feeding meal worms

[carol5208]

Does any one feed their chameleon meal worms? Are they very nutritional?

 

[Julirs]

Mealworms are a pretty poor choice of feeder. They have a harder exoskeleton, and are a little harder to digest. I have never fed them, but some people do for treats.

There are just better feeder options out there.

 

[carol5208]

ok thanks. I am still learning as I am a new owner of 3 months and was told by someone off the forum that they could be fed to a cham. I will trust you guys first!

 

[jannb]

Try superworms for snacks.......my guys love them. Hornworms are also good and silkworms are excellent feeders.

 

[sandrachameleon]

Does any one feed their chameleon meal worms? Are they very nutritional?

Yes, I feed mealworms to my chameleons. Probably once or twice a month. No, they are not very nutitional - but you can gutload them to make them better, just as you would have to gutload a superworm. mealworms do have more chinton vs easily digestable "meat", and while some chinton is desireably, too much is not. So you dont want to offer these too often unless you are also offering plenty of soft squishy silkworms and hornworms.

you may find this interesting:
http://chameleonnews.com/03OctWells.html

And this blog entry lists many of the commonly used feeders, with info about each:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/74-feeders.html

 

[JenniferAlicia]

Mealworms are a pretty poor choice of feeder. They have a harder exoskeleton, and are a little harder to digest. I have never fed them, but some people do for treats.

There are just better feeder options out there.

I agree that they kind of suck for food, but I gave my baby some today just tiny ones and she likes them, but once this container is done, I am done. I like silkworms, butter worms, and a few others... my girl is just to small for a lot of those right now.

 

[JenniferAlicia]

Since we are on the topic of feeders, where does everyone order theirs from? Any suggestions?
I have no options in town so I have to look online, I am hoping for good quality for a good price

 

[WinstonChrchll]

Ghanns Cricket farm for crickets Great lakes hornworms for the hornworms. Sorry if that was redundant! For other feeders, I get them from my local place. Check the site sponsors, as there are a few places on there to get all the feeders you want.

 

[sandrachameleon]

Since we are on the topic of feeders, where does everyone order theirs from? Any suggestions?
I have no options in town so I have to look online, I am hoping for good quality for a good price

A few of the many online Insect suppliers

Canada
www.canadianfeeders.ca
www.feederfactory.ca
www.westcoastdragons.ca/FeederPriceList.html
www.bcbugs.com
www.trinitychameleons.com
www.bugorder.com
www.recorpinc.com/index.html
www.portcreditpets.com/feeders.html
www.scaryguysexoticpets.com/feeders.html

UK
http://www.butterworms.co.uk
http://www.roachshop.co.uk/
www.livefoodsdirect.co.uk
http://www.silkwormstore.co.uk/

USA
http://www.stflies.com/
http://www.mulberryfarms.com/
http://www.nilesbio.com/prod95.html
http://www.greatlakeshornworm.com/
http://coastalsilkworms.com/splash.html
http://www.forkedtreeranch.com/prices.htm
http://www.ghann.com/
http://www.carolina.com/category/living+organisms/animals.do?sortby=ourPicks
www.joshsfrogs.com
www.theroachranch.com


and dont forget to check the site sponsors and the classfieds on this forum https://www.chameleonforums.com/miscellaneous-sale/

 

[fluxlizard]

I feed mine mealworms regularly (1x per week or so).

They can be gutloaded like any other feeder to improve nutritional value, and when gutloaded are better at providing calcium than gutloaded crickets (or d3 sorry can't recall off the top of my head and too lazy to look it up) at least according to Gary Ferguson in this book:

The Panther Chameleon

Ferguson rotated between crickets and mealworms to provide a complete diet that he was able to breed panthers over several generations on.

Many leopard gecko breeders have taken their geckos over many generations over decades now only on mealworms.

IMO mealworms get a bad rap.

That's not to say I think chameleons should be fed mealworms daily like leopard geckos, but they can be a good part of a varied diet.

The bulk of my diet are a few kinds of roaches. Easy to breed, easy to gutload.

 

[sandrachameleon]

IMO mealworms get a bad rap.
That's not to say I think chameleons should be fed mealworms daily [...], but they can be a good part of a varied diet.

I agree with you on this

 

[Clifford]

I feed mine mealworms regularly (1x per week or so).

So do i. He loves them, they are easy to gutload, and they are cheap.
Like Fluxlizard said, a good part of a varied diet.