Question about the amount of Food

[dante8858]

I have had my Mellers for almost four months now and she/he seems to be doing good, but I am starting to worry about the amount of food I should be giving her/him. On Kristinas' Melleri discovery site It says to feed "...melleri in stable condition, I recommend one or two appropriate-sized bugs per day, with a 1 day fast once a week." I believe that Kristina is refering to an adult Mellers but at what length do you really classify them as adolescent or adult?
....I believe her/him to be an adolescent, since she/he was (on 9/13/2008) snout to vent 10" and tail 13". (The site says that an adult is 18" to 38")

My Mellers wants to eat 24/7! She/he looks at me everytime I open the cage to mist, pick up dead leaves and so on like I have food to give her/him. I was giving her/him 10 crickets every other day but she/he would keep looking for food. I recently just started to give her/him 5 to 8 crickets every day. I am afraid that this will make her/him obese but I really am lost on how much to feed her/him. I believe her/him to be in good health, so I was wanting to know how many cricket and how often? She/he is very active during the day climbing up and down and all around her/his cage. She/he might be goinging through a growth spurt.

Any help or suggestion will be greatly taken....even help about the dying Ficus behind him would help! lol
Here are a few new photos of her/him....hope you all like:

 

[jannb]

I do not have a Melleri but my daughter does. I would feed her all that she wants. Crickets are small and an animal that size would need at least 10 or 12 crickets a day or 8 nice size dubia.

 

[studiocham]

....I believe her/him to be an adolescent, since she/he was (on 9/13/2008) snout to vent 10" and tail 13". (The site says that an adult is 18" to 38")

That is total length for adults. So if your melleri is 10+13, it's a 23" adult, and a good size.

My Mellers wants to eat 24/7!
... but she/he would keep looking for food.
.... She/he is very active during the day climbing up and down and all around her/his cage. She/he might be goinging through a growth spurt.

Growth spurt unlikely at such a mature size.

However, the color it is displaying is the hormone shift color (black and white) males and females wear for part of the annual cycle. Has your melleri been this color the whole time you've had it, or is it a recent change?

You may have a) female going through a gravid cycle
or b) male getting his courtship suit on, roaming for a mate

The food desire makes me suspect female more, because males will forego food in search of a mate.

I would keep up the feeding but increase Calcium supplementation and natural, unfiltered sunlight exposure. A lonely male will go off feed even with plenty there, but a female needs the nutrition to successfully pass even an infertile clutch.

I would also exchange some of those crix for silkworms in the diet, as the females need more than just the lean protein of crix. They need the unsat fats and Ca ratio found in silkworms.

Track this animal's weight once a week, if it will let you. It has a way to go before it hits obese, as its skull does not have fat pads at all. You want a little padding on a gravid female.

If it's a boy, it won't get egg-lumps within the next 90 days, and you'll know to cut back the food.

Good luck with your melleri,

 

[Eric Adrignola]

I do not have a Melleri but my daughter does. I would feed her all that she wants. Crickets are small and an animal that size would need at least 10 or 12 crickets a day or 8 nice size dubia.

You'd be surprised. A female would require more than a male - especially when she's growing eggs - but a healthy melleri does not need to eat as much as you'd expect. They certainly do not need to eat as much as they are CAPABLE of eating!

My 3.5 year old CB will eat 20-30 adult crickets a day or 10 large silkworms or roaches - if I LET him. He maintains a healthy weight on much less - 4-8 crickets every other day, with a nice sized dubia or some superworms thrown in between. He got a bit plump over the summer when he was eating adult crickets instead of 3/4 inchers... took me a while to catch that.

A 23" female in breeding condition would probably need to eat a lot more - that's one big melleri.

 

[jannb]

You'd be surprised. A female would require more than a male - especially when she's growing eggs - but a healthy melleri does not need to eat as much as you'd expect. They certainly do not need to eat as much as they are CAPABLE of eating!

My 3.5 year old CB will eat 20-30 adult crickets a day or 10 large silkworms or roaches - if I LET him. He maintains a healthy weight on much less - 4-8 crickets every other day, with a nice sized dubia or some superworms thrown in between. He got a bit plump over the summer when he was eating adult crickets instead of 3/4 inchers... took me a while to catch that.

A 23" female in breeding condition would probably need to eat a lot more - that's one big melleri.

Eric, I guess I (grandma) might have give to much food to the melleri when I baby sit.....he was so cute and so sweet, it was hard not to. Jann

 

[dante8858]

That is total length for adults. So if your melleri is 10+13, it's a 23" adult, and a good size.
Yeah I guess I wasn't really thinking the math through! DUH.


Growth spurt unlikely at such a mature size. Could she/he be going through a growth spurt since the condition that I got her/him in was pretty bad. In the first two months he/she grew 2 to 3 inches overall.I don't think that he was treated very well (was very dehydrated and hungry)and has always been a hungry beast since I got him.

However, the color it is displaying is the hormone shift color (black and white) males and females wear for part of the annual cycle. Has your melleri been this color the whole time you've had it, or is it a recent change? He/she goes through several color changes, most of the time he/she is a green/aqua color with white stripes. He had just been sun soaking when I took those photos, but even then when he is sun soaking he turns almost all black (really dark green) with aqua stripes. But yes that coloration is new to me

You may have a) female going through a gravid cycle
or b) male getting his courtship suit on, roaming for a mate

The food desire makes me suspect female more, because males will forego food in search of a mate.

I would keep up the feeding but increase Calcium supplementation and natural, unfiltered sunlight exposure. A lonely male will go off feed even with plenty there, but a female needs the nutrition to successfully pass even an infertile clutch. So how much food? and how often? I think I would like to go back to everyother day but how much?

I would also exchange some of those crix for silkworms in the diet, as the females need more than just the lean protein of crix. They need the unsat fats and Ca ratio found in silkworms. Where is the best place to find silkworms? And how long can you keep them alive? I live near the town that has Buglore (a science store for teachers where you can get lady bugs, butterflies, and silkworms) and I can order silkworms certian times of the year but they are almost ready when you get them to turn into moths!

Track this animal's weight once a week, if it will let you. It has a way to go before it hits obese, as its skull does not have fat pads at all. You want a little padding on a gravid female. best place for a scale?

If it's a boy, it won't get egg-lumps within the next 90 days, and you'll know to cut back the food. yes but if he get lumps you will be hearing a lot more from me.....

Good luck with your melleri,

Thanks for all the info and help! Hope you don't mind all the questions

 

[dante8858]

You'd be surprised. A female would require more than a male - especially when she's growing eggs - but a healthy melleri does not need to eat as much as you'd expect. They certainly do not need to eat as much as they are CAPABLE of eating!

My 3.5 year old CB will eat 20-30 adult crickets a day or 10 large silkworms or roaches - if I LET him. Yes...Ichi will eat probably 50 if I would let him!! He is a beast when it comes to food!He maintains a healthy weight on much less - 4-8 crickets every other day, with a nice sized dubia or some superworms thrown in between. He got a bit plump over the summer when he was eating adult crickets instead of 3/4 inchers... took me a while to catch that.

A 23" female in breeding condition would probably need to eat a lot more - that's one big melleri.

Is there really any way to tell if he/she is in breeding condition? Just wait to see if there are egg lumps?
Thanks for all your help!