King Mealies Dangerous?

[DannyCrazy4Geckos]

I was at a pet shop, buying some king mealies, and a worker told me his friend owned some kind of lizard (I don't remember) to which he fed king mealies. He said the king mealies gnawed a hole right through the lizard's stomach, and it died. He told me I should cut off or smash the king mealies' heads to avoid this risk. So I have been doing this to feed my leos, and I'm just wondering if anyone else thinks this is necessary. :main_robin:

 

[Golden Gate Geckos]

I have also heard of this, so when I feed kings to my geckos I use long tweezers/tongs and feed them individually. This way, I hear the "crunch" when they chomp down on them and know the worms are dead.

 

[Wretched]

This story was going around when I worked at a petstore as well. I dont really believe it. i had a coworker who claimed she was an -expert- because she owned "30+ reptiles" saying this and telling customers not to feed their leos mealies at all because they could choke and die. Or things in a similar vein. She also didnt believe in misting tropical terrariums and would simply dum the water bowls in the substrate to keep them humid. Needless to say she is now a manager at one of the stores.

So really, i'm sceptical on this one. Sure, if it was a large leo and it swallowed it whole there might be a minor 'chance' of it happening once in a decade.. but well. lightening could strike your gecko too.

 

[Vanilla]

I don't believe this...wasn't this proved to be a myth???I thought it was,I remember reading it.

 

[steve75]

Yes, this is a proven myth.

The only harm from giant/king mealworms comes from the fact that they are sprayed with hormones to prevent them from pupating. In turn, your reptile ingests these chemicals. This is only in giant/king mealworms, superworms and mealworms are NOT sprayed with hormones and thus are much more safe.

p.s. - Giant/King Mealworms are NOT meant to be feeder insects, they are meant to be bait.

 

[leopardgecko95]

Someone told me this story but only with waxworms.I think that both are fake,but I have saw cases with crickets munching on legs and arms if left in a cage overnight.

 

[steve75]

Crickets WILL gnaw at the animal if left in the cage. I HATE crickets. If I want something with legs, I'll get roaches.