Really worried :( PLEASE reply!!

[nats]

Low wattage ceramic heat emitters connected to a pulse proportional thermostat are far superior to under tank heat . They also provide a more natural and deeper penetrating heat you can get low wattage ones ranging from 30- 60 watts.

Digby Rigby [email protected]

I have never had any luck at all with those.
All they do is heat the air space above the emitter!
And it's difficult to provide a temp gradient.

 

[kyahbean]

You're missing out on a lot of fun if you're not feeding crickets. Watching them chase them down if hilarious.

I agree!! I think I look forward to feeding time as much as Puzzle does for this reason! :main_laugh: Definitely try crickets.

 

[Ingo_gecko]

I think i've had some success!
I put 3 wax worms in last night in a bowl of mealies and they were gone this morning!
So unless they have crawled out?? She must have eaten them!
I know wax worms arent great but right now i think they are better than nothing!!
I dont know whether she has eaten any mealies as i have a bowl full in there with her so wouldnt be ablt to tell if she did!!

 

[LizMarie]

Good to hear she's eating for some odd reason I'm not a fan of waxworms, Lol

To see if she's eating the mealworms count them. I had my mealworms in a container with gutload and every night I take out 10 mealworms and put them in the dish. If she eats them before I go to bed I add 10 more and in the morning it easier to count them and see what shes eaten or hasn't eaten. It gives me a piece of mind to know how many she's eating instead of guestimating. She might have eaten some mealworms but you wouldn't be sure unless you knew the number.

Are you gutloading and dusting?

Also try some Crickets/roaches something that runs around. I noticed younger leos seem to like the hunt and they are good for them even though many keepers just hate them (like I do). My past gecko adored crickets as a baby just has she got older and lazy I moved to mealworms and she likeed it better.

 

[nats]

My leos are only 7 months old and are ALREADY lazy!!
I cut the back legs off the crix to keep them from jumping around,
but they still get away pretty fast!
If my leos have to go chase them down, they wont bother. I have
to chase it down myself and plop it in front of them :main_rolleyes:

 

[Libby15]

Wow. I better watch out for this in the future. Herman is a track star.

I just got him some medium crickets. I think he's ready to graduate from the small ones. I think they will be easier to catch.

 

[Ingo_gecko]

I was doing that at first, putting 5-10 in a bowl and counting them the next day but there was always still the same amount!! So i thought maybe they weren't moving enough when there was fewer and she just wasnt interested?

I am dusting them with calcium powder - she loves the powder more than the mealies!! When i was first trying to get her to eat, she would just lick the powder off my fingers!!

Have only just found out about 'gut loading'... I have bought a tub of meal worms from the reptile shop and thought that they would be fine, but since found out they are probably not... Do i need to gut load them? And how do i do this??

Will definitely try with some crickets soon - how do you stop them from escaping when you open the lid though!!??

Thanks everyone

 

[kyahbean]

Will definitely try with some crickets soon - how do you stop them from escaping when you open the lid though!!??

It took me a few tries. The first time I did it, about 7 or 8 crickets got loose. Luckily for me, we have 3 cats that took care of them rather quickly. :main_laugh:

How I am doing it now, I take a tube of crickets from the cricket feeder (the feeder is nice because it has tubes the crickets climb into and then you just shake them out), and open a tupperware container (that already has some of the supplement coating in it) just a tiny bit and knock a bunch in there, then shut the lid really fast. Then I just shake the container, and dump the crickets into the cage. I dump them on a plate so the supplement doesn't get all over the repti-carpet, and once all the crickets have left the plate, take the plate out.

It works rather well.

 

[LizMarie]

I was doing that at first, putting 5-10 in a bowl and counting them the next day but there was always still the same amount!! So i thought maybe they weren't moving enough when there was fewer and she just wasnt interested?

Have only just found out about 'gut loading'... I have bought a tub of meal worms from the reptile shop and thought that they would be fine, but since found out they are probably not... Do i need to gut load them? And how do i do this??

Thanks everyone

Ehh I havn't feed crickets in year so I really can't say much about them. We don't get along.

Anyway, lol

I have found 10-12 mealies to be good enough in my mealie dish but then again me and my gecko seem to have a little understanding as to when feeding time is. I've studied my gecko a little and saw that she came out between 6-8pm so this has become her feeding time. Since she's out and about I know she will see the mealies when they are all lively before they go into that coma looking stage (she's gotten into the habit that when she's hungry she sitting be the mealie dish and leans on it until I come with my cup full of mealies, she's so darn cute lol). Another thing I do to try to avoid that stage is too put to some food in the dish like little pieces of carrot, etc because mealies seem to never stop eating and the movement can grab the leos attention.

I also gutload my mealies constantly. If I wake up in the morning and see a few mealies in the dish I will separate them and when feeding time comes I will go to my mealie bin and pick out mealies that have been feed for atleast 24hrs prior to the feeding. After that I through the left over mealies into the bin so they can eat and be ready for the next feeding. Can everyone do this no, but it's how I do things.

