Trying to make superworms the main staple of his diet

[Dagreek]

I'm trying to make superworms him main diet and haven't fed him crickets in 3 days but he just won't eat them. Do I need to use crickets as his main staple? I also have silkworms which I planned on using with the superworms.mshouldmi get crickets anyway?

 

[unknown91]

super worms and meal worms aren't good for main food.
dubias i think are the best, crickets too, but they smell and die fast

 

[FlChamMom]

Make sure you gut load the superworms like any other feeder. My panther loves them- I have to be careful or he will go on a hunger strike for them. My veiled won't touch them... Feed a variety of bugs and they won't get bored with any one feeder!

 

[Dagreek]

I've got them covered in white calcium. I'll add in crickets as well I think. You,get,your Cham form flchams?

 

[FlChamMom]

You need to feed the superworms a variety of fresh foods and dry gut load. Mine are currently eating kale, squash, carrots and Cricket Crack. My panther boy is from Chamalot Chameleons. Sire was Circle Side.

 

[Dagreek]

I think I going to toss in some waxworms because I have so many and don't want them to go to waste.

 

[FlChamMom]

Waxworms are fatty and don't have many nutrients. Great treat but not a staple. Try silk worms and hornworms.

 

[Dagreek]

Just saw him eat a large white superworm. He struggled a bit eating it but he did.

Now he's chasing it down with some water.

 

[Juliaf3]

a white superworm? Ive never seen a white one

 

[Bush baby]

They're white when they've just shed.

 

[ChiefRedman]

a white superworm? Ive never seen a white one

me either, my guess would be it just molted ?

 

[Juliaf3]

aaaahhhh makes sense. I guess ive never seen one freshly shed

 

[Andee]

Super worms are an ok feeder, not an ok staple feeder at all though. They should only make up 10-20% of your chams diet. They have a lot of chitin, and are rather fatty. They can be hard to digest in large amounts. They also have huge mandibles that can bite your chams tongue or inner mouth and wound them enough to not eat for a while.

I suggest silkworms, hornworms, and the occasional butterworm (if your cham is not allergic to them), phoenix worms are a definite staple as they don't need to be dusted at all and can be fed as flies.

Dubia roaches, green banana roaches/giant green bananas, crickets, grasshoppers, mantids, stick bugs. These all make good feeders too.

There should be at least 4-5 feeders in your chams diet.

 

[Dagreek]

I should have said I I covered them in calcium powder. I'm going to move onto a mix of silk wax and superworms.

 

[ChiefRedman]

Just remember , Wax worms are high in fat so you dont want to make them a "staple feeder" but they will taste nice to your chams, and they will love you more!

 

[Dagreek]

Maybe I should throw crickets in 2 times a week.

 

[Olimpia]

Why not look into roaches? Something like dubia roaches (if you're not in Florida) is a great feeder because they don't climb smooth surfaces, don't fly, don't chirp, and don't smell, so you can keep a number of them in a plastic storage tub with egg crates and they will breed on their own with food and water.

Roaches are a great substitute for crickets, for sure, because they are much meatier and gutload super well (and I think they are much less dirty).

But I wouldn't make up the diet entirely out of worms, especially when that includes waxworms as part of the triad. Silkworms, hornworms, butterworms, superworms, etc. are fine but as parts in a bigger diet. So you can eliminate crickets if you want (at least most of the time) but you need to provide other things as well, whether that's roaches, stick insects, preying mantises, etc. Something lower in fat and higher in shell (chams need fiber and roughage too!)

 

[Dagreek]

How quickly do the roaches breed and how long for them to grow?

 

[sandrachameleon]

I add my voice to the advice NOT to use superworms (or mealworms or waxworms) as a large part of the diet. You also do not want to so heavily coat a prey bug in calcium that its white - just Lighly dust.

How quickly do the roaches breed and how long for them to grow?

depends on the type of roach. generally faster than superworms. here are some links that should help you:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/74-feeders.html
http://www.angelfire.com/oh2/Roaches/
http://www.chameleonnews.com/03MayWells.html
http://www.nilesbio.com/prod317.html
http://www.anapsid.org/hissingroaches.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blaptica_dubia
Roach Breeding Tip
http://theroachranch.com/care_sheet.html
http://www.nyworms.com/dubiacare.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/planet/roac...h/cageandcare/
http://www.nyworms.com/turkistancare.htm
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs...are-sheet.html
http://www.bio.umass.edu/biology/kunkel/cockroach.html

and re gutloading:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blo...just-crickets-roaches-gutload-everything.html
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/75-feeder-nutrition-gutloading.html