i think my cham isnt eating enough

Discussion in 'Chameleons' started by MD, Aug 12, 2005.

  1. MD

    MD New Member

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    I have a 6-month panther cham, which i got 4 days ago. He doesnt eat as much as what the person told me he was when i got him. I was told he was eatin 10 cricks and 10 worms a day. Now he is only eating about 6-10 worms and no crickets.

    Is this enough? His enclosure is all up to par w/ temp and humidity. I dont know if I should be trying something different
     
  2. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  3. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    Mine go through phases like this as well. He is probably going to shed soon. I notice mine are fussy eaters before a shed and other times they eat like mad. Dont worry about it. If 2 weeks passes then the same behaviour try mixing up your food sources to increase appetite. What I do is feed crix and silkies together and when they are tired of the silkies they wont want any very often. I stop ordering them for a month then order after that time and try next month. It seems to break their cycle enough to where they are craving them the second time around.
     
  4. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  5. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    What kind of worms and you need to consider that 20 bugs a day for a cham that age is askign for problems. With over feeding yo u can induce MBD and make them sick. They should be backed down to the equivalent of 5-6 half inch crix a day and no more at 5-12 months old. As adults you can feed 10 every other day.

    This all from a breaders care guide.

    Juveniles: Once the offspring reach 5-12 months of age (juvenile, young adult size), we slow down their food intake and begin to grow them at a slower pace. By now they are on a 3-4 week cricket (1/2 - 3/4" size) and we allow 5-6 crickets per feeding as opposed to the 8-12 they were receiving as small babies. The very real risk of overfeeding during this life stage is a high potential for MBD (metabolic bone disease) by misjudging the calcium ratios to food intake. It's too difficult to manage proper supplementation when offering large volumes of food. By growing your chameleon slowly and steadily through this period of their life, you are much more likely to provide them with strong, dense bones as opposed to weak, brittle bones from accelerated growth rates the chameleons can't keep up with.
     
  6. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  7. MD

    MD New Member

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    I think i'm going to try a new diet for him. 3 cricks and 6 worms, he doesnt seem to like cricks as much as superworms which is ok by me cause cricks are a pain in the ass anyway.

    would an all worm diet not give enough of a variety?
     
  8. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  9. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    correct.

    Besides crix are the best to gut load, or at least the easiest.
     
  10. JEFFREH

    JEFFREH Administrator

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  11. MD

    MD New Member

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    how do you gut load superworms??
     
  12. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    not sure. I think they eat the dry formula crix gut loads. I made my gut load and it is powder form so I think maybe they eat that. Crix should be the staple diet though.
     
  13. LadyCham

    LadyCham New Member

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    hey Md
    I believe you can by worm gut load from www.cricketfood.com. I think you can feed oats. just put it in with their bedding. some times pet stores like pets mart already include it.

    about feeding, chams get board with their diet really quickly. instead for offering a few different types a day I personally switch insects every few days. Crickets are a pain but they say they should consist of 50% of a chams diet. check out this nutrition page, it's pretty helpful.
     
  14. LadyCham

    LadyCham New Member

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  15. hghflyerjd1

    hghflyerjd1 New Member

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    cRICKETS ARE A PAIN I USE LOBSTER ROACHES AND MEAL WORMS FOR MY 7 MONTH OLD MALE sUNBURST VEILED..I HAVE COLONIES OF BOTH..IM LOOKIN TO TRADE SOME SILKWORMS FOR ROACHES IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED..I GUT-LOAD WITH ROLLED OATS DRI BABY CEREAL GROUND UP KITTEN FOOD(HIGH IN PROTEIN) AND ADD FRESH KALE, POTATO,AND CARROT SLICES EVERY 2-3 DAYS FOR MOISTURE
     
  16. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    I'd rather a cricket get loose than a feakign roach, but thats just me.
     
  17. MD

    MD New Member

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    yea ... my girlfriend would have a coronary.... do they look like roaches? maybe i'll tell her they're super cricks...............hey it might work
     
  18. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    No they are roaches man, not just like them they are the real deal. Nasty little things. Hell I do home health for physical therapy you want some roaches I'll just sit down in some of my patients homes and fill my pockets, lol.
     
  19. MD

    MD New Member

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    ok... im definately not going that route.. I value my life too much... I want to find a food that will entice him to eat but cricks just climb all over and he wont go for them. what about different sorts of bugs
     
  20. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    Silk worms and crix are my favorite so I am not sure what to tell you. I did take a milk jug and ccut the front section out of it and place a stick inside. I then put a string through the cap and hung it in the cage. I put crix in it and they crawl up the stick but dont get out too often and mine sit and hunt them down from the jug.
     
  21. MD

    MD New Member

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    worth a shot... he was hand fed his whole life, maybe he just needs to refine his hunting skills i'll give him a couple weeks..... ive only had him 3weeks, do you know how to estimate his age? they tell me he's 7months but i'm not sure how big he should be for that age
     
  22. whitey4311

    whitey4311 Member

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    I loose track of my chams ages but approximate is all that matters for food amts. Check online I think there is a snout to tail length formula that estimates age.
     
  23. $Theo$

    $Theo$ Embryo

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    HEY i always give my cham some super worms
     

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