I do believe in you are what you eat so i suggest you should gutload your feeders. Gutloading is easy. You can buy it from places such a ProGeckos.com or mix up your own. I personally use Oatmeal but many others use Bran, plain cherrios, etc.. then you add a little moisture such as carrots, potatoes, apples, etc. You let the mealie eat for around 24hrs and they will be pretty good for your leo to eat. I sometimes add a little of my Calcium Plus supplement to make sure they are getting the necessary vitamins.

 

[Ingo_gecko]

So would you put the 10 meal worms you were planning to feed that night or the next night in to a bowl with the oatmeal etc, and then when you have fed it those 10, put another 10 in for the following night? Or something like that?

You mentioned putting pieces of carrot in to the bowl to keep them moving - would the gecko not have any interested in the carrots? Like, she wont try and eat the carrot?

How much should a 4/5 month old be eating and how often?

Thanks for all your help!!

 

[nats]

Wow. I better watch out for this in the future. Herman is a track star.

I just got him some medium crickets. I think he's ready to graduate from the small ones. I think they will be easier to catch.

LOL!! they may be bigger, but that doesn't mean they are easier to
catch! the bigger they are, the farther they jump!! :main_laugh:

 

[Paco]

Crickets are OK. But they Smell and they dont live very long. And sometimes can have parasites, so can other feeders if feed improper food. Silk worms are Excellent feeders for many reasons and one of the best. Roaches are also starting to become very popular with all the non glass climbing species that are becoming available. They are Far superior to crickets, higher protein to shell ratio. They live much longer and don't smell nearly as much. Once you start to get used to them they are great some species are fairly slow and others are quick. I just recently started using them and I all ready see an improvement in the Leos. They are Gaining weight much faster than on meals and supers, with Silks in there when I had enough( they did really well when I was just feeding silks but they go quick). So there is a wide Variety of feeders out there for you to choose from. Use them all if you can. Your Leo will be much happier.:main_thumbsup:

 

[nats]

Crickets are OK. But they Smell and they dont live very long. And sometimes can have parasites, so can other feeders if feed improper food. Silk worms are Excellent feeders for many reasons and one of the best. Roaches are also starting to become very popular with all the non glass climbing species that are becoming available. They are Far superior to crickets, higher protein to shell ratio. They live much longer and don't smell nearly as much. Once you start to get used to them they are great some species are fairly slow and others are quick. I just recently started using them and I all ready see an improvement in the Leos. They are Gaining weight much faster than on meals and supers, with Silks in there when I had enough( they did really well when I was just feeding silks but they go quick). So there is a wide Variety of feeders out there for you to choose from. Use them all if you can. Your Leo will be much happier.:main_thumbsup:

Well, theres no question that roaches have become the rage, but my leos
still prefer their old stand by; crickets!
There are work arounds for most of what you are complaining about.
If you keep your feeder tubs clean, well ventilated, and change the food
every other day, you should not have much problem.
Also, keeping your crix at temps between 66 and 70F will help discourage
parasites, as they tend to thrive in higher temps, and dirty conditions.
Another thing, know your supplier, find one you trust (mine is NY Worms)
and stick with them. It doesnt hurt to ask your feeder supplier how they
care, feed and maintain their stock

 

[kyahbean]

My crickets don't smell. I clean the cricket feeder every few days and just change their gutloader and water frequently.

 

[Libby15]

LOL!! they may be bigger, but that doesn't mean they are easier to
catch! the bigger they are, the farther they jump!! :main_laugh:

He's having no problem. It's a bigger target to grab. The smaller ones run like the wind.

 

[nats]

He's having no problem. It's a bigger target to grab. The smaller ones run like the wind.

Oh, yeah, I guess the little ones are a bit of a difficult target :main_yes:

One thing I do sometimes, take and dust your crix, then stick them in
the refrigerator for about 5 minutes. It slows them down quite alot for
awhile, slow enough to be caught and eated, before they snap out of it.

 

[Paco]

My crickets don't smell. I clean the cricket feeder every few days and just change their gutloader and water frequently.

I keep my tubs clean for all my feeders. Crickets still smell period. They stink in fact. All the bugs have some sort of odor, some are just more offensive than others. Depends on how many you keep as well. If it's only a few 100-1000 it is no big deal, start working with 5000 or more they start to smell. That's why I don't use them any more. I have never had problems with parasites for the record. Just what I have heard and seen from many breeders, some of the biggest in the country as a matter of fact. I have found a better source for a feeder and will be using it. To those that want to use crickets they are more than welcome.

 

[kyahbean]

Oh. Yeah I don't keep 5000 of them LOL I only have one gecko so I just have like 30-40 crickets at one time.

 

[NB1230]

Oh, and make sure that you put a small bowl (or clean pop cap) full of PURE calcium in the cage with your gecko, so that your gecko can get calcium whenever it needs it. They can't "overdose" on it. It's good for them. My gecko licks it all the time.