Worm Questions

[Sodbuster]

So I was talkin to a friend of mine that has a bunch of fish and he was tellin me that he had been feeding them millworms (I'm not sure the kind of fish or if he just made this whole thing up). Anyway he went on to tell me that he must have fed one of his fish one that was to big because it ate the fish out from the inside and I was just curious if anyone else had ever heard of this in fish or reptiles and I really dont want anything to happen to Ferguson. Thanks Everyone!

 

[summoner12]

There are stories but no one can confirm... i think he was feeding mealworms... they aren't good feeders for chams. you can use superworms, silkworms or hornworms with no issue.

 

[Sodbuster]

Which ones are the healthiest and what are your techniques in gut loading worms?

 

[fluxlizard]

The "unconfirmed stories" are complete nonsense.

Mealworms can't survive more than a few seconds in a drop of water, let alone stomach acid.

Mealworms are not bad- they are good as one part of a varied diet. They gutload calcium significantly better than crickets (see ferguson http://www.amazon.com/Panther-Chameleon-Variation-Conservation-Management/dp/1575241943/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1265816982&sr=8-1) and probably better than some other feeders . They aren't an item you probably want to use as the primary item in a chameleon diet. Roaches or crickets or locusts are probably best. Worms of any kind should probably be more for healthy variety.

Here are a bunch of charts from various sources:

http://chamownersweb.net/insects/nutritional_values.htm

Note that nutritional content and value depends on how the insect is being fed, and so there is some variation for the same worm in the different charts, depending on who did the analysis and what they were feeding the insect.

Notice that mealworms and superworms are very similar to each other nutritionally. Superworms tend to have a little higher fat content (not necessarily a bad thing- fat is necessary for health too and you have to look at the whole diet and supplementation method together, not a single item like everyone always seems tempted to do when deciding what to feed their lizards- it's more complex than most of us probably think, and then you add the complexity of different possible gutloads it becomes even more complex. Offering a good staple like roaches, crickets, or locusts (if you can get them, we can't in the US) and then adding a variety of other items to that staple diet is probably the best route to take.

 

[draetish]

I always gut load my super worms with dandelions, carrots and oranges. They are all over that stuff, wolfing it down. Be careful when you pick them up, they either pee on you or maybe it's that you squeeze them to hard, but you get wet stuff on you.

 

[bugboy]

Be careful when you pick them up, they either pee on you or maybe it's that you squeeze them to hard, but you get wet stuff on you.

they puke.

 

[draetish]

they puke.

No way, for real? Have you noticed they have two heads or so it seems. I watch them crawl around in my hand and if the head part can't go any further then the other end starts crawling.

 

[Sodbuster]

Wow I had no idea there was so much to feeding worms all I've ever gave ferg are crickets and some veggies since he's a veiled

 

[draetish]

Wow I had no idea there was so much to feeding worms all I've ever gave ferg are crickets and some veggies since he's a veiled

Variety of feeders is great for the cham and to keep them from going on hunger strikes from being bored with their food. It's fun to learn about different bugs and how to keep them, etc. You should order some different feeders as treats and see how your cham perks up. Hopefully you are feeding your crickets, collard, turnip or dandelion greens, yams, carrotts, oranges, etc. A healthy feeder is one of the most important parts of your overall husbandry for a healthy cham.

 

[fluxlizard]

all I've ever gave ferg are crickets and some veggies since he's a veiled

One of the nice things about veileds is you can gutload the lizard directly and provide a lot of variety through veggies.

They should have a variety of insects too though...

 

[Sodbuster]

I've actually been gut loading my crickets with the flucker farms gut load is that bad or is it just better to use fresh fruits and vegitables

 

[draetish]

I've actually been gut loading my crickets with the flucker farms gut load is that bad or is it just better to use fresh fruits and vegitables

Most all members use fresh veggies and fruit. Collard, turnip, and dandelions have the most calcium less phosphorus. Oranges have a lot of calcium and is a good hydrater for your feeders. Your cham is eating the cricket, so the better the cricket eats the better for your cham.

 

[Chameleon Loco]

I used fluker farms gutload when i first started herping it seemed to work fine but as I started to get more reptiles it became more cost effective to use greens and fruits

 

[Sodbuster]

thanks for all the advise everyone i appriciate it