feeding the feeders

[noctua]

I've been reading up on keeping crickets/mealworms/locusts healthy for leos, and it references the zoo med adult bearded dragon food being the best thing for them. I live in New Zealand and we don't have zoo med products (can buy online but delivery times are iffy) but we do have "Flukers Veggie Buffet for Adult Bearded Dragon".
Does anyone have any experience in feeding their feeders the flukers brand? Would it be just as good as the zoo med variety?

 

[Zux]

Hi there,

I am utterly unfamiliar with what may and may not be available in New Zealand and Flukers as a brand in general. I do know however that Exo-Terra produces a similar product to the Zoo-Med Adult diet which may be available for you?

Exo Terra : Soft Pellets - Bearded Dragon / Soft Pellets Is the product in question.

If possible I would opt for something like this over the Flukers product which contains some undesirable ingredients and holes in its guaranteed analysis.

 

[lad6363]

Hi there,

I am utterly unfamiliar with what may and may not be available in New Zealand and Flukers as a brand in general. I do know however that Exo-Terra produces a similar product to the Zoo-Med Adult diet which may be available for you?

Exo Terra : Soft Pellets - Bearded Dragon / Soft Pellets Is the product in question.

If possible I would opt for something like this over the Flukers product which contains some undesirable ingredients and holes in its guaranteed analysis.

I use a thing called cricket quencher, It keeps the crickets alive for quite some time.

 

[Zux]

I use a thing called cricket quencher, It keeps the crickets alive for quite some time.

The idea is to provide a well balanced diet to the various feeder insects offered which is beneficial to the predators long term health.

While commercial products such as those produced by Flukers do indeed help to improve the lifespan of feeder insects, they do not offer very much at all in the way of nutrition and are best avoided in my view.

 

[noctua]

Lizard food for feeders

I've just seen an Australian product called Vetafarm lizard food, and I'm wondering if some of you think it might be a good dry food diet for feeder crickets. This is the info pulled from the product:

Ingredients:
Lamb, fish meal, Tasmanian Muttonbird Oil,
Whole grains: wheat and soybean
Vitamins: A, B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C, D3, E, & K
Minerals: calcium, cobalt, copper, iodine, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, sodium, sulphur and zinc
Amino acids: lysine and methionine

Guaranteed Analysis:
Max. Crude fibre 4%
Min. Crude Protein 34%
Min. Crude fat 13%
Max. salt 0.5%

It boasts a balanced calcium/phosphorus ratio and sounds generally better than the flukers stuff that's pretty much all there is in NZ. So far I've been giving my crickets kale, carrot and pumpkin/sunflower seeds, with the odd piece of pumpkin, apple or watermelon as well, but I'd like to give them a more complete dry diet to go with the fresh stuff.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

Fluker's High Calcium Cricket Diet is quite poor.

I don't know about Vetafarm lizard food. I finely grind a product that's about 16% protein and less than 5% fat: Zoo Med's Natural Adult Bearded Dragon Food.

Concentrate on high calcium, low phosphorus, collard, mustard, turnip greens and pesticide-free dandelion flowers/greens.


Gutload Ingredients for Bugs & Worms.....contributed by Olimpia -- August 2013

"Lettuce (except dark, leafy greens) is just water and nutritionally irrelevant. People don't even give lettuce to tortoises and iguanas because it's worthless as food. The same could be said for potatoes. Fish flakes are very high in protein and this can lead to a build-up of uric acid in feeders/reptiles and end up causing gout. A little now and then is fine but this should never be the bulk of any gutload.

"A commercial gutloading food like Bug Burger or Superload (both by Repashy), Cricket Crack, Dinofuel, etc. is going to make your life easier AND provide a nutritious diet to your crickets at the same time. Avoid Fluker's gutloads, as they are super feeble in their formulas.

"If you opt for making your own gutload at home, here is a list of great ingredients to use:
Best: mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion leaves, collard greens, escarole lettuce, papaya, watercress, and alfalfa.
Good: sweet potato, carrots, oranges, mango, butternut squash, kale, apples, beet greens, blackberries, bok choy, and green beans.
Dry food: bee pollen, organic non-salted sunflower seeds, spirulina, dried seaweed, flax seed, and organic non-salted almonds.
Avoid as much as possible: potatoes, cabbage, iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, corn, grains, beans, oats, bread, cereal, meat, eggs, dog food, cat food, fish food, canned or dead insects, vertebrates.

