the molted mealworm ( strange question??)

[Thezillaman21]

so iv bn raiseing mealworms for various animals i have owned/own and i was wondering if molted mealworms(still white) are easiler on the digestive track and maybe better for the cham? aint it the outer hard outer shell of mealworm that makes them a one week deal with chameleons? im not ganna go ahead and try this untill i hear from someone with WAY WAY more experience than my own on if it is a safe thing to do. I am starting to get annoyed with crickets(chirping/smell/excapes/dead/low reproduction rates) and none of my animals will eat a full grown roach plus my house is not finished so there is PLENTY of places any excaped roach or cricket can hide is thier anything easy to breed in the "worm" catigory that are an ok staple?

thanks guys/girls

 

[Elizadolots]

I believe the short answer is yes. Freshly molted, they aren't as "chitin" full as they are later.

I'm not sure I'd make them the sole source of food, but a freshly molted mealworm is better than a hard bodied mealworm.

 

[Thezillaman21]

Ok I didn't plan on it I just got like thousands of mealworms now and I know my Cham really like them. You think it would be safe to give him 2-3 of them if he normally gets 6crickets each feeding? I know thier not high protein. If my Cham eats earthworms could I buy some from a store if I know they were raised on a farm and are parasite free?

 

[sandrachameleon]

so iv bn raiseing mealworms for various animals i have owned/own and i was wondering if molted mealworms(still white) are easiler on the digestive track and maybe better for the cham? ...is thier anything easy to breed in the "worm" catigory that are an ok staple?

Freshly molted mealworms are perhaps a bit easier in terms of digestion, but they also are a bit less nutritious as the larva hasnt eaten /gutloaded as much during shed.

IHMO, its best not to have a staple ANYTHING. A wide variety is best. Try not to have any one prey item make up more than 20% of your chameleons diet. You could make larva a fairly large portion of the diet, if using a variety of larva. Mealworms should be 10% or less. Superworms can be another 10%. Butterworms another 10%. Silkworms could be 20%. Hornworms 10%. Use cultured blue bottles, crickets, grasshoppers, terrestrial isopods, etc as the remainder of the diet.

By having crickets form only a small to moderate portion of my animals diet, I dont have to listen to crickets very much If you feed off the male crickets first, even better.

I find mealworms and supers easy to breed, silkworms only a little more difficult but a fair bit more time consuming.

Ok I didn't plan on it I just got like thousands of mealworms now and I know my Cham really like them. You think it would be safe to give him 2-3 of them if he normally gets 6crickets each feeding? I know thier not high protein. If my Cham eats earthworms could I buy some from a store if I know they were raised on a farm and are parasite free?

Yes, 2 or 3 mealworms would be fine for a meal, so long as this isnt most meals. 10% of the diet can be mealworms without issue. Dont forget you can also offer the beetles from time to time.

most chameleons will not eat worms, and while they are high in calicum content they are also likely to carry bacteria and parasites. Make sure you clear their guts before trying them.