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I'm not sure if this would work or not... It probably wouldn't but I wanted to get some opinions. The problem with raising silkworms is the need for fresh mulberry leaves or Silkworm chow right? Now.. these cricket bite gutload things are made out of those crystals and powdered different plants like kelp.. algae.. etc. I wonder if there'd be any way to do something similar for Silkworm food. Say powdered mulberry leaves mixed into the same stuff used to make those "Total Cricket bites" It would make keeping Silkies probably alot easier and a lot more cost efficient for the normal every day keeper trying to keep costs low.... But I'm not sure if the Silkies would look at it as food or not. Any opinions?
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Lucien

1.1 Columbian Redtail Boa (BCI)(Sutekh and Isis)
2.1.1 Leopard geckos (2 Blizzards (Caine and Goliath), 1 Tangerine Albino (Tequila Sunrise ...Tiki for short) and 1 dbl. het blizzard x tang albino (Malice))
0.1 Savannah Monitor (Kiros)
13 rats
1 Gerbil
2 Dogs (Loki and Storm)
2 cats (Sahara and Hercules)

Silkworm caterpillars get their water from the leaves also so dry food is not an option. But, with wet food, there's always a "mold" factor. So, I suppose, if you could come up with a way to market pre-maid chow that doesn't mold, that would be perfect!

Now, some caterpillars take to chow and others do not so you'd have to make sure you got a chow-able strain. LOL!

What about a mold inhibitor mixed into it? I mean, packaging this dry wouldn't be a problem since you can buy the crystals at any garden center... the mulberry leaves would have to be dried and powdered... and everything mixed up.. then just reconstituted with the appropriate amount of water. Unfortunately, at the moment, I don't have the money to order any silkies to try this idea out... but its an idea if someone wants to try it.. Make "Silky Bites" *laughing*
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Lucien

1.1 Columbian Redtail Boa (BCI)(Sutekh and Isis)
2.1.1 Leopard geckos (2 Blizzards (Caine and Goliath), 1 Tangerine Albino (Tequila Sunrise ...Tiki for short) and 1 dbl. het blizzard x tang albino (Malice))
0.1 Savannah Monitor (Kiros)
13 rats
1 Gerbil
2 Dogs (Loki and Storm)
2 cats (Sahara and Hercules)

Sounds to me it would just be much easier to continue using the silkworm chow, which is, powdered mulberry leaves that you have to mix with water and cook for a few minutes in the microwave. It's worked for me so far.

You would spend so much time and money (buying supplies, equipment, etc.) trying to come up with something else that works (other than silkworm chow) you would never be able to recapture all your expenses developing it. You'd spend a few thousand dollars, in order save a few hundred dollars worth of silkworm chow, over your herping lifetime.

Don't you think that the silkworm farmers that use tons of silkworm chow commercially would use something cheaper if it was worth it to develop it? Don't you think that if the costs of developing it on a large scale isn't worth it, that on a small scale it really isn't worth it!

Rodney

since everything I have read states that once you feed mulberry leaves they won't eat the chow. Well, I couldn't resist pulling a few fresh leaves from the tree and after the silkies had devoured them I put in some chunks of the chow. They have eaten nothing but chow since and are still growing and doing fine.

I have never had a silky that didn't/wouldn't eat the stuff!

Just felt like sharing this!
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Marcia - FroggieB Dragons
www.froggieb.com/MHDHome.html

groups.yahoo.com/group/agamid/join
(click the link to join the agamid group on yahoo)

Try another experiment. Feed them nothing but Mulberry leaves for about 10 days and then see how much they like it!--Most won't eat it, at least not until they are desperate and very deflated!

I regularly switch them from Mulberry to chow, but never keep them on the Mulberry leaves for more than 2 days strait. It works fine to cut costs, but I find that using the chow actually save a lot more time than cutting/cleaning the leaves is worth.

Time or money? Which do you have more of? I don't really have that much of either, but considering the cost of chow vs. time, I'll take the chow everytime.

I bet if you got a (job/another job), you could buy a lot more chow with the money you made, than the amount of leaves you could collect/clean in the same amount of time. (the amount of time the job would take out of your schedule vs. the amount of time collecting/cleaning leaves takes.)

Rodney

That makes sense. I agree with your time thing. When I worked a 8-4 job 5 days a week I had plenty of time and did harvest a lot of leaves. Now I own my own multi-dealer antique store and can't afford any employees. Needless to say I'm either here at the store, down in the lizard room, or out buying. I don't have time to make a salad for me let along a bunch of worms! My lizards get better care than I do! Now that my babies are hatching out I can't keep up with the small feeders and so far silkies have been the most economical in both both cost and time. I don't get them being expensive. With a food bill like mine I can either spend $30 on mealworms that will be gone in a week or I can spend $30 on silkworms that will be gone in 2-3 weeks. If my mealies get too big for the hatchlings the adults won't eat them so they become breeders which I already have enough of. The silkies are never too big for something since the adults love them too. Best bang for the buck in my book!
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Marcia - FroggieB Dragons
www.froggieb.com/MHDHome.html

groups.yahoo.com/group/agamid/join
(click the link to join the agamid group on yahoo)