Flies?

[lgstang]

Louie has been getting strictly crickets for sometime now and I'd like to get him some flies for a change of pace. I used to get them from chameleonsonly.com (where we got Louie, great place btw) but now they're requiring 2-containers per order. The 2nd container will die before he has a chance to eat them I'm afraid...

Does anybody know where I could get some flies? Petco always has the little tubes of fruit flies, but not only are they usually ALWAYS 90% dead they don't really get the job done for our guy.

He refuses to eat worms, too.

 

[spatulars]

http://www.shopspiderpharm.com/servlet/Detail?no=26

 

[lgstang]

http://www.shopspiderpharm.com/servlet/Detail?no=26

Thank you!

 

[Ocelot357]

Louie has been getting strictly crickets for sometime now and I'd like to get him some flies for a change of pace. I used to get them from chameleonsonly.com (where we got Louie, great place btw) but now they're requiring 2-containers per order. The 2nd container will die before he has a chance to eat them I'm afraid...

Does anybody know where I could get some flies? Petco always has the little tubes of fruit flies, but not only are they usually ALWAYS 90% dead they don't really get the job done for our guy.

He refuses to eat worms, too.

NEVER PAY FOR FLIES!!!

This is what i do to catch flies.I place a transparent cup filled with a couple little pieces of apple and other fruits, Anywhere were flies gather in my back yard, And when i see that theres a couple of flies in the cup munching on the fruits, I just simply walk up to the cup and quickly put my hand over the cup and trap all the flies, Open up my cage and just place the cup inside the cage, Close the cage quickly and thats it!.I always catch like about 10 flies in one try.Its been a while since i bought food for my cham.Mine seems to love the flies the most too!

 

[lgstang]

NEVER PAY FOR FLIES!!!

This is what i do to catch flies.I place a transparent cup filled with a couple little pieces of apple and other fruits, Anywhere were flies gather in my back yard, And when i see that theres a couple of flies in the cup munching on the fruits, I just simply walk up to the cup and quickly put my hand over the cup and trap all the flies, Open up my cage and just place the cup inside the cage, Close the cage quickly and thats it!.I always catch like about 10 flies in one try.Its been a while since i bought food for my cham.Mine seems to love the flies the most too!

I don't have time for that! I'm a stay at home mom with a 2 month old trying to start my own business and taking online classes, my husband works 10-hour days for 7-10 days at a time so he definately doesn't have time.

It's a good idea though.

 

[skeeta]

Keep in mind there is a BIG danger feeding wild caught flies to your Cham. They lay their eggs on feces and nasty stuff like rotting meat, so the likely-hood of passing parasites etc on to your baby is very high.
Yes, they DO eat flies in the wild, but the average lifespan in the wild is WAY shorter too!

 

[meatslim]

some also say that a healthy cham should be able to fight off the parasites they get from their food. it makes sense to me but at the same time, id personally rather be safe.

 

[Dave Weldon]

...flies gather in my back yard ...I always catch like about 10 flies in one try.Its been a while since i bought food for my cham.Mine seems to love the flies the most too!

Howdy Edgar,

You're just the keeper I've been waiting for ! I want to do a fecal float on some fresh poop samples from your chameleon. Keepers have often speculated on the parasite content of wild house flies based on the fact that they do eat in some nasty places . If you're ever going to be in the Manhattan Beach area (~20 miles from you), or coming to one of the monthly South Bay Chameleon Keepers meetings in Torrance, bring the the most recent sample in a small plastic bag with a drop of water added to keep it moist. Heck, I'll even bring my microscope and accessories to your place if that works better . I've even got time today . Toss me a PM or email if you are interested. If we find parasites, it may be of the type that are treated with simple, over-the-counter products that I'll bring with me. Otherwise, at least you'll have photographs of them to show your vet .

 

[lbesok]

Dave, you're just sooooo great! I wish I lived in Cali
Also I could recommend Grubco for flies:
http://www.grubco.com/

 

[Dave Weldon]

Dave, you're just sooooo great![/URL]

I would say "I just can't help myself". I think my wife would say "obsessed" . My co-workers would say "A.R.P.A." Anal Retentive Painful Analytic . Fortunately, my manager says "You get another big raise! .

