Horn worm staple protein?

[amyemiline]

I have been getting mixed answered about this.

My dragon hasn't touched crickets in over 2 months only wants worms.

Horn worms butter worms and sometimes Phoenix worms.

I have been trying to get my hands on some silk worms but i am not having any luck with most places being sold Out and the few that did have some say the are too fragile to ship to me being this far away from them.

So are horn worms bad to be giving him everyday? He will usually only eat one or 2 a day. I've had a few breeders tell me it's fine but then my vet and hornwormsupplier told me only as a treat.

Still not big into his salads.

Also he is 9 months now.

 

[Redleg]

I have had good luck raising Beardies with hornworms ("Goliaths") as their staple. Sprinkle calcium and vitamins on the worms.

I know what you mean about silkworms. You just can't find the darned things.

Beardies seem to get tired of crickets and after a point they refuse to eat them. A GREAT feeder are the "Dubia" roaches. The word "roach" is creepy, I know, but actually these are easier, cleaner, and more nutritious feeders than crickets. They are hardier and don't die quickly like crickets, and they seem to be cleaner.

My Ragnar will eat Dubias with relish but usually will not touch crickets. So his protein staples are Dubias and Hornworms, and he is doing great.

 

[Ed707]

My girl is going through pretty much the same thing with her dubia. I account it more for them being at that juvenile/sub-adult age where there going through the human equivalent of puberty. Be resilient, they won't starve themselves. While it's not a good idea to not feed them, it's also not a good idea to only feed them unhealthy bugs like supers, waxworms, butterworms and hornworms. What I noticed is even if you feed those things sparingly, and I think it's because there at that age, they'll hold out from eating the more healthier bugs, waiting for more of the nice fatty juicy bugs they crave. I went back to feeding phoenix worms and she still has a liking for those so she'll get some of those, and her dubia which she'll eat, just not as much as when she was younger. There smarter then you think and if you cave in and only feed what they want as opposed to what they should have you might be starting a bad cycle. Look at it as the pre-teen son/daughter complaining they don't like there dinner lol, my response to that is "then go to your room with no dinner!" Lol

 

[amyemiline]

Ok. Thank you both for the input

Unfortunately I am in Canada and Dubias are illegal here I wish they weren't because then I could try those with him

I'm glad to hear one of you had success with the horn worms tho. Like I said I seem to always get mixed answers, but I have noticed that with a lot of things regarding beardies lol.

And I know what you mean, they are so smart and stubborn, he has me trained I swear lol. Knows I love him so much he always wins the food strike because usually by day 4 with no food I cave and give him worms because I feel like I need to get some calcium and vitamins into him so I will dust him horn worms.

I have been good with the butter worms tho, i haven't given him any of those in a couple months. It's mostly just been the hornworms. So I guess I will just keep doing what I'm doing and rotate between horn worms and Phoenix worms and just salads on the days in between and hope he does eventually get his appetite for crickets back.


Thank you both for the help and responses. It is greatly appreciated.

 

[Ed707]

If everything in your enclosure is right, right temps, good uvb exposure, and you've takin him to a vet for a check up and rule out parasites, then giving a little tough love to a healthy bearded dragon isn't a bad thing. They can go quite awhile without food especially if they have alot of fat stores. Someone told me they had one once that went on a 3 week hunger strike when they were trying to convert there beardie over to greens because it was at that age when they needed to switch. Eventually they came around and ate the greens. If yours is in good health don't worry so much and be a vigilant parent lol

 

[amyemiline]

Yeah he went to the vet in March for a check up and was treated for parasites. And his temps are 80 f cool side and 97-106 f on the warm side. I mean his appetite is there, it's just selective.

Vet said he was healthy otherwise.

Also I ordered a solar meter 6.5 last week that fed ex should be dropping off today so I will be able to make sure all the UVB is correct in his viv.

And yeah I know I really have to stick to this tough love thing, my boyfriend keeps telling me the same thing. It can be so difficult sometimes because he's my baby so I'm such a softy with him, but I am going to stick to my guns this time! Lol

 

[Ed707]

I don't know if you've seen this post

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=224584

I'd try to return the 6.5 if it hasn't shipped yet. If it's already on the way then I'd check the serial # and reference it the serial # posted on the website. If your in Canada it might be a little different for you since I'm in California but I spoke with them today and they told me they won't be getting a new batch that doesn't have the problems of the old batch for another 6 weeks.

You could also get a solarmeter 6.2, I have both but when it comes to getting accurate reading of uvb the 6.2 imo is a little better as that's all it reads, compared to the 6.5 where uva also plays a role. There both handy for there own reasons but when your strictly worried about uvb the 6.2 imo is better. It's also a little cheaper lol

 

[amyemiline]

Ugh are you serious!

I have waited so long for this thing to finally be on its way and now it might it work properly.

I spoke to the company on the phone when I ordered it and they didn't mention any issues? How will I known if have a deffective one.

Also I ordered the 6.5 because Tracie one of the moderators on here told me that it would be good for what I needed it for.

So I thought it was good for monitoring the uvb?

 

[Ed707]

It is good for monitoring uvb and Tracie is right but what it does is monitor UVI which is uva and uvb together. Recommended reading I believe are anywhere from 3.5-5 so if you see a drop off after awhile you'd know you'd need to change one of your uvb bulbs because the uva from a regular heat bulb won't decrease over time, they'd just go out. A 6.2 only reads uvb and I believe a nice high but unharmful reading from a 6.2 is anywhere from 160-200. Like I said they both come in handy because uva is a needed aspect and the 6.5 gives you a overall reading of all uv light.

If you bought it from a 3rd party distributor then they might not know about the problems yet or like all businesses want to make a sale.

 

[amyemiline]

oh ok so it will still do what I need it to do then.

My main reason for buying it was too make sure he wasnt getting too much UVB, but he hasnt shown any signs of such yet, like closing his eyes and trying to hide, he sits right under both of his lamps for the majority of the day.

Also this is the place I ordered my solar meter from https://www.solarmeter.com/

do you know if they are a third part distributor?

 

[Ed707]

Yea that the original distributer, you might have ordered it before they found out about the problems. They will send you a new one when they get a good batch in, but like I said they told me 6 weeks so it might be awhile before you get it. I'd call them up and let them know you want a new one if yours is one of the faulty ones.

 

[Ed707]

Unless you have a high quality mercury vapor bulb I doubt he's getting to much uvb especially if you keep it at the recommended distance.

 

[amyemiline]

Ok well as soon as it gets here today I will check the serial number.

I really hope it's ok because it took them so long to even ship the thing out after I orderd it, was a week and a bit after I had placed the order before they even processed it and sent it.

Would suck to have to wait longer but I guess the wait is better than a faulty device.


Thanks for letting me know.

 

[Ed707]

Yea sorry to break the bad news to you but like you said better to get the right stuff then be left in the dark. You can call them up and they'll have your serial # and tell you if you got a bad one.

 

[amyemiline]

ok calling right now, thanks again.