Quote Originally Posted by pacman90 View Post
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.