Silkworm cleanliness?

[desultadox]

I just ordered 2 of those pods from Coastal Silkworms and I was absolutely shocked to see so much poop! I didn't think silkworms living like that could possibly be safe to feed to a chameleon and I want to breed them anyway, so I moved them into a Sterlite bin. I have that typical silkworm setup with the suspended plastic canvas (I'm gonna have to replace it with one with bigger holes though... I has no idea how huge silkworms (and their poop) get!). But it seems like these guys love being messy! They get each other all woven together in silk along with a lot of their poop. I'm afraid to even grab these guys, I kind of let them crawl on me because they seem so fragile (and yet their silk and grip/suction are so powerful!!). I tried spraying them with warm water, both as a bath and to try to release their silk poop traps, but that didn't seem to work. So I was wondering what I can do to try to separate these guys from their poop that's stuck in the same silk they are? Would it be safe to try to pull them off? I'm scared I'm gonna break them ;p

 

[Brad Ramsey]

Spraying them is a really bad idea!
Do not add humidity to the silkworm container like that or you will have all kinds of problems.
You think they're messy now? Wait till you see them all mushy and decomposing!

Just pull them apart they are really resilient. pull the poop and silk off them, rip them off of each other ... they won't break.

Make sure your hands are clean and that you never replace a silkworm that has been in a cham cage back into the silkworm container.
Regardless of how dirty they seem to you ... they are super clean and susceptible to bacterial infections.

-Brad

 

[dodolah]

I just ordered 2 of those pods from Coastal Silkworms and I was absolutely shocked to see so much poop! I didn't think silkworms living like that could possibly be safe to feed to a chameleon and I want to breed them anyway, so I moved them into a Sterlite bin. I have that typical silkworm setup with the suspended plastic canvas (I'm gonna have to replace it with one with bigger holes though... I has no idea how huge silkworms (and their poop) get!). But it seems like these guys love being messy! They get each other all woven together in silk along with a lot of their poop. I'm afraid to even grab these guys, I kind of let them crawl on me because they seem so fragile (and yet their silk and grip/suction are so powerful!!). I tried spraying them with warm water, both as a bath and to try to release their silk poop traps, but that didn't seem to work. So I was wondering what I can do to try to separate these guys from their poop that's stuck in the same silk they are? Would it be safe to try to pull them off? I'm scared I'm gonna break them ;p

you should be more afraid handling crickets with your bare hands than silkworm.
They may be messy and poop pretty much all the time; However, Silkworms are completely dependent on human to survive. They are domesticated insects. They do not have an immune system to fight bacterial and mold infections. I think it's pretty much safe to say that they are cleaner than crickets. Like Brad said, the bacterias on your hands are more likely to cause harm for them. Therefore, i suggest you clean your hands real well before handling them (or better yet wear nitrile gloves).

You can safely and gently pull them off and brush the poops. They might be squishy but they do not break apart at the slightest touch.. But, some actually do so. Those are the infected silkworms (the disease is called grasserie). You do not want them to stay in the pod or fed them to your chameleon (My chameleon told me that those silkies taste bitter to him ).

You should not wash your silkies. You will likely kill them in the process.
They breath by tiny holes along their body. Water will clog the holes and drowning them in the process. And, your chameleon will not want to eat them since they're dead.

PS: this might be an interesting fact for you to know, Silkworm Frass (poop) is commonly used as a pillow filling to cure headache or migraine. I never tried them.. but, I have a friend that swears it worked.
Hope that helps

 

[desultadox]

Well they were outside of their bin when I sprayed them, but I guess I shouldn't have anyway. They're still alive, so I guess I just have to separate them from their poo! What about their silk? It seems like they can't even control producing it, what if a chameleon eats that?

 

[jack frost]

you said "poop".....only joking I'm glad your having this discussion as I have silkies on the way. thanks

 

[lbesok]

After reading the Silkworms 101 thread, I checked out the link dodolah pointed out wormspit.com. This guy Mike suggests this method to keep them from tangling up:
http://www.wormspit.com/netting.htm
When I get the pods though, I just make sure to clean the frass and untangle them from the silk every day. The frass makes great fertilizer too!

Dodolah, so is this like an every day pillow, or a special thing full of frass you just put on your head when you have a head ache???? Could you please provide a link??

 

[dodolah]

it is an ancient Chinese medicine therapy.
So, I doubt that it is listed in website link.. but, i can definitely try to google search it somewhere.
My friend has tried it (He said that it worked). He bought the frass filled pillow from the store (he lives in China).
The pillow is then used for sleeping during the headache period.
I can ask him later and PM you how the treatment procedure, if you're interested (tell me if you want to know)- I can try to contact him about it.

I have never tried it myself. So, i do not know the therapy effectiveness personally.

 

[dodolah]

Well they were outside of their bin when I sprayed them, but I guess I shouldn't have anyway. They're still alive, so I guess I just have to separate them from their poo! What about their silk? It seems like they can't even control producing it, what if a chameleon eats that?

a little silk thread here and there won't harm your chameleon.

 

[lbesok]

it is an ancient Chinese medicine therapy.
So, I doubt that it is listed in website link.. but, i can definitely try to google search it somewhere.
My friend has tried it (He said that it worked). He bought the frass filled pillow from the store (he lives in China).
The pillow is then used for sleeping during the headache period.
I can ask him later and PM you how the treatment procedure, if you're interested (tell me if you want to know)- I can try to contact him about it.

I have never tried it myself. So, i do not know the therapy effectiveness personally.

You don't have to bother your friend. Thanks though, I just wanted to hear a little more detail about the concept. Do you think it is just frass or cotton or something to. I'm just so curious lol. It just seems like such a crazy idea.

 

[sharkey]

maybe the smell of the frass is so overwhelming that you forget about the headache....


my chams have eaten silks w/small threads still attached. it doesn't seem to bother them - and they look like a kid eating cotton candy - 'licking' up the sticky threads off of their lips. this is especially true when they eat silks that i have left in their cage b/c the silks invariably spin thread.

and, while any larvae is fragile and prone to bruising if handled too roughly, children raise silks all the time in the classroom. my own have no problem working properly w/silks as young as 2 wks old.

 

[Brad Ramsey]

I'm telling you I am pretty rough with them. These worms are not fragile.
But, again, they must be kept clean.

-Brad

 

[desultadox]

OK I went back to them today and you're totally right, once I got brave and yanked them off their silk and stuff, it made working with them a lot easier! They're pretty rugged. Now I can clean their bin in like 1/3 the time! Thanks a lot ppl~