Crickets and what to feed them!

[Dudemom888]

From what I've seen, what to feed your crickets is a big discussion point. I've 2 different answers from 2 different reptile/pet stores. One said lettuce and fish food is enough for them. The other said don't bother with the fish food and just put in a piece of potato and a baby carrot. I've got all four in there now to cover the whoel spectrum....my question is, what is the best to feed the crickets. I also found out that small crickets in one store doesn't mean the same size in another store. LOL.

Before you ask, I am dusting the crickets twice a week with Repashy Superfoods Calcium Plus. My gecko, Greg, is gaining weight, has shed once (I think) and is eating 5-8 "small" crickets a day!

A couple more questions if you don't mind! **Keep in mind that while I don't mind handling Greg, the crickets give me the heebie jeebies. In fact, I was against them and was just going to do mealworms, but they didn't sit with Greg well and he wasn't eating!

1- where do you house your crickets? We have a cricket keeper that houses 4 dozen ok...but I get the feeling as Greg grows, I may need a bigger container.
2- Is there an easier way to dust them? I'm using a plastic baggie, but when I dump them in the tank, there's a bunch of powder that goes in too.

Thanks Guys! Loving this forum and all the info I get!

 

[PDDM]

Well I'll tell you first off that I hate feeding crickets, i find them to be a huge PITA. I prefer feeding worms. However if you choose to keep crickets I would feed the crickets Repashy Bug Burger (a highly nutritious gutload formula designed specifically to increase nutritional value of your feeder insects before you feed them off). The Bug Burger is super easy to make 1/4 Powder and 3/4 Water... You can stir it then put it in the microwave but I like to personally add my 3/4s of water after its already been boiled, I find the consistency to be quite a bit better this way. The advantage with the Bug Burger over lets say Repashy Superload is the fact that its a Gel and has water in it. So you can feed exclusively Bug Burger and not have to give water crystals or carrots to hydrate your insects. At our store we go through roughly 4000 crickets a week and I rarely have any die off. Been feeding bug burger for about 1.5 years to the animals and Ive noticed that not only are the crickets bigger and more robust but all the animals seem to be in overall better shape.

If you hate touching crickets (really you should give your gecko another try with worms..) there are the Cricket Keepers. I believe Exo-Terras biggest size can hold up to 75 large crickets. Advantage with these cricket keepers is you can simply remove the tubes and not have to touch the crickets. You asked about an easier way to dust? Just simple put a bit of powder in the tube and put your thumb over the hole and shake them up in the tube then tap the tube so that only a couple crickets come out and into the cage and then dump whats left in the tube back into the cricket keeper.

 

[Olympus]

Both of the answers you got at the stores are wrong! lol Anyone who doesn't think that gutloading - and gutloading WELL - isn't vital is living in denial. Lettuce (except dark, leafy greens) is just water and nutritiously irrelevant, people don't even give lettuce to tortoises and iguanas because it's worthless as food. The same could be said for potatoes. Fish flakes are very high in protein and this can lead to a build-up of uric acid in feeders/reptiles and end up causing gout. A little now and then is fine but this should never be the bulk of any gutload.

Like Dominic said, a commercial gutloading food like Bug Burger or Superload (both by Repashy), Cricket Crack, Dinofuel, etc. is going to make your life easier AND provide a nutritious diet to your crickets at the same time. Avoid Fluker's gutloads, as they are super feable in their formulas.

If you opt for making your own gutload at home, here is a list of great ingredients to use:
Best: mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion leaves, collard greens, escarole lettuce, papaya, watercress and alfalfa.
Good: sweet potato, carrots, oranges, mango, butternut squash, kale, apples, beet greens, blackberries, bok choy and green beans.
Dry food: bee pollen, organic non-salted sunflower seeds, spirulina, dried seaweed, flax seed and organic non-salted almonds.

Avoid as much as possible: potatoes, cabbage, iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, corn, grains, beans, oats, bread, cereal, meat, eggs, dog food, cat food, fish food, canned or dead insects, vertebrates.

As far as how to keep crickets, a large plastic storage container will work well, but really anything with smooth sides. On a large plastic container you can cut out a panel on two sides and glue on aluminum screening (and do the same on the lid) and this will provide plenty of air flow. Bad air is the #1 killer of crickets, along with poor hydration, so having good airflow will make the difference if you start getting into bulk orders of crickets.

And I just dust mine using a large plastic cup. You don't need to coat crickets in a thick layer of calcium, so I just put a pinch of calcium into the cup, get some crickets into the cup, swirl, and dump. The crickets end up evenly but lightly coated and there isn't any excess calcium left over.

Hope that helps!

 

[Dudemom888]

Looks like Repashy Bug Burger is the way to go. I will be ordering some today! Now, how do I get crickets from escaping??? LOL, I keep finding them in the house...when Greg eats every one I put in the tank and I am uber paranoid about letting any out while I collect them to feed Greg!

 

[Corey87]

You should start breeding Dubia roaches, my colony sustains all of my leos, from hatchlings to adults. They don't smell or escape if you have the right tub for them, plus I don't have to pay anything to feed my leos.