crickets -_-

[geckonewbie213]

ok so the smell of crickets is starting to become very noticeable throughout the room that my geckos are in and i was wondering if feeding my leos mealworms,supers, and other varities of worms and cutting out crickets would be detrimental to their health?

 

[houseb]

I think there are quite a few people here that feed mostly mealies and supers. I personally feed mealies and dubias as a staple. My gecko LOVES to chase down her prey, so the dubias give her a chance to do some hunting. I supplement those with butterworms, crickets and waxworms as treats. I'm planning on ordering some supers and silkworms soon too. I have had a really great experience with the dubias so far and would highly recommend them. Here is a nutritional breakdown (posted from Pacific Northwest Herpetological Society):

I try to feed my gecko as much variety as possible (I wouldn't want to eat the same thing everyday), but I don't know if that is totally necessary. Hope this helps

 

[blazethegecko]

will mealies cause impaction

 

[geckonewbie213]

i would love to try dubias but i dont know of anywhere around me that sells them, im not a huge fan of ordering food offline, but if its a must ill give it a try. and no mealworms definitly dont cause impaction, unless youre feeding your leos on sand, which is a big no no.

 

[BadKelpie]

I like using crickets as feeders so I last time I got some (1000 1/2 inch crickets), I put a substrate of oats down in the cricket bin and there is no odor. Plus, extra cricket food. Next time, I'm going to try chicken feed since I buy it to use for cat litter anyway.

 

[Pinky81]

I use an inch of vermiculite in my 66Qt tub with my crickets and I have little to no smell! I keep around 10-12 dozen at a time in the tub! I change all the vermic. out every couple of weeks or so, and i try to daily go in and discard any dead crickets. Really has been working well for me but I would love to try dubias.

 

[Shadraak]

Wish they'd update that feeder chart with blatta laterallis. Pain in the butt to catch. But good feeders

 

[houseb]

I think blattas are even higher in protein than dubias, plus the size is nice. Too roachy for me though....maybe someday