No Crickets... Alternatives??

[tadeusz]

So, going forward, I'm unable to get anymore crickets as feeders as I've had some issues with not getting them delivered from several different suppliers and NONE of my local fedex facilities will accept live crickets to hold for me! I have my dubia colony going good, 2 of my chams eat them with no problem, but my one little guy just wont eat them! I dropped them in his feeding cup and 3 days went by with nothing, he didn't even eat 1 (Normally, this guy would eat 15 crix and a few supers a day)! I tried letting them run around and he still wont go for them. He has eaten a few before, he just wont eat them anymore. He will eat superworms though. The second I drop them in he runs after them and snaps them up. Is it such a bad thing to feed him supers only? I know I shouldn't, but I don't want to see him not eating. I want to get him eating dubias with my others, and it just sux that I cant get any crix delivered. Thoughts...

 

[carol5208]

There has been alot of talk here on the forum on this subject!!! I do know of a few people who's chameleons will only eat Superworms and nothing else. They are high in fat as compared to crickets so they are not the best thing to feed alone. But if that is all they will eat then you kinda have no choice. Do you gutload your superworms? They eat fruits and vegetables like the crickets so I feel better about feeding them all the time as long as they are gutloaded.I am on the list of people whose chameleons will not eat crickets. I feed supers, horns, silks, silk moths. Have you tried silks?. They are low in fat as compared to the supers. I think we all know that too much of one thing is probably not the best just as it is with our diets. I would not let my chameleon starve though if he refused anything but Supers, but that is just my opinion!

 

[Maurer3D]

THese are my top 2 choices at the moment.

Dubia Roaches (very popular at the moment): next to no smell,easy to care for, easy to breed, long lived (up to 24 months), range in size from 1/8" to almost 2", give birth to live nymphs. The only real down side is they are a bit expensive if you don't setup your own colony.

Lateralis Roaches (aka. Rusty Reds, Red Racers): Cheap, don't jump vertically, easy to care for, range from (1/8" to 1").

 

[Eltortu]

So, going forward, I'm unable to get anymore crickets as feeders as I've had some issues with not getting them delivered from several different suppliers and NONE of my local fedex facilities will accept live crickets to hold for me! I have my dubia colony going good, 2 of my chams eat them with no problem, but my one little guy just wont eat them! I dropped them in his feeding cup and 3 days went by with nothing, he didn't even eat 1 (Normally, this guy would eat 15 crix and a few supers a day)! I tried letting them run around and he still wont go for them. He has eaten a few before, he just wont eat them anymore. He will eat superworms though. The second I drop them in he runs after them and snaps them up. Is it such a bad thing to feed him supers only? I know I shouldn't, but I don't want to see him not eating. I want to get him eating dubias with my others, and it just sux that I cant get any crix delivered. Thoughts...

Did you try the USPS? I get all my feeders delivered by my postman!...and they will hold my stuff at the office if needed - too hot or cold outside for the bugs to survive -...

 

[tadeusz]

Yes, I do gutload my supers with a pre-made gutload and fruits and veggies. As far as usps, that's how I have to have dubias and supers delivered to me. Fedex is what gives me the problems. I live in a gated community (country club) and the all packages have to go through our front gate attendant and because the boxes always say "Live crickets" he refuses to accept them and says its again the communities policy to bring "pests" in and he even contacted our HOA about it! So, I tried to have them held at a local fedex facility and same thing!! They said its against their policy to accept "Crickets/rodents/pests" and they were sent back to the sender. When packages come via usps, they are usually in the priority flat rate boxes and you can't tell what they are. Crickets are too expensive to buy locally too!

 

[tadeusz]

THese are my top 2 choices at the moment.

Dubia Roaches (very popular at the moment): next to no smell,easy to care for, easy to breed, long lived (up to 24 months), range in size from 1/8" to almost 2", give birth to live nymphs. The only real down side is they are a bit expensive if you don't setup your own colony.

Lateralis Roaches (aka. Rusty Reds, Red Racers): Cheap, don't jump vertically, easy to care for, range from (1/8" to 1").

Yes, I have my dubia colony going pretty good, and 2 of my 3 guys eat them fine, but my one little guy just refuses no matter what I do! The one thing he will eat is the supers. I've only tried Crickets, Dubias, Supers, Waxworms, and mealworms (once). I was considering silkworms though

 

[Psi]

Crickets are too expensive to buy locally too!

There isn't a single pet store in Phoenix that will sell you a cricket box?

 

[javsto]

Yes, I do gutload my supers with a pre-made gutload and fruits and veggies. As far as usps, that's how I have to have dubias and supers delivered to me. Fedex is what gives me the problems. I live in a gated community (country club) and the all packages have to go through our front gate attendant and because the boxes always say "Live crickets" he refuses to accept them and says its again the communities policy to bring "pests" in and he even contacted our HOA about it! So, I tried to have them held at a local fedex facility and same thing!! They said its against their policy to accept "Crickets/rodents/pests" and they were sent back to the sender. When packages come via usps, they are usually in the priority flat rate boxes and you can't tell what they are. Crickets are too expensive to buy locally too!

have you tried to get a freind or relative who doesnt live in the gated community to have them delivered to thier home and contact you when they arrive for you to pick up? A second option could be one of those rented mailbox locations, sort of like a p.o. box. Is there a facility near you for one of those?

 

[tadeusz]

I don't have any relatives that live near me. I tried having them held at a local facility, but the facility said its against there policy to accept "pests" and refused to do it.

