cricket virus?
- Thread starter trevev
- Start date
Thegreatfonz
Member
Yeah I'm in florida and my petco got hit with it. I made a thread asking about it but no one replied with much info. I thought they were just "stunned" but they all later died. I mean if they're infected with a virus, would you really want to feed them to your cham? Even the ones that are still alive probably arent the best for a cham. Part of me wants to say they'd still be fine but it probably depends on the virus and the microbes behind it.
SSimsswiSS
Avid Member
Oh no. Say it's not so. I have had a good supply of crickets for almost a year now. I pick up about 18,000 crickets weekly, so it's a big deal for me if there is crickets problem developing.
little leaf
Avid Member
[1-29-13 INVENTORY UPDATE: We are sorry to announce that the cricket virus that previously affected the brown "house" cricket is now affecting the banded crickets which we have been raising as a substitute. Because we want to offer only the healthiest and highest quality feeders to our customers, we have decided to not raise/sell crickets at this time, until we can find a healthy, virus free strain of crickets. We suggest that superworms (available in micro, small, medium and large size), as well as roaches (available in nymph to large size) be offered in place of crickets as part of a healthy, varied diet for your pets! Our apologies for any inconvenience.]
http://www.mulberryfarms.com/CRICKETS-c12/
I think we had it here too
I lost 800 crix in 3 days !
I started breeding roaches mos ago - kinda gave up on the brown crix for now
http://www.mulberryfarms.com/CRICKETS-c12/
I think we had it here too
I lost 800 crix in 3 days !I started breeding roaches mos ago - kinda gave up on the brown crix for now
Chameleonmaster
Avid Member
I bought 2500 crickets from my reptile show last month and they all died in 1 week from the virus, I was so mad! I'm going to tell the guy at the next show but I've never had a problem with his crickets before.
Psychobunny
Avid Member
This is something I have been dealing with for a few years.
Some shipments seem okay, others, hundreds die over night!!
For a while, I think its gone away, then it comes back again!!
Ghann's has switched cricket species twice and continues to maintain that the virus can not harm your reptiles.
They say the ones they sell now, Jamaican Field Cricket (Gryllus assimilis) are resistent to the virus.
If the crick does not act normal, it doesnt get used, but the ones that look normal may still have the virus!!
I cant use roaches all the time, some of my guyz wont even eat them!!
Some shipments seem okay, others, hundreds die over night!!
For a while, I think its gone away, then it comes back again!!
Ghann's has switched cricket species twice and continues to maintain that the virus can not harm your reptiles.
They say the ones they sell now, Jamaican Field Cricket (Gryllus assimilis) are resistent to the virus.
If the crick does not act normal, it doesnt get used, but the ones that look normal may still have the virus!!
I cant use roaches all the time, some of my guyz wont even eat them!!
Last edited:
DanSB
Avid Member
All the cricket dealers say it isn't harmful to other animals, and it is supposedly not even harmful to other bugs. At least the specific cricket virus that has shut down the Lucky Lure a few years back and is causing all the trouble noted above.
With that said it seems to be insanely contagious to crix and if you were hit make sure to sterilize and or destroy everything that was in contact with the infected crickets. As far as feeding infected crickets, it may not harm your chams but I can find no info on if herps can be carriers of the virus and contaminate future healthy cricket supplies. For that reason alone I wouldn't feed amy possibly contaminated crix until I see more information.
Crickets aren't hard to breed, and this is a great incentive for a DIY cricket farm to me...
With that said it seems to be insanely contagious to crix and if you were hit make sure to sterilize and or destroy everything that was in contact with the infected crickets. As far as feeding infected crickets, it may not harm your chams but I can find no info on if herps can be carriers of the virus and contaminate future healthy cricket supplies. For that reason alone I wouldn't feed amy possibly contaminated crix until I see more information.
Crickets aren't hard to breed, and this is a great incentive for a DIY cricket farm to me...
Thegreatfonz
Member
But they smell so BAD! I've thought about breeding but I'd rather do silks I think. Not sure if this is the virus but a few of the dead crickets turned red instead of black after death. I think if the virus affected chams, we would know already from past experience. Through my research I have not found a statement of infected crickets harming chameleons. Will post a picture of the red cricket in a sec
djfishygillz
Avid Member
Would if the crickets come back as ZOMBIE CRICKETS! And there is a zombie cricket APOCALYPSE!!!
chameleonowner32
Avid Member
No cricket problems here in Indiana
GabeCastro
Established Member
My spot I go to got hit pretty bad, they ordered 5,000+ crickets and all 5,000+ were dead when they opened the box.
On the fence with crickets, wish my guy ate dubias!
On the fence with crickets, wish my guy ate dubias!
Psychobunny
Avid Member
I've never seen a dead, red crick!!
Do they all look like that??
Do they all look like that??
chefboyardee
Member
if its CrPV (cricket paralysis virus); its a densovirus, non zoonotic (you cant carry it), and non transmissible between invertebrates and vertebrates (ie your chams are safe). All the same, it is highly contagious between many inverts... though, of the studies done, it seems locust are relatively safe. Transmission is likely fecal/oral, but studies have also shown that mites can transmit the virus between crickets.
There are probably a number of different strains under the densovirus genus
There are probably a number of different strains under the densovirus genus