 

[meatslim]

ooo, do it, ocelot, then we'll really have a better idea if its safe or not!

 

[dodolah]

I would say "I just can't help myself". I think my wife would say "obsessed" . My co-workers would say "A.R.P.A." Anal Retentive Painful Analytic . Fortunately, my manager says "You get another big raise! .

HAHAHAHA!!!!
you are too funny, Dave!

Take the offer, Ocelot! A free fecal float test! I'll do it
it's 30 bucks at the vet.

 

[Dave Weldon]

Howdy,

Edgar and I will be taking a microscopic peek next weekend .

 

[Ocelot357]

I don't have time for that! I'm a stay at home mom with a 2 month old trying to start my own business and taking online classes, my husband works 10-hour days for 7-10 days at a time so he definately doesn't have time.

It's a good idea though.

You dont have to stand their all day.Just set the cup, Go on with your day...come back later and i will guarantee you thery'll be flies.Catch them and throw them in...Thats it.

 

[mczoo]

I get my flies from mantis place http://www.mantisplace.com/feederinsects.html#BBP.

She has reduces the size of her shipments and you can get 100 for less than $10 or for $12 500 fly pupae.

However you would be very supprised how many a cham can eat. I get the blue bottle flies. house flies are too small even for meium sized cham IMHO.

good luck

Sean

 

[CamoCritter]

Keep in mind there is a BIG danger feeding wild caught flies to your Cham. They lay their eggs on feces and nasty stuff like rotting meat, so the likely-hood of passing parasites etc on to your baby is very high.
Yes, they DO eat flies in the wild, but the average lifespan in the wild is WAY shorter too!

I have seen Much speculation over this dispute,and in many places.A Chameleon will eat Flies of a wide variety in the wild,It is true that they do lay their eggs on fecal matter,and rotting meats ect.But this is the side that i thought was interesting,The cham in the wild eats Flies that could have landed on a Cougar poo,while the ones in Citys land on domestic cat poo.They land on poo none the less right?

 

[skeeta]

Absolutely! This is why Dave's little experiment is of interest to me. I can't say I haven't taken some rather big chances with my OWN life and survived, but prefer not to be the bringer of discomfort to my little buddies. (ever see a chameleon riddled with parasites? They don't have a very good time)

Free food? Sign me up! I just think it's wise to allow our chams as long and healthy a life as possible.

 

[CamoCritter]

I think it would be great to breed cultures of wild Flies i really wonder if there is a way to eliminate parasites,are they transfered to the larvae genetically,or is it spread by other means?I think I have a way to separate the Adults from the eggs. But my question would be how do we eliminate parasites on flies,and keep the Fly culture alive of course.

 

[Dave Weldon]

Howdy All,

The results are in . No Parasites found!

Edgar's young female Rudis is in good shape. We didn't go looking for bacteria issues that flies could bring but I wouldn't know what I was looking at anyway . This is certainly not a conclusive study of the potential problem of parasites vectored through flies but if she continues to stay parasite-free and healthy then it makes a nice data point. We'll probably do a follow-up test in a month or two to see how things go.

Edgar has a nicely planted outdoor enclosure with plenty of hiding spots available. I left him with some dubias to start a colony along with some small silkworms to try too. Oh, and I left him with a bag of Steve's fancy gutload for the roaches too .

 

[Ocelot357]

Yup!, I hope it stays like that.Thanks dave!, I appreciate your time!.Next time we'll check out Kong's Pets.

Howdy All,

The results are in . No Parasites found!

Edgar's young female Rudis is in good shape. We didn't go looking for bacteria issues that flies could bring but I wouldn't know what I was looking at anyway . This is certainly not a conclusive study of the potential problem of parasites vectored through flies but if she continues to stay parasite-free and healthy then it makes a nice data point. We'll probably do a follow-up test in a month or two to see how things go.

Edgar has a nicely planted outdoor enclosure with plenty of hiding spots available. I left him with some dubias to start a colony along with some small silkworms to try too. Oh, and I left him with a bag of Steve's fancy gutload for the roaches too .