can i feed superworms every day?

[Elizadolots]

You're going to find people making absolute statements on both sides of just about every question. I've had people berate me for my utter inability to deal with super worms (they scare the crap out of me) because they are such a perfect feeder. It has even been implied that if the cricket plague made it impossible to buy crickets, super worms were the best alternative and any other idea I had was just bad.

More recently people are saying they should be used sparingly. I don't recall what the reasoning is as it just made me feel better about my phobia.

Likewise you'll find people here who produce big babies and the buyers of those babies love them. And, on the other side of that coin, you'll find people who say that growth should be slow and they have good research to support that.

So, what I'm saying is, there are times you just have to rely on what makes sense to you. You weigh all the information and ideas on all sides (and sometimes it seems like there are 3 or 4 sides to an issue) and then go with what makes sense to you.

 

[pssh]

Reptiles depend on heat for their metabolism as they are cold blooded. Cooler temperatures makes them run slower. Hence why it is said to feed females less and keep the basking temp low. Lesser food amounts and slower metabolism generally cause the females body to produce less eggs because it recognizes the lack of food and heat as a sign that it is a 'poor' season. So the less eggs she makes, the more nutrition she can save for herself.

 

[sandrachameleon]

I would NOT recommend feeding supers to your chameleon everyday. In my opinion, they should make up 20% or less of your chameleons diet. Supers are quite fatty. Further, a varied diet (one that has a wide range of feeders) is best, in moderate quantity.

Feeding daily, or near daily, is okay if the quantity is low.

 

[AlfredoMayFire]

so can i? i feed them alot because my cham reallly likes them! but i know mealworms are bad and can cause impaction but mealworms and superworms are very similar. so i was just wondering.

Just to add also impaction only occurs when there is dehydration or some sort of illness present. Feeding mealworms shouldn't cause impaction, unless of course he eats one thats as big as him. Gutloading can make many insects besides just crickets and mealworms, a staple diet. Variety also helps.

 

[fluxlizard]

Re: Dusting supers and calcium not sticking-

Mealworms (and probably superworms) gutload calcium more effectively than crickets. Ferguson in his lab fed his crickets and mealworms the exact same diet (zeigler cricket food) and on analysis, the mealworms calcium content was higher and their calcium : phosphorous ratio was much better (It was 1:1 I think). Using this diet along with UVB tubes, he found it unnecessary to dust with calcium (or vitamins) as long as mealworms were a significant part of the diet for his panther chameleons. This group of panthers had gone 5 or more generations in his lab as of the publishing of his book on panther chameleons where this information was reported. He mentioned superworms alonside mealworms once in the text, hence my presumption that supers probably gutload similarly. But he also reported using a diet consisting only of gutloaded mealworms and crickets to feed them for those 5 generations. Check his book for further info.

I'm not recommending the worms as the bulk of the diet, only reporting why they might be included as part of a well rounded diet on a regular basis.

 

[fluxlizard]

And, on the other side of that coin, you'll find people who say that growth should be slow and they have good research to support that.

As someone with the opposite point of view, I'd sure like to see the research.

 

[Bush baby]

I agree with pssh it is possible to use them as a staple but you really shouldnt, its not a very diverse food choice and they are very hard if not impossible to dust with calcium therefor you need some other food source like crix or roaches to supply the extra nutrients. Also I like to add silk/horn worms on a regular basis to keep my chams hydrated, IMHO if your going to have a staple its gotta be crix or dubias but I prefer to keep a solid balance trying to be diverse and switch the feeders almost every feeding

Supers are the easiest feeder to dust imo.

 

[sandrachameleon]

old thread somehow resurrected

 

[fluxlizard]

OMG! Rickrolled LOL

 

[Thoff13]

I agree I feed my panther cham superworms everyday. Superworms are his staple, I gut load them well and perform his normal dust regimen. Superworms are super easy to keep, don't die easily, and can be kept odorless!

Do you only feed him superworms, or do you feed him other insects too.?

 

[sbernhoft]

This thread is 8 years old, @Thoff13

 

[Thoff13]

I know, I just didn't think there was a time limit to get an answer or anything.

 

[KobaOregonherper]

I know, I just didn't think there was a time limit to get an answer or anything.

Because I felt like keeping this going lol. By panther is being stubborn hes gone 2 days now with a single horn worm and meal worm because he WONT eat dubias (which I breed). I found this thread because I'm desperate to figure out how to properly gut load supers because he loves them.

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

Because I felt like keeping this going lol. By panther is being stubborn hes gone 2 days now with a single horn worm and meal worm because he WONT eat dubias (which I breed). I found this thread because I'm desperate to figure out how to properly gut load supers because he loves them.

I've found supers love Bug Burger. They come out of hiding for it immediately when I put some in.

 

[jamest0o0]

Because I felt like keeping this going lol. By panther is being stubborn hes gone 2 days now with a single horn worm and meal worm because he WONT eat dubias (which I breed). I found this thread because I'm desperate to figure out how to properly gut load supers because he loves them.

You'll get more replies making a new thread than responding to a 9 year old thread

That said, you can feed supers pretty much anything crickets or roaches would eat, but they hold very little in their gut so it probably doesn't do much in terms of gutloading.

 

[Mawtyplant]

Variety! I use butterworms, silkworms, hornworms, superworms, crickets, mealworms, dubia roaches, lateralis roaches, surinamensis roaches, butterflies, house and blue bottle flies, and more regularly to my chameleons.

1)Try to avoid butterworms, lots of bad reaction happened associated with butterworm feeding and chameleons.

2)no chameleon should eat everyday when adult age is reached

3)superworm/mealworm are kind of "mcdo" (lot of fat, not lot of fiber and horrible calcium/phosphorus ratio be aware of this

4)i dont think you can feed only with 1 feeder, but if you want, crickets are a far better staple feeder, i personally use silkworm as my staple but they are high on protein so i make sure to not overfeed them

 

[Ramrod]

As a new member I need some advice. My cham has been eating crickets as staple for approx 2 months but decided one day to give him superworms for a change. Now he wants nothing to do with the crickets. He loves supers and bfl.
Question would be how to get him back to crickets as a staple or is it ok to continue with a verity of worms?
Drake is approx 5 months old.

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

As a new member I need some advice. My cham has been eating crickets as staple for approx 2 months but decided one day to give him superworms for a change. Now he wants nothing to do with the crickets. He loves supers and bfl.
Question would be how to get him back to crickets as a staple or is it ok to continue with a verity of worms?
Drake is approx 5 months old.

Superworms, hornworms, and wax worms are all considered treats due to there nutritional values. I believe the only stable worm is the Silkworm. I would never feed wax worms or mealworms. Sometimes the only way to get a chameleon back on a certain feeder is tough love. Usually chams that old won't starve themselves. All I can say is variety is key.

 

[Ramrod]

Thanks for the info. I raise mealworms but they don't go to the cham. I have started a colony of dubia and had first babies last week. I kind of figured I may have to just let him get hungry but wanted advice from someone with more experience than myself.
I think this forum is a great way to get info first hand and again thanks