Baby Beardie Feeding

[rattazzios]

I have been feeding my baby beardie crickets 2-3 times a day. she eats about 10 per sitting which may not seem great but i have only had her for 6 days. The problem is, i personally do not like crickets!! i was wondering if there was any other insects i could use as a substitute for crickets? i have mealworms but ive heard these are bad for babies. is this true? any suggestions??????

 

[TheWerewolf]

Yes, mealworms are horrible. But dubia roaches are great! They are easy to breed, don't smell, don't jump or climb, don't make noise, very high in protein for those growing dragons and the nymphs can be really tiny. Once you get over the fact that they are roaches. But they are illegal in certain places so check your state or country laws. Now, if dubia are a no, there are other alternatives. Silkworms are one, but they do grow super fast. Hornworms are good, but they also grow fast and are a bit high in fat. Phoenix worms are great, high in calcium and small. Perfect for a staple. Butter worms are another good food, high in calcium and low in fat, but still are pretty pricey. These worms are all soft bodied, so there is no impaction threat that is with mealworms. And once your dragon gets bigger than 16 inches long it can have Superworms.
Well, I think that is all. Others will jump in if I have missed stuff. Hope this helps and good luck on your little guy!

 

[rattazzios]

do common petstores such as petsmart or petco sell pheonix worms? mom doesnt want any roaches in the house

 

[TheWerewolf]

No, not that I know of. You have to order them from the phoenix worm website. And you can always convince your mom to get roaches. Just tell her that they aren't like your household roach. And if they do get out, depending on where you live, they probably won't breed and die. They need humidity and heat to breed. And really, dubia are great. I started a colony for Nim and they are awesome! He loves them like crazy too. I am yet to try phoenix worms, so I can only say stuff I have read about them. Here is the phoenix worm site if you want to check it out.
http://www.phoenixworm.com/servlet/StoreFront

 

[rattazzios]

okay thanks for the help. i am going to try the pheonix worms and leave the roaches as a last result (no offense). I really appreciate your help

 

[rattazzios]

Also, anyone know what size pheonix worm is good for a baby beardie?

 

[caitlinmartha]

My local mom & pop pet store sells Phoenix Worms, so if you have anything like that near you, I'd check there. My baby Rankins is on small PWs, but he is maybe 5" long. When my bearded was a little baby, she handled mediums fine. Depends on exactly how big your baby is, but then again since PWs are soft-bodied there's a bit more wiggle room for size.

 

[rattazzios]

Okay, THanks guys. Ordered 400+ medium worms this morning from their website to try them out

 

[sweetpea1981]

I order from there and next time you might want to order larges, the larges will not be too big for your baby, phoenix worms are pretty small, even the large phoenix worms are smaller than a small cricket.

 

[rattazzios]

alright, i will see how Boise likes them before i buy more