We're having our first Hunger Strike. Tips?

[Ceycham]

My voracious eater Norman (8mo old Veiled) has added a cricket strike to his list of new and frustrating teenage behaviors. I think it's a hornworm issue, as I've just recently begun adding those to his diet, and they grow large so fast. Who has room for crickets after a large hornworm? It figures I just increased our shipment of crickets from 250 to 500, and the dozen or so I added a few days ago just hang out brazenly at the top of his screen now, singing away. No longer covered in calcium either. I suspect he will eat a hornworm if I offer it (I've not offered anything in 2 1/2 days because those crickets are still in there) but then he won't get a varied diet.

Right now I only have on hand crickets, hornworms, BBF larvae and BSF larvae, and perhaps the two giant hornworms front the first batch that I sent to pupate in his plant dirt will arrive as moths any day now. And of course the hornworms are growing exponentially every day....

 

[NickTide]

Personally, I would feed off the horn worms but would not order them tor a while. You might want to take a break from crickets for a few weeks. They tend to get bored with certain items.

 

[GregJD]

I have had the same problem, lately with my year-old veiled. I thought he was eating them slowly, but then I found about 20 dead crickets in a back corner under some decorations. I ordered hornworms so he would eat. I read you don't want their appetite to totally disappear. I got the impressions that their stomachs shrink like ours, or something along those lines. I've been feeding him the biggest hornworm in the bucket.

I'd like to attach a question to this for anyone else that reads this: Is it the winter? None of my lizards are eating like they usually do. My guess was the season. Of course we keep their lamps on like all year round, but that doesn't mean they can't tell the difference when those are off. Am I right? wrong? heretical?

 

[DarinD]

Dubias always work for me when my chams don’t seem to want anything else.

 

[Mai]

Well I’m having the same problem just backwards, I ordered hornworms and I fed him one everyday for 3 days on day 4 the same one walked around his whole enclosure twice he won’t touch it. Now I have loads of huge hornworms that he won’t touch. I really wanted to stay away from crickets if I could just because the ones left in the cage start eating the two fake branches that I have in there and I don’t want them to start biting my Cham. But I guess just like with humans if your given chocolate cake everyday you will get tired of it too not me tho js

 

[Ceycham]

Norman ate the hornworm today. No crickets. Its good to be a cricket in my house right now!

 

[CJ's Exotics]

Well I’m having the same problem just backwards, I ordered hornworms and I fed him one everyday for 3 days on day 4 the same one walked around his whole enclosure twice he won’t touch it. Now I have loads of huge hornworms that he won’t touch. I really wanted to stay away from crickets if I could just because the ones left in the cage start eating the two fake branches that I have in there and I don’t want them to start biting my Cham. But I guess just like with humans if your given chocolate cake everyday you will get tired of it too not me tho js

Maybe you can breed hornworms!