Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I just got an order of 1000 crickets and many of them are much larger than the 1/2" I ordered (ugh!) so I have to pick out the smallest ones for Darwin. Once I would dump them in his tank I would see one or two that are probably too large and watched closely. Well, he would look at these and not eat them and go for the smaller ones.

So my question is: in the wild they would not eat prey that is too large (or else they would be dying) so is this not the case in captivity? I am sure if I were to offer ONLY too-large prey then he might not have a choice, but if he has a choice he seems to instinctively know what he can, and cannot, manage. Just something I am pondering...
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Chameleon Help & Resource Info

0.1 Veiled - Luna
1.0 Beardie - Darwin
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula (no name yet)
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha

bearded dragons will eat crickets that are two large, it's lucky yours took the smaller crickets. The risk is causing death and paralization due to pressure on the spinal column caused by large prey items that is the concern. Hence the suggestion to feed insects only as big as the space between their eyes.

One thing I have done when I wind up getting crickets that are to large, is cut them in half. My dragon didn't seem to care if the cricket was twitching or not.
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PHLdyPayne

yikes! I hate even taking back legs off when I have to! lol!

yes, I had read about the paralyzation and follow the size rule wih all my herps and try to keep them on the smallest size. I will probably have to order another batch that are smaller as this picking out the small ones is very time consuming. I have some silkies growing so he'll eat them, too (they are VERY tiny right now).

I was just wondering what they'll do in the wild...survival of the fittest, survival of the smartest

thanks,
lele
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Chameleon Help & Resource Info

0.1 Veiled - Luna
1.0 Beardie - Darwin
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula (no name yet)
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha

Hi Lele,

Healthy dragons will eat anything they have an inclination to and anything they can fit in their mouths. Surely this is the case in nature as well (no prey size rules) right?

While we do not offer hatchling dragons jumbo size crickets, generally we let the dragons eat what they like. Once they start thriving/growing they will stuff themselves with large meals given the opportunity. This has not caused our dragons (of any size or age) any problems. Large meals combined with thriving dragons can equal some phenomenal growth rates also. I think it is important though that they have temps that allow them to process large meals. Large meals in the absence of the temperatures necessary to digest them properly could certainly be a problem. If you choose only to feed small meals then this may be a non-issue.

The conditions you offer your animal(s) have a great deal to do with their appetites/food intake, when and what they choose to eat and their ability to process and use that food for growth.

Also, it seems they will sometimes be unintersed in items they feel are too small or too big.

Good luck,

Ian

Hi Ian,

thanks for your experience. He has a choice of basking temps from 115-90 and he definitely moves around usually laying flat on his rock (highest temp) about an hour after eating and then moves to different places. I got him two weeks ago and he was ending a shed and he shed again yesterday. He has gained 1g since Wednesday so he seems to be a growing boy!

I will continue to try and keep his prey less than 1/2" but I do let him eat as much as he wants. After having a chameleon with eating issues it is a nice change to have a creature with a healthy appetite!

lele
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Chameleon Help & Resource Info

0.1 Veiled - Luna
1.0 Beardie - Darwin
0.2 felines - Kyndra and Líta
1.0 African Clawed Frog - Skipper
0.3 Mad. Hissers (2 died ;(
0.1 Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula (no name yet)
0.1 Goliath Bird-Eater Tarantula - Natasha