Who's Squeamish?

Airedale · #1 10-24-2011, 09:35 PM

I'm just curious who is squeamish about picking up their feeder insects. I feed dubia roaches as a staple, and have no problem with picking up MOST of them. However, for some odd reason (and feel free to think of me as weird, point and laugh, etc

) I cannot stand touching the adult females. Maybe it's the glossy, almost slimy look, or the smooth shell that almost feels slimy to me. Idk. So I thought I would post a quick poll.

Airedale · #2 10-24-2011, 09:40 PM

Sorry, I enjoyed making the poll choices, so some of them are a little goofy.

**Riverside Reptiles** · #3 10-24-2011, 10:41 PM

I don't mind touching roaches or crickets at all. And most of the worms don't creepy me out. But the soldier fly larva do creep me out a bit. Bloodworms too (they're used for fishing bait a lot around here).

lauraleellbp · #4 10-24-2011, 11:03 PM

I don't mind any other bugs, but am 100% phobic about roaches.

Ozymandias · #5 10-25-2011, 12:09 AM

i work at a pet store i handle alot of crickets and i handle all of my roaches (20 species) so ya not really scared of them. some of the people i work with hate handling the large crickets though. o ya cant stand touching spiders those things creep me out and thay can bite, roaches cant bite.

Airedale · #6 10-25-2011, 12:15 AM

I agree on spiders. Not a fan. Arachnophobic, actually. Just glad there isn't some kind of gecko that only eats spiders.

(at least im pretty sure there isnt) I would not be a fan.

nater · #7 10-25-2011, 12:16 AM

Insects don't bother me. I don't think I could feed pinky mice though. Its not about touching them, its about feeding a mammal to a reptile.

Ozymandias · #8 10-25-2011, 12:25 AM

nater i was squeamish about the whole mouse thing to till i actually had to deal with mice, now sense i basically have to feed all of the snakes at work i really just don't care (it sounds bad but after a while you become desensitized to killing them). also mice a mean little buggers that have a disturbing habit of killing there young some times. i do hate selling live rats for food though because well our ratties are super nice and i've basically raised all of them.

Yoshi'smom · #9 10-25-2011, 08:31 AM

I can do earthworms, mealworms, pretty much any kind of worm (superworms get a little freaky to me). I absolutely 100% can't stand crickets. I can deal with the pinheads; they're not so gross. But, the big suckers! NO WAY! If one pops onto my hand, my heart leaps out of my chest! I'm also severely arachnophobic (I've passed out and fallen down a flight of stairs from seeing a spider dangling in front of my face) and I think that the big crickets remind me too much of spiders.

MauricesExoticPets · #10 10-25-2011, 09:23 AM

I spend hours a day messing with my feeder roaches; cleaning, sorting, culling, etc. I'd be in a world of hurt if I was any bit bothered by them.

I can say with not an ounce of reservations that turkistan roaches taste like an acidic bit of nastyness that no quantity of goodness would make me want to eat another.

Crickets and mealworms covered in chocolate are ok, but nothing to call home to mom about.

I am ultra anal when it comes to the whole feeder care thing, so the whole icky factor is just not there for me.

In a lot of cases people bother me more than most bugs, with the exception of mosquitos, ticks, and chiggers. I was in the army for 13 years, a cavalry scout, and those bugs just about drive you nuts in the field.

Maurice Pudlo