i have one beardie (female)that seems to be having a hard time catching her crickets and shes growing much slower than my male beardie, im trying to stun the crickets and it seems to help her cattch them easier, shes just too lazy to chase em like the male does, could something be wrong with him. temps kept at 100 degrees fght. sometimes higher.
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not catching crickets well
mitzi56
Dec 06, 2006 07:01 AM
Replies (2)
PHLdyPayne
Dec 06, 2006 07:38 PM
One way to help dragons who don't seem to do well chasing crickets, is put the crickets into a bowl. The straight sized ceramic bowls (about 1.5 or 2" high sides, and 3-4" diameter found at dollar stores) work great for this. The crickets, especially smaller crickets have a hard time getting out (eventually they will jump high enough to clear the sides) and dragons can easily get into the bowl to chow down. Placing the bowl near a raised part of the basking area so the lip of the bowl is nearly level, will also make it easier for your dragon to reach in and eat crickets.
Switching to other feeder insects such as silkworms, butterworms, phoenix worms (these are new and so far seem to be a great feeder. Only real drawback with them is they do not get very big, maybe three quarters of an inch. However they have high levels of calcium, soft bodies, pretty lively and great for baby dragons and other small lizards (or just babies). Phoenix worms are black soldier fly larvae which are considered non pests as these flies or their larva do not harm agricultural crops etc. Many species of roaches can be used as feeders for dragons, especially the young of the bigger species of roaches (hissing roach, lobster, orange head and others) which don't move as quickly as the adults.
Mealworms and superworms should not be fed to dragons under 14" long. However out of the two, superworms are better for older dragons. That said, both do make good 'treats' to give some variety.
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PHLdyPayne
mitzi56
Dec 19, 2006 06:33 AM
ty i have tried the phoenix worms, now she is shedding which is probably what might be making her lose interest again, and i had her eating for a little while when i let her loose on the floor and just trhrough stunned crickets at her or removed their legs, but shes just being difficult, i will try the cup and try to find more bugs, roaches i cant handle im terrified of them. lol i will try silk worms next i guess
