Gut Loading Mealworms
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GeekyGecko
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I've been using roach/mealworm chow from PremiumCrickets, with veggies thrown in. But I'm wondering if using CGD would be a good gutloader?
OK, I used carrots, potato (white) and "Worm Chow" from the same people that make "Cricket Crack".
I let them chow for about 20-24hrs before using them. The rest of the mealworms, I removed the carrot & potato, left the chow and stuck them in the fridge. I guess I feed them (the worms) every 3-4 days?
I let them chow for about 20-24hrs before using them. The rest of the mealworms, I removed the carrot & potato, left the chow and stuck them in the fridge. I guess I feed them (the worms) every 3-4 days?
OnlineGeckos
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Understand that the digestive tract is very short in mealworms, they aren't exactly the best feeders to gutload well with. So it's still important to provide proper dusting supplement when feeding your geckos even if you gutload the mealworms.
And yes you can leave them in the fridge and just take them out twice a week, gutload them for 24 hours, then stick them back in the fridge.
And yes you can leave them in the fridge and just take them out twice a week, gutload them for 24 hours, then stick them back in the fridge.
Thank you for the info.
What would be a better bug to use as feeders? I already have crickets for a couple chameleons I keep but I've read they can get under the substrate (I use newspaper right now) and they can irritate the Geckos
I leave out a small dish of calcium 24 x 7 and I dust the meal worms with Repashy calcium plus
What would be a better bug to use as feeders? I already have crickets for a couple chameleons I keep but I've read they can get under the substrate (I use newspaper right now) and they can irritate the Geckos
I leave out a small dish of calcium 24 x 7 and I dust the meal worms with Repashy calcium plus
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grboxa
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Throw silkworms in here and there if you can, very nutritious but they are a bit more expensive. If your feeding your crickets in the geckos cage, monitor the feeding. If after 20-25 minutes the gecko hasn't eaten every cricket, take out whats left so they don't irritate your gecko. I do separate cage feeding when I feed crickets.
OnlineGeckos
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You could also try dubia roaches if it's legal where you live (not legal in florida, canada, etc). They're hardy, easier to take care of than crickets, don't make noise and don't smell, and they are very nutritious. You don't refrigerate them, you keep them in room temperature, and they'll gutload very well.
Fencer04
Long Island Geckos
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I would second the Dubias. They are are really good feeder and almost all of my animals seem to love them.
mudskipper
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Do you put your leos in a feeding tank with crickets one at a time? That sounds like a great idea.
Crewdog00
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I've used the Cricket Organge Cubes for my mealworms, they love it, and when the cubes are gone, I know the worms are loaded.
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I use bran, it's cheaper than mash but about the same as far as quality. Just be careful if you get mash because a lot of it is medicated and the clerk won't always tell you before they sell it. Most mash is for chicks and they usually use the medicated feed for them.
Ozy
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When I bring the mealworms home, I dump out the bran junk in there and replace it with Fluker's High Calcium Cricket Diet. I put them in the fridge bring them out one day a week and let them chow down, then back in the fridge. I still dust with my Repashy Calcium Plus EVERYTIME though, to make sure my baby gets all the nutrients he needs. 
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They don't pack them in bran, they pack them in cedar chips. Bran is basically flour or meal. Very healthy and full of protein. Mash is the same thing just has an additional protein source and very often has medication to keep chicks healthy. Mash also has a good source of calcium if it is a good brand.
It's also important to dust them not only with calcium but with a multivitamin every time no matter what gutload you use since they don't gutload well.
It's also important to dust them not only with calcium but with a multivitamin every time no matter what gutload you use since they don't gutload well.
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I use 3 ingredients for gut loading my mealies. Potato,Carrot and Chicken Lay Mash-sifted to only get the crushed powder.
I use the Lay mash as the bedding, and throw in chunks of carrot and potato(always kept in fridge-both hold better water) on top-outsides of veggies up, so peel is touching the bedding-helps not clump up the mash. I gut load my mealworms for a minimum of 2 days, I never gut load then stick in the fridge- they stay in a cool place @ around 60 degrees and I maybe have to pick out 10-20 pupae a week from 1 container of 3500 mealworms- when Im ready to use I take out veggies(which I change every 2 days) and sift the lay mash- I get all mealies no bedding. Time to feed.
My geckos are very healthy and instead of lack of gutloading I have fully nutritious mealworms-and because they never go in the fridge once gutloading they are very active and the leos love the added action of the worms-generates there natural instinct to feed. Hatchlings always have mealworms and vitamins in the food dish.
This is just my process and my geckos look healthier and have more vibrant colors because of there diet. I got a 3yr old leo that was @ 50g after being fed dubia for those 3 yrs, as of now he weighs 75g after 2mo with me. Im personally not a fan of dubia but some find it easier to keep but mealies are pretty simple in my book, I take pride in my leos- so I take extra time with the food they eat Overall I think I have some very spoiled mealworms... Hope all this makes sense
I use the Lay mash as the bedding, and throw in chunks of carrot and potato(always kept in fridge-both hold better water) on top-outsides of veggies up, so peel is touching the bedding-helps not clump up the mash. I gut load my mealworms for a minimum of 2 days, I never gut load then stick in the fridge- they stay in a cool place @ around 60 degrees and I maybe have to pick out 10-20 pupae a week from 1 container of 3500 mealworms- when Im ready to use I take out veggies(which I change every 2 days) and sift the lay mash- I get all mealies no bedding. Time to feed.
My geckos are very healthy and instead of lack of gutloading I have fully nutritious mealworms-and because they never go in the fridge once gutloading they are very active and the leos love the added action of the worms-generates there natural instinct to feed. Hatchlings always have mealworms and vitamins in the food dish.
This is just my process and my geckos look healthier and have more vibrant colors because of there diet. I got a 3yr old leo that was @ 50g after being fed dubia for those 3 yrs, as of now he weighs 75g after 2mo with me. Im personally not a fan of dubia but some find it easier to keep but mealies are pretty simple in my book, I take pride in my leos- so I take extra time with the food they eat
Overall I think I have some very spoiled mealworms... Hope all this makes sense
Crewdog00
James Skar
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I have a new gut loading method. Seems to be working great for crickets and mealworms.
I take 2 cups of oat meal and 2 scoops of Repashy powder and 3 cricket orange cubes and mix it all up in a bowl. Then I add it to the cricket tank and mealworms tub. Both eat it up nicely.
I know I'm loading them with calcium and vitamins 24/7.
I take 2 cups of oat meal and 2 scoops of Repashy powder and 3 cricket orange cubes and mix it all up in a bowl. Then I add it to the cricket tank and mealworms tub. Both eat it up nicely.
I know I'm loading them with calcium and vitamins 24/7.
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