General Small Feeders

[Deku]

Hi Iam getting some new toads soon so I wanted to learn how to culture some live feeders.

What I was wondering what are the most nutritional feeders? I want to feed sometimes crickets but not always, I feel they dont have that much nutrition.

The toads only grow about 1 inch and sometimes 1 and a half. so I have to feed things like baby earthworms, meal worm beetles(on occassion), wax worms, wax worm moths(adults), I want to feed small roaches on occassion and I guess fruit flies sometimes. Oh I would like to know anything better than crickets. I heard locusts and grasshoppers are more nutritional.

I also have turtles so if there is TOO many of these I can just make my turtle some foods with it. ;]
I want the insects to be the size of a pinhead cricket at most. Exception of the baby earthworms.

My question is how do I breed wax worms and meal worms, earthworms and all kinds of worms?

Then how do I breed roaches and what is the healthiest to feed? Ived seen roaches the size of centimeters sometimes. This has to be something somewhat simple. Like I cant have all these insects around my house.

I n eed to first speak to my parents about it, but if I cant does anyone know of a good online store to buy all of these? Sorry for asking a ton of questions.

[Deku]

anything?

[Kurt]

Mealworms are easy enough to cuture. Just put a bunch in a Rubbermaid tub with some bran and/or oatmeal. Toss in some slided up potato for moisture. Let them mature into beetles, then later sift through the substrate for small mealworms.

Cuturing waxworms is a little bit more difficult and I am still trying to get used to to it. Someone posted how to do it on the forum somewhere. Do a search and you should find it.

Culturing bean weevils is fairly easy as well. First get some bean weevils at the show. Take some of the weevils and throw them in a culture cup with some black-eyed peas and some of the beans from the old culture. Put something in for them to climb on, I use toilet paper rolls as it makes it easier to haverst them. Wait a month or so and wela, you have bean weevils. You will never see the larva but you will see black-eyed peas with holes in them.

I have never done roaches, so advice there.

Fruit flies are easy to culture. Paul wrote an article on it.

[Deku]

Mealworms are easy enough to cuture. Just put a bunch in a Rubbermaid tub with some bran and/or oatmeal. Toss in some slided up potato for moisture. Let them mature into beetles, then later sift through the substrate for small mealworms.

Cuturing waxworms is a little bit more difficult and I am still trying to get used to to it. Someone posted how to do it on the forum somewhere. Do a search and you should find it.

Culturing bean weevils is fairly easy as well. First get some bean weevils at the show. Take some of the weevils and throw them in a culture cup with some black-eyed peas and some of the beans from the old culture. Put something in for them to climb on, I use toilet paper rolls as it makes it easier to haverst them. Wait a month or so and wela, you have bean weevils. You will never see the larva but you will see black-eyed peas with holes in them.

I have never done roaches, so advice there.

Fruit flies are easy to culture. Paul wrote an article on it.

I will culture as many insect as I can. I want to offer varied diet.

[Kurt]

A varied diet is best.

[Deku]

A varied diet is best.

Yeah, I wonder what would be good medium sized feeders tooo.

[Ebony]

Crickets. Mealworms and Locusts all range in size with their life-cycle stage's so they are good for all sized frogs. Ive never dealt with roaches so cant help you there sorry.

[Deku]

Crickets. Mealworms and Locusts all range in size with their life-cycle stage's so they are good for all sized frogs. Ive never dealt with roaches so cant help you there sorry.

I want insects that are rather easy to breed. I find breeding crickets hard and sorta chore and a waste of time.

I rather would wanna breed something that is so easy all you have to do is set up a tank and change food daily.

Course if I still need some insects I will bu y them but yeah. I wondered if buying insects online is pointless. Because people get em at the store. But at the same time I wanted good quality feeders that last a long time.

I wanna get a ton of locusts for my turtle. :] She loves to bite on things that will give her a run for her meal. xD

[Kurt]

Locust are not available in the US. Roaches breed easily.

[Deku]

Locust are not available in the US. Roaches breed easily.

Doesnt ebony breed locust?

[Tropicok]

The small mealworms (not superworms) are the easiest to do. You can make a medium by pulverizing wheat bran cereal fine enough so you can drag a sieve through it and pick up the worms. Or use fingers or tweezers. Some people use chicken mash if you can get it. I'm still trying to raise pinheads with determination and hope. I had 3 cups of wingless fruit flies going until I forgot about them but will be ordering another kit from Josh's Frogs soon and will try to get a consistent breeding project started again. My local reptile store keeps a record of crickets purchased so I can pay $27 at the first of the month and pick up at intervals when I need them. Don't start culturing anything that flies around the house or your parents will squash your attempts at raising food.

[Tropicok]

About the only earthworms that do well "in captivity" are red wigglers. Do a search for worm breeders and you will get ideas on what worms to try and how to build a worm bin. Your parents will be happy because you can make worm tea to fertilize plants. I dig earthworms (the big night crawlers) out in the yard and frogs and turtles go nuts over them.

[Deku]

About the only earthworms that do well "in captivity" are red wigglers. Do a search for worm breeders and you will get ideas on what worms to try and how to build a worm bin. Your parents will be happy because you can make worm tea to fertilize plants. I dig earthworms (the big night crawlers) out in the yard and frogs and turtles go nuts over them.

I keep hearing "Red wigglers" I thought all earthworms where the same.

[Kurt]

Doesnt ebony breed locust?

I believe so.

[Deku]

I believe so.

Oh yeah shes from new zealand or something(if I spelt it wrong sorry). Oops, thought s he was from the us. :P Ima see if I can breed red wrigglers, mealies, waxies, butter worms. As for roaches and crickets. I dont think my parents would like it so Ima just occassionally buy them. :P

[oneshotveth]

Oh yeah shes from new zealand or something(if I spelt it wrong sorry). Oops, thought s he was from the us. :P Ima see if I can breed red wrigglers, mealies, waxies, butter worms. As for roaches and crickets. I dont think my parents would like it so Ima just occassionally buy them. :P

Roaches are EXTREMELY easy, no smell, no noise. And from what I've read, you won't be able to breed butterworms because they are sterilized before they leave the country....

[Deku]

Roaches are EXTREMELY easy, no smell, no noise. And from what I've read, you won't be able to breed butterworms because they are sterilized before they leave the country....

I would breed them but now I realized "my mom would kill me if I do. " xD lol as for butterworms. Dang that sucks