 

[icatsang]

I don’t mind to try the vetafarm lizard food for crickets but may i know how can i know whether the product is good to use or not?
Is Tasmanian Muttonbird Oil used for sick reptile for quick recovery? Will it be too strong for crickets? Do i need to worry about the dose of vitaman A intake for gecko?

 

[noctua]

I found a site that recommends powdered milk, alfalfa pellets and a high quality dry cat food, or fish flakes for crickets.

One thing I hate about NZ is the lack of any variety when it comes to this kind of thing. The only alfalfa pellets i can find are in the oxbow rabbit food, or similar items for horses and the like. I'm not sure if the oxbow rabbit food would be any good for them, it does boast a balanced Ca ratio, but much like cat food it has a whole lot of meal and filler grains.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I found a site that recommends powdered milk, alfalfa pellets and a high quality dry cat food, or fish flakes for crickets.

One thing I hate about NZ is the lack of any variety when it comes to this kind of thing. The only alfalfa pellets i can find are in the oxbow rabbit food, or similar items for horses and the like. I'm not sure if the oxbow rabbit food would be any good for them, it does boast a balanced Ca ratio, but much like cat food it has a whole lot of meal and filler grains.

Cat food and fish flakes are way too high in protein. Those could cause gout.

 

[noctua]

There's just really nothing good apart from fresh vegetables available to feed them in NZ. It's annoying me to no end trying to find something to give them the best diet.

I was planning on growing my own mustard greens to give them something with good calcium content, along with carrots for vit A but it's the dry diet i'm having trouble finding. I've given them spirulina before, but we just can't get anything like the zoo med adult bearded dragon diet.

 

[ReptiFiles]

I know several blue tongue skink owners in that area of the world who use and endorse Vetafarm lizard food. Looking at the ingredients label it looks pretty good, although the protein content is quite high. It could be decent for gutloading feeder insects to reptiles with high-protein insectivorous diets, like leopard geckos, but I wouldn't use it for a frugivore like a crested gecko.

Any chance you can get your hands on Repashy or Arcadia products in your part of the world? Both have excellent dry gutload formulas. I personally use Repashy Veggie Burger for my feeders.

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

There's just really nothing good apart from fresh vegetables available to feed them in NZ. It's annoying me to no end trying to find something to give them the best diet.

I was planning on growing my own mustard greens to give them something with good calcium content, along with carrots for vit A but it's the dry diet i'm having trouble finding. I've given them spirulina before, but we just can't get anything like the zoo med adult bearded dragon diet.

I know you've been searching.

Have you checked out poultry feeds yet? As long as they don't contain Diatomaceous Earth, they should work. I used to use Alber's All Purpose Poutry Feed for my crickets.

Diatomaceous Earth Alert: Some poultry/chicken feeds contain diatomaceous earth. Both Albers' All Purpose Poultry Feed and Purina Layena Sunfresh Crumbles do NOT contain diatomaceous earth.

"Some chicken laying feeds contain diatomaceous earth as a natural antiparasitic for bird flocks. If ingested by insects, diatomaceous earth is fatal. The microscopic diatoms cut up their insides and cause a nasty death. It is also used topically for insect infestations as it will cut through exoskeletons or soft bodied worms and cause "bleed out." I have not read of anyone accidentally using a chicken feed with it in there and what effects it had on a colony of roaches/crickets/mealworms, et cetera, but I believe better safe than sorry and to warn people of it in case someone wants to use a different brand."

Quoted from hmarie186 -- 1 February 2015

 

[Elizabeth Freer]

I've been reading up on keeping crickets/mealworms/locusts healthy for leos, and it references the zoo med adult bearded dragon food being the best thing for them. I live in New Zealand and we don't have zoo med products (can buy online but delivery times are iffy) but we do have "Flukers Veggie Buffet for Adult Bearded Dragon".
Does anyone have any experience in feeding their feeders the flukers brand? Would it be just as good as the zoo med variety?

I see you're still searching for some dry diet.

Please link Flukers Veggie Buffet for Adult Bearded Dragon.

Let's compare it to Zoo Med's Natural Adult Bearded Dragon Food. (It seems like Zux already did.)

 

[Hilde]

You had two threads about this topic, both active, so I merged them, keeps everything in one place and less confusing.