Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok its been about 20 days since my leo had his last waxworm, and since i've left 3 crickets and a tub of meal worms in there. so far the crickets have just sat there and got bigger, i even saw them cannabalise a mealworm lol. i've kept fresh veg in there aswell to try and keep the crickets around the same area, but still hasnt eaten any. my brother got his baby bearded dragon today aswell, looks so damn kool, i took a pic or two but i'll post them later. my little guys feaces are looking pretty healthy for him not eating, a little mis-shapen but not withered. but yeah, i was wondering if leo's can survive on maggots, you know the ones used for fishing. my aunt owns a tackle and hunting shop so maggots would be easy to get hold of, and in bulk aswell. my bro said there pretty much just protein, but i dont really want to try it without knowing not to before if you get me. i mean there standard blue bottle maggots, i can even get them in different colours and they look pretty much like baby waxworms, so to me seems like an idea that might work, although i dont want to fill him full of parasites. some insight on the maggots would be nice thanks. also, i was wondering about the size of crickets he should be eating. a book i read said they should be no longer than the length of his head, aswell as takign into consideration the whole size of the cricket, and others say the size between his eyes or half the length of his head. i mean no longer than the length of his head seems good to me, although i never feed him ones that big, but insight onto that aswell would be good

jamster it takes time ,...

you need to keep mushing the crickets up and let the gecko lick them of his nose untill he looks interested in the crickets or mealies when they move around ( like everyone has said
and you need to take out the crickets too or they will bite your gecko ( and the crickets need to be gut loaded
and not only gut load those crickets but dust them with pure calcuim too

maggots i would say NO .. thats kinda gross ? in my opinion

thats all i have to say ..

( i have a few beared dragons too

I would also say no to maggots. But, you may want to try butterworms. They look and feel similar to waxworms but have way less fat and more protein. They also have a light citrus smell to them. My girl wont eat them but some leos like them. You might be able to find them at a pet store near you or a fishing bait shop. If not you could ask the pet stores where to find them or go to the website below:
mulberryfarms.com

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1.1 Western Painted Turtle (Mougly, Scooter)
0.1 Albino Leopard Gecko (Daphne)

thanks for the insight, i took the crickets out after i posted my last one actually, they seemed to be getting quite big so are better dead. maggots dont really bother me, i know there squirmy, but i used to fish when i was young so im accustomed to them. mulberry farms is USA based isnt it? might have a hard time shipping to the UK lol. my brother suggested leaving waxworms/crickets to die and go dry, crush them into dust and dust the mealworms/crickets with it, reckon this'll work? gonna smoosh up some more crix now, havent handled him in a few days, but i think he's eating a little, mealworms are finding there ways out of the tub, and its too tall and smooth for them to crawl out so maybe he is eating. i'll keep you all updated.

ok i couldnt really be bother to smush the crickets into a paste so (this next bits a bit grusome for you squimish people) i grabbed a cricket, pulled all its legs off so it couldnt run/jump away and just crushed its body so all its insides were coming out. then i held it by one of its antenna's, dangled it in front of my leo and he ate it straight away! god im so happy, they still arent intersting him but more of this and we'll be back to normal ^^ thanks to everyone for all the advice and help that you gave me, it really is greatly appreciated! ^^

One of the BIGGESt and over looked reason for you leo stop eating is your temperatures. Among some of the other raeson like parasited etc. I would start with making sure your temps are correct and then look at the rest of your set up for stress factors, hides, temps, crickets wondering around the tank feeding on your leos toes and tail etc.

M
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Mike & Wendy

1.0.0 Siberian Husky
0.0.1 RTB
0.0.1 Ball Python
1.1.0 Leopard Gecko
1.0.0 Beardie
3.1.0 Future Herper's

I agree, I didnt read over every word so far but can you post pics?
As much as I dont like feeding crickets to my reptiles that offten, they can stir up activity and get them stimulated enough to want to hunt again in a situation like yours. If it has lost any weight cause of this I would then get her started on some faty foods, not to much most can be addictive but some waxies and a few mealies. But for your case I would keep the crickets for a bit just make sure they are properly fed and dont leave them in the cage.

I am concerned about parasites alot, most people dont understand them but they will slowly stop the leo from eating do to stress. Another indicater is when a Leo slows down its eating habits and its tail does not get bigger "but" the Leo still eats. The parasite is just feeding off of what ever is getting or going to be stored in the tail.