Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hello i just odered some silkies, crix, waxies, mealies, and i decided to try hornworms. My chamel loves em and so does my beardie and i wanted to know if they were ok!! and BTW an update--my beardie started eating crix again! and also since my beardie doesnt like his salad very much i decided to feed that to him everyday but ALSO feed it to the CRIX so they get it and so he gets the nutrition in the end anyway. so yay!

David

Did you buy all of your insects from the same supplier? If so, where? I usually order from reptilefood.com, but they aren't having silkies until spring and they don't have hornworms.
Just wondering.

Thank you...Thank you...Thank you

Carrie

I would guess you bought your silks and horns from Mulberry Farms... if so, good purchase. As long as the Hornworms do NOT eat tobacco leaves, they will not be toxic. It is my understanding that Mulberry feeds their Tobacco worms with Silkworm chow, to avoid that very thing. They are extremely good for your animals, packed with more meat, vitamins, and all around good stuff than any other feeder insect. They are also very easy to breed, but I don't know if you want Tobacco Moths with 6-8 inch wingspans flying around your house... =)

But, once you buy a batch, like I said they will breed regularly if kept at the proper temperatures. They also don't stink, don't bite, and they are actually kinda cute. =)

Bah!!!...

mulberry farms for the silks and horns and southern cricket for the others

btw phoenixzorn----hornworms DO bit and i recommend fingernail-clipping their jaws off if they are too big- trhey get huge@!

hrmmm... what I remember from disecting them in Biology last year is that they do have fairly large jaws, but they are designed for eating tobacco plants, not biting, although they are useful weapons. They do get incredibly large, the ones we had in Lab were about 3-4 inches long. I suppose it can't hurt to clip the jaws however, if only for your dragon's safety... but in my own experience... most things that go in a dragon's mouth get crushed before they have a chance to do much of anything.