Ants
- Thread starter ChamNoob
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graydon
New Member
An ant? How big is your cham? An ant probly has very little nutritional value. I would stick to crickets, silks, and supers.
graydon
New Member
my cham is 3-4 months old, i know its probobly no nutrition in it im just wondering if it could hurt her if maybe i gave her one now and thenjust for the hell of it really
Probly not a wise choice seeing how your probably catching the ants in the wild. You don't wanna give your cham a pesticide infected ant now do you? Get some small to medium sized crix and some small silkworms. Your cham will love them.
xanthoman
Avid Member
wc ants ?
i would say probably better to not. like graydon says there are many better feeders out there. most ants have exceptionally strong mandibles for their size and could possibly bite a young tender cham tongue, plus ants is something that home owners are always trying to poison, so i would be wary of a pesticide threat from wc ants. 4 months is a great age to introduce young chams to house flies at (cultured not wc).they are cheap and you can get them from themantisplace.com, there are a couple of members that have them in the forum classifieds as well. jmo
i would say probably better to not. like graydon says there are many better feeders out there. most ants have exceptionally strong mandibles for their size and could possibly bite a young tender cham tongue, plus ants is something that home owners are always trying to poison, so i would be wary of a pesticide threat from wc ants. 4 months is a great age to introduce young chams to house flies at (cultured not wc).they are cheap and you can get them from themantisplace.com, there are a couple of members that have them in the forum classifieds as well. jmo
Lizardlover
New Member
your getting it all wrong guys, i was just wondering if 1 single ant could hurt, you are saying it like i wanna start puttin that in her diet, no not at all. and the size of the ant was like .. 2 cm tops
if its no biggie why bother feeding her something with no nutritional value for the heck of it as opposed to feeding her a cricket, silkworm, or one of the other many, many available feeders, people have answered your question, and thats that.
Elizadolots
New Member
I doubt the chameleon would even consider eating an ant..
jojothefirst
New Member
why do people do this? Some asks a question and which gets answered in a totaly erelivent way!! Hes not askin what are the best feeders, hes asking if there would b a problem in a cham eattin a ant.
I would like to know this aswell as i have some veileds hatching so ants would b a very good size.
P.s i no i can feed them micro crix and fruit flys and the hypothetical ants would be captive breed.
I would like to know this aswell as i have some veileds hatching so ants would b a very good size.
P.s i no i can feed them micro crix and fruit flys and the hypothetical ants would be captive breed.
There are probably some small chams outthere that eat some kind of safe ant. Harvester ants are used as feeders for horned lizards and other small animals. Should you try it with a baby veiled, panther or other, Id say no. They still bite. But if you feel the need to try, hats off to you and goodluck.
bugboy
Established Member
actually, one ant may or may not do anything. last summer i had my panther outside on a short wooden beam to catch some sun while i watched him. all of a sudden this carpenter ant comes running out of nowhere straight at my cham. well, before i could even get up out of my seat he had snatched the thing up, chewed and swallowed. nothing has changed since then so it obviously didnt have any effect on him. if i were fast enough however, i wouldnt have let him eat it. its not worth it to risk the parasites or pesticides it could be carrying.
Lizardlover
New Member
why do people go offtopic just to bash someone else? Obviously the OP is not aware of the other available feeders if he is considering feeding ants, I dont think my post was IRRELEVANT at all.
ants do not make up a chameleons diet in the wild, and there are so many other feeders why bother with them? I guess you could, but being that they are so small and have no nutritional value they are just a waste of time.
gegeland
Member
Why was it obvious that he doesn't know of the other available feeders? His question, to me, seemed like he was just asking if it was okay if he just fed a couple to his chameleon. That doesn't show he doesn't know what else is available for feeders. And do you know for a fact that ants have "no nutritional value"? Don't the "cricket, silkworm, or one of the other many, many available feeders" have little nutritional value until you properly gutload them? I am not saying that I am sure you can feed a chameleon ants, but I think you are taking the OP's question the wrong way. The question is just like when anyone asks if they can feed any other insect to their chameleon. They want to make sure no harm will come to their chameleon from the bug they are talking about.
fl orchidslave
New Member
I am new to Chameleon keeping so would be not interested in trying unknown feeders. What they eat in the wild is what keeps them healthy. Of course a stray bug may come into their range and be eaten, but it's not their regular diet. Harvester ants contain high levels of formic acid, which is necessary for the proper PH level in a Horned Lizard's digestive system. It's what they eat in the wild and in healthy captivity. I have one. Would I feed his ants to my Veiled? No way. It might not hurt Spock, but it might. They do pack a sting and he has no natural defense as Floyd has. I really don't see where ants would provide any benefit nutritionally (even tho I gutload them) to Chams. Most of the other feeders my boys can share if appropriate sized
Elizadolots
New Member
I have to admit that when I first replied to this thread I completely forgot there are ants of "size"...I live in San Diego and we only see little black ants that, frankly, are not "food worthy"...but, when I think about it, there are some big ants (like the Carpenter's mentioned) that are bigger than pin head crickets and certainly foodworthy.
also...if it's just a question of "he grabbed one before I could get there" that's great, not a cause for major concern...mine have nabbed flying things that were not put in as feeders and we just think that's a bonus.
also...if it's just a question of "he grabbed one before I could get there" that's great, not a cause for major concern...mine have nabbed flying things that were not put in as feeders and we just think that's a bonus.
morpheon
New Member
Actually, the question is pretty important, since most chameleons can go outside from time to time and have a chance of eating various insects.
So knowing what to look for, what doesn't matter and what may be dangerous for them is important.
As for ants, i don't think they would hurt your chameleon, unless they come from a place where they could be infected.
So the question of nutrition is pointless in my opinion, but the question of poisoning or biting or any health-related concern isn't.
So knowing what to look for, what doesn't matter and what may be dangerous for them is important.
As for ants, i don't think they would hurt your chameleon, unless they come from a place where they could be infected.
So the question of nutrition is pointless in my opinion, but the question of poisoning or biting or any health-related concern isn't.
