Can't find the feeder thread I'm looking for

[Tortdad]

So where do you guys order your insects from?

My local petsmart has crickets and mealworms/superworms... nothing good

I have just the one chameleon so I don't want so many that they just die on me so I need some advice on what quantity to order too.

 

[Andee]

We all order ours online or go to reptile expos usually. Sometimes there are a few members lucky enough to have small pet stores near them that sell weirder stuff. I raise all of mine.

 

[Tortdad]

I'd like to raise my own too but my wife would shoot me if I started raising 5 different types of bugs. That's why I was going to raise the dubia as the main staple and buy some other stuff for veritiy

 

[Tortdad]

You would think that in a city as large as Houston TX (4th largest city in the states) that I would have an easier time finding bugs

 

[Tortdad]

Silk worms, hook worms, bsfl....

All I can find are crickets and mealworms

Oh and wax worms but aren't they full of fat?

 

[MSMorgan]

I'd like to raise my own too but my wife would shoot me if I started raising 5 different types of bugs. That's why I was going to raise the dubia as the main staple and buy some other stuff for veritiy

TD,
You might do an internet search and look at online provider's sample packs for your little buddy. By going this route at first, you can figure out exactly what he'll eat without buying the proverbial cow and go from there. With my veiled Lucky, he'll eat any worm you throw at him. He ate roaches in the beginning, but after I started my dubia colony, he won't have anything to do with any of the roach species I've tried. Now, my son sell roaches locally on Craig's list. There are insect dealers here on this site. Take a look at the classifieds:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/forums/chameleon-food.82/
Also, check out the sponsors on the site. Being in CA, I order from here:
http://www.rainbowmealworms.net/
They're fast and efficient, but only one provider amongst the dozens out there. In short, my advice is to try out a few small quantities of a variety of species at a time and see what he'll go for. That way you're not stuck with 10,000 bugs that your cham won't touch.

P.S. I'm not kidding. He now has bins of the little boogers in the garage that he sells off. There's probably more than 10,000.

 

[jamest0o0]

I have found josh's frogs has extremely healthy, active BSFL that all seem to pupate and turn to flies over the course of a month or two. Their hornworms have been great to me so far too. Elliots butterworms for butterworms. If you can get off andee, her silkworms have been by far the best. Nick barta has fly spikes and different roaches. And ghanns crickets are my favorites.

Waxworms are full of fat and cause addiction, I'd limit them to a couple a month, max. Gutload them with honey and bee pollen. Mealworms suck. Superworms I do about 1x a week, gutload on everything roaches/crx eat

 

[RedMountainHome]

I agree with keeping dubias as a staple, they're the best blend of healthy and easy to breed. Just make sure your cham will eat them before you go buying a colony!

I'm SURE there are people in Houston with bugs to trade. If there aren't any on here then it wouldn't hurt to check gecko, tarantula, dart frog, and other forums based around insectivores. As was already mentioned you can check out craigslist, there are usually some ads floating around my local one. I also put up a flier to sell dubias at my local petstore so that's another option. If you're buying online then I would highly recommend josh's frogs, I've used them and I know a lot of other people who have as well. I've also had good luck with mulberry farms.