone. No longer does a test shot, I think to make it move around more. When it strikes a cricket, sometimes she (we think it is a female) will hold it in her mouth for a time before chewing it. Not so with the roaches. Strike, chomp, chew quickly, head slightly up, swallow.
I hope she will keep eating them, as roaches are so easy to keep and grow.
Similar threads
