PACMAN's staple!?

[doctrin13th]

My cranwelli (about 3 inches) seems to ignore adult blatta lateralis (Turkestan Roaches). Even when the feeder is just in front of it. It eats goldfish, and superworms. But I don't want to make them the staple diet of my pacman. Superworms' hard exoskeleton (even if it contains less chitin than the mealworms') is hard to digest if fed frequently and in large volume.Goldfish, some say, has parasite. Better to be safe than sorry.

Is there any issues about pacman and roaches?

and by the way, is the beetle of superworms (Zophobas morio) safe and ideal to be a feeder to pacmans?

[EpicFrogMan]

dubia roaches are the best, nightcrawlers and crickets are the staple also. Once in a while you can dab a pinky or fuzzy in front of his mouth with tongs.

[doctrin13th]

dubia roaches are the best, nightcrawlers and crickets are the staple also. Once in a while you can dab a pinky or fuzzy in front of his mouth with tongs.

I've read a couple of reviews about dubia and lats stating that the advantages of dubias are they are slower and a bit larger than lats. while lats have thinner shells so higher in meat:chitin ratio, faster breeder than dubias. anyways, i just wonder why my pacman is not so into them

[Greg M]

I've really noticed that Horned frogs take a little while to get used to Dubia, especially when the frogs are young. I've tended to use crickets and nightcrawlers as staples when the frogs are young, and then introduce Dubia over time. The freshly molted Dubia seem more palatable - Dubia are a bit "spikey". Dubia are great feeders, although I find that they can be a little inactive and don't trigger a good feeding response in some animals - my toads for example. Dubia freeze when alarmed.

[pacman90]

while on the subject of staples, can red wigglers be used as a main staple or are the nightcrawlers the only option for worms being a staple diet? i dont wanna use crickets unless i must 100% have to because of the frog wanting them, but other than that i stay away from em cuz ive always had em escape -.- nd i really dont want crickets hoppin around a fairly clean house (mom would flip! lol) but worms are also easier since i can just dig em up in my yard (its organic and no pesticides or chemicals) or goto walmart or other live bait shops, easier to keep too . but kinda gettin off topic there, can the red wigglers be used as a staple instead of nightcrawlers?

[Lija]

this is really old thread. Pacman 90 - check pacman section of the forum, you'll find tons of advice on what you're asking for. but short version - don't use worms from backyard, get nightcrawlers from a bait store ( walmart, etc) red wigglers are not too good since they produce stuff that pacmans hate ( or most of them anyway or get powdered pacman food if yours is tong fed, or use dubia.

[GrifTheGreat]

while on the subject of staples, can red wigglers be used as a main staple or are the nightcrawlers the only option for worms being a staple diet? i dont wanna use crickets unless i must 100% have to because of the frog wanting them, but other than that i stay away from em cuz ive always had em escape -.- nd i really dont want crickets hoppin around a fairly clean house (mom would flip! lol) but worms are also easier since i can just dig em up in my yard (its organic and no pesticides or chemicals) or goto walmart or other live bait shops, easier to keep too . but kinda gettin off topic there, can the red wigglers be used as a staple instead of nightcrawlers?

Red wigglers are fine nutritionally, but like Lija mentioned, they produce a defensive coating on their skins that many frogs do not like. And larger frogs will often not be interested in such small prey. I use them for babies to diversify their diets, but as soon as they have nightcrawlers they tend to not accept red wigglers any more. Nightcrawlers are overall a better staple diet. They are nutritious and you can cut them to appropriate sized chunks.

Getting feeders from outside is always risky. Even if you do not use pesticides on your own property, the ground can still be contaminated from run-off. Disease is also a risk. Any time you buy worms you need to make sure that they do not have any chemicals or dyes added. Worms for fishing bate commonly have these added.