Separate Feeding Tank

Status
Not open for further replies.

DaChief

Member
Hello everyone

Just wondering if many people here feed/fed their dragons in a separate tank or enclosure to make it easier. My beardie is about 3 months old and I think he should be eating much more than he is. I put crickets/hoppers/whatever in his Viv and he doesn't bother to chase. I'm also thinking it might be my presence.

My thinking is get him a small glass enclosure, put him in followed by lunch and leave him in a room for 10-15mins. That way also I can take him out and the crickets or whatever won't be annoying him after. A lot of people say only leave food in for 10-15mins, but that can be difficult when crickets are small and fast = difficult to catch. So good idea to get a separate feeding tank???
 

kimmie

Sub-Adult Member
YUP! That's what I do. It was just too much of a PITA to chase crickets mine didn't want to eat. Right now he gets put into the 10gal tank I orginally got for his viv. I'm looking to change that to a larger rubbermaid tote as he's getting larger. Works well, what he doesn't eat, toss back into the cricket bin! Plus you can sort of gauge how many they eat as well!
 

Momto3boys

Sub-Adult Member
Same here, I've fed in a seperate feeding enclosure from day 1.

Except his veggies of course I leave them in his enclosure.
 

Sapphire

Sub-Adult Member
Same. I feed him in a separate 30-gal rubbermaid bin, any crickets he doesn't eat just get dumped back into their own 30-gal bin. I don't plan on ever feeding him in his own viv.
 

jeschardies

Hatchling Member
Same as Saphire, rubbermaid tote, beardie, enter feeder what doesn't get eaten is simply dumped back into the feeder bin.
 

squirell

Hatchling Member
Mine absolutely refused to eat in a seperate container. I would put him in with circkets and he would just glare at me like what the hell do you think your doing? But as soon as I put him back in his viv with some crickets he would go nuts after them.
 

pamelacoe

Hatchling Member
Ditto on the hungry strike if it's separate container. I guess ours don't like to go out to eat, they're homebodies! I remove the tank furniture so the crix can't hide and he happily eats his fill in his own home. Who cares about catching the remainders? That's my son's job! :lol: :lol:
 

squirell

Hatchling Member
Haha yea definately. My only issue is them getting under the carpet. I usually just leave them in until after his final meal. I think he enjoys running across the tank to get one thats been hiding for awhile or when one crawls by his face basking he snatches him up really quick.
 

Trogdorpheus

Juvie Member
I feed my girl in her tank, but then again I'm feeding roaches that get such an aggressive response they're practically eaten before they fall in. I was about to drop one in once... and she literally jumped a foot in the air and took it from my fingers...

Not to mention there's a much smaller quantity and they're larger and slower thus easier to capture anything uneaten.
 

pamelacoe

Hatchling Member
Yeah, we have had a couple try to make the great escape under carpet, but my son usually gets them. A couple times he kinda maimed the cricket and Oz wouldn't touch it - had to put it out of its misery and land in the trash. :?

My little guy isn't old enough for roaches yet. If we start with those, they are going to be all my son's responsibility....YUCK (shivers at the thought).
 

squirell

Hatchling Member
I would be feeding roaches but GF absoultely refuses to let me get them. I have even let her read some threads on ehre for pros and cons. NO GO! haha
 

Trogdorpheus

Juvie Member
pamelacoe":1erc3o96 said:
Yeah, we have had a couple try to make the great escape under carpet, but my son usually gets them. A couple times he kinda maimed the cricket and Oz wouldn't touch it - had to put it out of its misery and land in the trash. :?

My little guy isn't old enough for roaches yet. If we start with those, they are going to be all my son's responsibility....YUCK (shivers at the thought).

There's no age requirement for them. If he's young, then he gets fed smaller nymphs, that's all. Roaches > crickets no matter how old your beardie is.
 

squirell

Hatchling Member
As i've read on here as well is that roaches are actually better because of the meat to chitin ratio as opposed to crickets. So it takes less raoches to fill your beardie up then crickets. It's just the thought of a roach that freaks everyone out.
 

Trogdorpheus

Juvie Member
squirell":iua3y08l said:
As i've read on here as well is that roaches are actually better because of the meat to chitin ratio as opposed to crickets. So it takes less raoches to fill your beardie up then crickets. It's just the thought of a roach that freaks everyone out.

Absolutely about the chitin/meat thing. The less roaches to fill the beardie is because generally they're much larger. For example, lets say that 3 adult roaches = 15 large crix or something... I have no idea if that's even close but let's just roll with it, the 3 roaches will have much less worthless weight to it. It's like comparing and orange and a peach. The orange has a much thicker "shell" and so its tougher to digest, than that of a peach. So pound for pound, you get more good stuff from the peach.
 

Denise Bushnell (RIP)

Juvie Member
Retired Moderator
squirell":2izmcjib said:
Mine absolutely refused to eat in a seperate container. I would put him in with crickets and he would just glare at me like what the hell do you think your doing? But as soon as I put him back in his viv with some crickets he would go nuts after them.

If your beardies refuse to eat unless they're in their own tanks, and you're tired of removing all their "cage furniture", and chasing down the crickets that are left over once their little tummies are full, here's a suggestion that worked for me, with my three.

Go to one of your local Pet Stores, and pick up one of those clear plastic "Kritter Keepers" with the neon colored lids that have air vents in the top, in an appropriate size for your beardie. Put the crickets, (or any type of live feeder, for that matter) into the Kritter Keeper, and then put the Kritter Keeper, minus the lid, into your beardie's tank, and put your beardie into the Kritter Keeper too.

Many beardies will refuse to eat if they are in unfamiliar surroundings, and fishing the leftover live crickets out of their actual living space is time consuming, and a real pain! By doing this, your beardie is in familiar surroundings, so he should be relaxed enough to eat, and it will be much easier for him to catch his feeders as well, since they're in a confined space. Once they've finished eating, move your beardie back into his tank, take out the Kritter Keeper, and dump the leftover crickets back in their bin where they belong.......no aggravation required! LOL

Also the Kritter Keeper can double as a beardie bathtub as well, so you get more for your dollar. You can sit the Kritter Keeper anywhere you happen to be, to bathe them, and, if you have other pets, and have to leave the room for a minute or two, just pop on the lid temporarily to keep them safe until you come back. Most beardies, even the adults, can't jump out of a Kritter Keeper, since its not much longer than they are, and they can't get a running start, because its a confined area. Also,the bottom is a bit slippery, so they get no traction to jump.

However, one word of CAUTION: NEVER BATHE YOUR BEARDIE IN A KRITTER KEEPER AND KEEP THE LID ON IT THE ENTIRE TIME, ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE BATHING THEM IN WARM WATER! Humidity will build up inside the container very quickly, and inhaling it for any length of time may put them at risk for developing an Upper Respiratory infection!

Just a couple of tips from what I've learned the hard way, through trial and error, through the years...........hope they help!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Members online

No members online now.

Still Needs Help

Latest resources

Latest posts

Latest profile posts

I miss you so much, Amaris 💔
What is a quick way to warm up a cold beardie? His heating element went out overnight and now he's very cold.
Pearl Girl wrote on moorelori1966's profile.
i feel so sad reading your about me 😢
Clapton is acclimating okay I think. He's quick as lightning so I'm not sure how much I should bring him out of his house yet. He's not at all interested in his salad though. I wonder if I should change what I'm giving him. Least he's eating his crickets.

Things to do:
Buy calcium powder
Material to raise surface for basking spot
Scenery decals for back of tank

Forum statistics

Threads
155,897
Messages
1,255,656
Members
75,965
Latest member
williamyoung
Top Bottom