Trouble with my worms - a novel

[Gecko Newbie]

Trouble with my worms - long

So...Lola and Tony are doing awesome - that's why I haven't been on in forever...but the worms are driving me NUTS. Here's the scoop:

Superworm Problem #1: Since I can't feed crickets anymore, I use my Cricket Keeper to store the Superworms I get from PetsMart. I put about 2 inches of All Bran cereal in the bottom and then some carrots, bread and sometimes oranges (whatever is in the fridge). I put some potato slices in a few days ago and now they've molded....UG. What do I do with the worms now?? I can't feed them to Lola and Tony, can I? If they've been in with the moldy potatoes....??

Superworm Problem #2: Before I wrecked things with the potato, the worms were doing just fine, except a few times, they started slowing WAY down. They got kinda fat and then just lay around in the container, barely moving when I pinched them with the huge silly tweezers I have because they gross me out. This made them less appealing to Lola and Tony and thus more difficult to use as feeders. Am I over feeding the worms and now they're just fat and lazy? Are they slowing down because they're ready to be singled out to turn into beetles? (I have one that burrowed itself into the bread end I put in there and curled up - I took it out of the bread and put it in a plastic container and now I have ONE morphing! - I'm still a little scared about raising my own...) What's up with them??

Mealworm Problem: So, then there are the mealworms - kept in the fridge. They're substrate keeps getting too much moisture and I have to change it out a lot to prevent molding. I tried oatmeal and All Bran cereal - both get very wet and limp. What should I keep them in that won't get so wet? Oh yeah, they're in plastic tuperware that has holes in the top I made using a tack - lots of holes. Too many holes? Not enough? I don't know....

These worms are supposed to be hassle free.... Grr!

Help, please! Oh yeah, sorry so long!

 

[acpart]

Another novel

Here's what I recommend that works for me:

Mealworms and superworms: if possible, stop buying them from the big petstores. I have done it occasionally when I'm desperate. Once, just for fun, I went in and opened 4 containers of superworms, each supposedly containing 12 worms. There was a total of 1 live superworm and 1 alien in all. Instead, check online places (I frequently use Grubco) and get the smallest number of mealworms you can (which may be 500). Buy the small or mini size. Don't keep them in the fridge. I find that my worms don't do well in the fridge and since fridge temps are variable I think that some fridges are too cold for them. If you get them small, you'll be able to feed most of them before they get big enough to turn into aliens. Even if half of them die, it will still be a lot cheaper than buying those tubs from the petstore. If you have a basement, you can keep most of them in the basement where it's cool and then have a smaller container in your gecko room. The same goes for superworms but you'll have to look hard to find an online place that will sell you less than 500.

Housing: get one of those "Faunarium" things. The one I use is 14"x9"x5" (high). It's a clear plastic tub with a ventilated plastic cover that has a little panel you can lift. The worms will be well ventilated and easy to take out.

Feeding: get a commercial gutload. Many people use chicken mash. I use a gutload made by progeckos (Pro Geckos). I buy 20 pounds about every 9 months (and I have a lot more geckos than you do). Put about 1/4" to 1/2" of gutload at the bottom and the worms (meal- and super-) will burrow into it. Put vegetable parings into it periodically. The problem with putting a half a potato or so in, is that it will take a long time to get eaten and mold. I use primarily eggplant peels, green pepper cores, broccoli and cauliflower stems. These contain moisture, are less dense and don't mold as readily.

This may work better for you

Aliza

 

[Gecko Newbie]

Thank you!

That was SERIOUSLY helpful, thank you so much! The reason I haven't bought from online is because of how many they send you at one time - if I can't keep 30 alive and healthy, I didn't want to spend money on 500 worms and end up killing them all...

What should I do with the worms that have eaten the moldy potato? I've kind of just left them, hoping they will die, and I bought others and have them in a different container. There are some still alive in there - should I just wait it out? I don't want to just throw them away and risk worms crawling all over the alley, ya know?

Thanks again, that was REALLY helpful!