crickets and the beardie's well being

[gwookkim]

so i feed my bearded dragon and there are some crickets left... should i take them out no matter what? or is it ok to leave them in there.
will it be ok if i leave something in the tank for the crickets to eat? then will they leave my beardie alone?
so far i've been taking all the uneaten crickets out, but i need a little advice on what is the best thing to do.
has anyone ever had a cricket chew on their beardie?

 

[beardiboy07]

hey as far as i know as long as its not black crickets you should be fine but if they are i would take them out, it is always beneficial to take them out for the stress of your beardi cheers owen

 

[gulfbrzdawn]

Just to be on the safe side.... it is always recommended to take any left over crickets out of the viv. No need to put your little guy at risk of being bitten by one of the little buggers.
To avoid having to deal with the cricket problem you could try feeding your beardie in a separate enclosure(such as a rubbermaid container). This way whatever beardie doesn't eat can be dumped right back into your cricket keeper. No more having to chase them around the beardies viv.

 

[prowler996]

Crickets are worthless. Honestly.

I started raising my own roaches and never looked back.


I have a nice plastic container made for cricket keeping. I bought two dozen crickets just the other day for variety. I put cricket food meal in there and water absorbent gel solution for them... then two days later... I went to feed my dragons the crickets out of the container.

Well about 7-8 of the crickets were already dead. Crickets are so easily killed off, such weak little creatures. The roaches I use are amazing and the dragons truly thrive and love them also. I have gotten away from crickets and never looked back.


What will the crickets eat when you leave them in the enclosure with your dragon? Unless you leave out food for them... they will attempt to eat your dragon. Ive heard of a breeder who had crickets eat the stomach of a baby dragon open. I would not leave them with your dragon!

 

[gwookkim]

wow thanks for the advice....
ummm... where can you get roaches? cuz at the pet store i work at, we dont sell roaches.

 

[prowler996]

In the for sale section of this forum there are people who sell roaches. Dubia and lobster roaches. You will need the following to start a roach colony:

Roaches about 50-60 try to get some large or adult size if possible mixed in

a ten gallon tank with lid

vaseline

an undertank heat flat pad type

some egg crates

and that is basically all you would need





I could not imagine keeping dragons and not having a steady supply of roaches at hand to feed them. My dragons devour the roaches. They eat organinc dog food fruits and vegetables. They dont stink like crickets do. And if they get loose in the house, which very rarely ever happens. I find them curled up dried on the floor. They dont get out because you use the vaseline to put around the perimeter of the inside of the tank and they wont cross it. They are not adapted enough to live long without food and they are nothing like palmetto bugs.


Start a colony its well worth it. Could even house them in a smaller 5 gallon aquarium. Not sure how many dragons you have but believe me its so worth the little time invested to get them started and have your own colony. Its so easy to do truly.







Crickets get expensive too. What a nickle or ten cents apiece??? That's such a huge rip off.

 

[gwookkim]

well, my beardie's been used to eating crickets... do you think he'll switch straight over to dubias? or do you think i should mix it and get him used to roaches? my beardie is still under relocation stress i think. he's not eating much. like 5 crickets every other day...
sigh... i hope he starts eating like crazy soon.

 

[prowler996]

As soon as they see the movement they instinctually go for them. Are you dusting with d3 calcium? Crickets are so worthless. I would not steer you wrong. If you only have one beardie it may not be too worth you starting up your own colony. Buts so easy and I would argue they are much more nutritious than crickets. My roaches devour everything I put in for them to eat. The crickets are finiky and barely eat anything.

I would try offering superworms mealworms and greens also to your dragon. It may not really like the crickets too much. And depending on your temps etc it may take a day or two for it to digest before it starts to become hungry again. Some dragons that are not from high end bloodlines and that are not the top pics of the litter do not grow and eat as ravenously as others.

Essentially you get what you pay for and have to really look hard to find a stellar dragon.

 

[gwookkim]

i do dust my crickets, but the bottle says without d3. i thought they get that vitamin through the uvb bulb?
am i not supplementing my beardie correctly?

 

[Emegaz]

I got Dubia Roaches from Jason roachguy.com. He answers all your e-mails and supplied me with everyting I need. The startup cost is a bit high but once your colony is up for a few months then it pays for itself within 2 months. Their on its all free feeders. I gave 1 to Godzilla and in 2 seconds he ate it. He even gave me the "look". I can't wait till I don't have to pay for crickets. BTW dubia roaches have alot more nutrition then a cricket.

 

[prowler996]

See this site:



http://www.bio.miami.edu/ktosney/file/BDcare.html#Anchor-Supplements-35326



Supplements

Dragons must have two things for proper bone growth: calcium and full-spectrum UVB lights (below). If calcium or vitamin D3 are deficient, the dragons get metabolic bone disease, which is deforming and ultimately fatal. Most diets and care regimens today focus on maximizing calcium and vitamin D3 levels. To synthesize vitamin D3 your dragons need light at the right wavelengths; unless you can offer light typical of the desert, both in intensity and spectral quality, you must supplement the diet with calcium, and probably with D3 as well. Rep-Cal powder is a commonly used commercial formula that contains calcium and vitamin D3 but no phosphorus; added phosphorus can depress calcium metabolism, particularly since the insects already supply high phosphorus. ("Tums" are mainly calcium carbonate and can be ground up as an emergency substitute.) Sprinkle a pinch of powder on the veggies. Dump your crickets in a plastic bag, add a pinch of powder and "shake and bake" before offering them to your dragons.

Use multi-vitamin supplements (such as Herptivite) very sparingly, no more often than once every two weeks (I do so once a month). Some brands of these supplements are excessively high in vitamin A which can cause multiple health problems; they can, for instance fatally depress calcium levels.

 

[Radioflyr]

Extremely off topic I apologize but while reading this thread I could not help to notice that beautiful dragon in your sig prowler. What type of dragon is that?

-Steve

 

[prowler996]

I PM ed you about her Steve.

Prowler