 

[tadeusz]

There isn't a single pet store in Phoenix that will sell you a cricket box?

Not that I'm aware of... If anyone else knows, PLEASE let me know! All I know about are Petsmart and Petco's that charge $.14 each with no discount on large quantities (1000 crickets = $140+tax).

 

[Kansascity]

Not that I'm aware of... If anyone else knows, PLEASE let me know! All I know about are Petsmart and Petco's that charge $.14 each with no discount on large quantities (1000 crickets = $140+tax).

I agree that the pet store is "OFF THE CHAIN” with the amount they charge for crickets! Amongst other things. ANyhow ordering from some of the sponsors works out a heck of a lot better if you order in bulk it even better!

 

[Kansascity]

Yes, I do gutload my supers with a pre-made gutload and fruits and veggies. As far as usps, that's how I have to have dubias and supers delivered to me. Fedex is what gives me the problems. I live in a gated community (country club) and the all packages have to go through our front gate attendant and because the boxes always say "Live crickets" he refuses to accept them and says its again the communities policy to bring "pests" in and he even contacted our HOA about it! So, I tried to have them held at a local fedex facility and same thing!! They said its against their policy to accept "Crickets/rodents/pests" and they were sent back to the sender. When packages come via usps, they are usually in the priority flat rate boxes and you can't tell what they are. Crickets are too expensive to buy locally too!

Try asking your supplier to put them in an additional box that clearly doesn’t say Live crickets etc. o Rob will do it he is a site sponsor I order from him all of the time great lake hornworms I am certain I will double check thoughhttp://www.greatlakeshornworm.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=61&Itemid=68 end of issue and send him an additional email, he responds very quickly. Rob is awesome you should be a ok now.

 

[sandrachameleon]

So, going forward, I'm unable to get anymore crickets as feeders as I've had some issues with not getting them delivered from several different suppliers and NONE of my local fedex facilities will accept live crickets to hold for me! I have my dubia colony going good, 2 of my chams eat them with no problem, but my one little guy just wont eat them! I dropped them in his feeding cup and 3 days went by with nothing, he didn't even eat 1 (Normally, this guy would eat 15 crix and a few supers a day)! I tried letting them run around and he still wont go for them. He has eaten a few before, he just wont eat them anymore. He will eat superworms though. The second I drop them in he runs after them and snaps them up. Is it such a bad thing to feed him supers only? I know I shouldn't, but I don't want to see him not eating. I want to get him eating dubias with my others, and it just sux that I cant get any crix delivered. Thoughts...

I wouldnt suggest using superworms as the primary feeder. They're okay when gutloaded as part of a varied diet, but imho too fatty for main diet. Try to keep fatty larva as less than 20% of your chameleons diet.

Your chameleon may be refusing dubia in the hopes you will give in and provide yummy fatty supers. Try offering a different size of dubia. Try not giving him anything else (if it is a healthy adult) for a week or so. If the chameleon is hungry, it will eat the dubia.

But also consider other types of roaches, silkworms, terrestrial isopods, butterworms, cultured blue bottles, etc along with a few superworms and buying 5 or 10 crickets from the local pet store now and then. A varied diet is best. Lots of feeder options to choose from:
https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/sandrachameleon/74-feeders.html

Maybe you can have the crickets shipped to a friends place, or to your workplace? I often have bug orders delivered to my partners place of business, because there's always a receptionist there to sign for them (whereas Im not always home at time of delivery to sign for them) and my partner brings them home after work. I do have to send the receptionist chocolates or flowers now and then, since she thinks crickets are gross.

 

[tadeusz]

Yeah, I've been trying to weigh my options... I definitely want to get my little one eating dubias too, but I noticed some weight loss and I was concerned cause he didn't eat for 3 days. I've tried several different size roaches and free ranged them along with cup feed and he wouldn't touch them. I did cave in and buy some crickets today locally and he swarmed to them and literally ate 16 of them right away. I even tried to trick him by keeping the dubia in the cup with the crickets and he didn't snap up one roach!!

 

[tadeusz]

Try asking your supplier to put them in an additional box that clearly doesn’t say Live crickets etc. o Rob will do it he is a site sponsor I order from him all of the time great lake hornworms I am certain I will double check thoughhttp://www.greatlakeshornworm.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=61&Itemid=68 end of issue and send him an additional email, he responds very quickly. Rob is awesome you should be a ok now.

Thanks it's worth a shot, cause I prefer to mix up my feeders with dubia, crickets and supers. I'll reach out and see what he says

 

[kinyonga]

Why not breed them yourself?

 

[tadeusz]

I tried, with no success. I had adults laying eggs in sand/sphagnum mix and it was moist. I heating them around 90 degrees, and waited with no success. I waited about 14 days and then gave up

 

[kinyonga]

I've had a self-sustaining colony of crickets in my prehensile anole's cage for several years. Its a sandy substrate that I moisten at one end so that its just slightly moist. I put a dish of greens and veggies in the cage a couple of times a week since the anole is an omnivore anyway. The cage at the end I keep moist would be in the mid 80's F....and the heat is from the lights above the cage, not from under-the-cage heat. Perhaps you are keeping them too hot and need to keep part of the container drier??

BTW...I have done the same thing with superworms in my turtle/tortoise cages.

 

[AZJ0SH]

I live in Phoenix as well, I have not had any luck finding cirx in bulk. I am buying crix every otherday now, spending about $5 each time, these prices are insane.

I will let you know if I am able to find any places where I can get a discount! I paid $1.19 a dozen today from a smaller petstore!