Results 1 to 13 of 13

Thread: Gut loading insects.

Hybrid View

Guest Gut loading insects. September 18th, 2009, 04:13 AM
Guest Re: Gut loading insects. September 18th, 2009, 06:19 AM
Tom Highum Re: Gut loading insects. September 18th, 2009, 12:22 PM
John Re: Gut loading insects. September 18th, 2009, 07:08 PM
Tom Highum Re: Gut loading insects. September 18th, 2009, 09:02 PM
Guest Re: Gut loading insects. September 19th, 2009, 06:20 PM
SludgeMunkey Re: Gut loading insects. September 19th, 2009, 11:23 PM
Tom Highum Re: Gut loading insects. September 18th, 2009, 07:19 PM
Guest Re: Gut loading insects. September 18th, 2009, 08:19 PM
Guest Re: Gut loading insects. March 26th, 2010, 02:00 PM
Guest Re: Gut loading insects. March 26th, 2010, 07:09 PM
Guest Re: Gut loading insects. March 26th, 2010, 07:25 PM
Guest Re: Gut loading insects. March 26th, 2010, 11:34 PM
Previous Post Previous Post   Next Post Next Post
  1. #1
    Iceni
    Guest

    Default Re: Gut loading insects.

    Adding something with a higher Iron content for there feed might be beneficial, Sprouts, cabbage and kale fill this bill.

    Crickets are a little bit thick and will eat the easiest thing they can eat. In your case this would probably mean they ate more fruit than Veg.

    We feed ours only cabbage/kale, carrots and potato. To further add to this the cabbage and kale we feed is home grown when in season. Cabbages are superb plants, they will over winter a frost, and you can take the leaves off the outside of the plant for animal feed well before there ready to harvest with no affect on the plant.

    The reason for home growing is simple. We can monitor what chemicals are on that mainstay food. Meaning the crickets have less chemicals in them when they get to the animals. It's a sad fact that most veg/fruit will have been sprayed dusted with some very potent fungicides, and Insecticides at some point. And in a lot of cases this will appear in the animals that feed on these products in larger quantities as these chemicals are designed to stay in an animals system and overload it.


    An alternative may be to harvest dandelions from the local wastelands. They will be clean of pest killers, just make sure there have been no weed killing operations going on! Also make sure that your pet is not going to have an problems with them as they do have minor toxins in the plant.



    As for lettuce we were told to avoid it. It has very high water to nutrient content. To the point where it's not a lot of use to most animals. All it does is fill your crickets up and make them hollow. (think of a panda eating bamboo they need to eat masses every day because of it's poor nutrient content, so although they eat a lot they don't get what they need from it).


    Carrot is very important because of the keratin content. It's a protein that helps you make strong finger nails, or in the case with a lot of animals scales, horns, or fur. It also helps the insect develop the correct thickness of chitin.


    Hope this has been of help

  2. #2
    100+ Post Member Tom Highum's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Nationality
    [United States]
    Location
    Colorado
    Age
    30
    Posts
    1,081
    Picture Albums: Member Photo Albums

    Default Re: Gut loading insects.

    Do you think its ok that i only use the commercial gut load?

  3. #3
    Founder John's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Nationality
    [Ireland]
    Location
    United States
    Age
    48
    Posts
    5,963
    Picture Albums: Member Photo Albums

    Default Re: Gut loading insects.

    It's probably adequate.
    Founder of Frogforum.net (2008) and Caudata.org (2001)

  4. #4
    100+ Post Member Tom Highum's Avatar
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Nationality
    [United States]
    Location
    Colorado
    Age
    30
    Posts
    1,081
    Picture Albums: Member Photo Albums

    Default Re: Gut loading insects.

    I think it would be wise to still sometime.

  5. #5
    Iceni
    Guest

    Default Re: Gut loading insects.

    Depends on your style of husbandry.

    There are a few option with dusting and gut loading. I percive them in the following manner it may not be totally true but it's how i see things working in the tank.

    Gut load the insects. Pro's been you can guarantee the vitamins will get into the pet. Cons, some chemicals break down and get absorbed by the insects as compounds that cannot be broken down by your pets. Meaning although there getting said mineral it may not be usable by the pet.


    Dusting the insects. Pros. all the minerals you add are usable and will be absorbed if the pet needs them. Con's Frogs live in damp environments and dusting can be removed if your pets don't eat fast enough.


    Personally i will use a dust once or twice a month. I'm a firm believer that the insects we feed should be fed on good quality food and there nutritional values will give your pets everything they need. The dust is just an addition to the outsides of the crickets to add essential elements that the crickets might be lacking in.


    I belive in the wild frogs would get a varied diet but it would be seasonal. A lot of what they eat will be the same thing eating the same diet for long periods. Frogs in general pick the nearest target rather than the most nutritional one! And as such they would almost certainly eat the most abundant insect life en-mass, with the odd variation based on chance more than anything.

  6. #6
    Contributor SludgeMunkey's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Nationality
    [United States]
    Location
    Bellevue, Nebraska
    Age
    49
    Posts
    593
    Picture Albums: Member Photo Albums

    Default Re: Gut loading insects.

    I generally go for the gut load and skip the dusting.

    While I have been unable to find any amphibian related information on the subject, there is a bit of data on the link between dusted crickets and respiratory problems with various reptiles (especially juvenile chameleons).

    Since my cricket eaters all hunt for their free roaming live foods in their enclosures, I feel a good portion of the dust is lost before consumption anyway.
    Watching FrogTV because it is better when someone else has to maintain the enclosure!

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads

  1. Loose feeder insects
    By happypitbull in forum Off-Topic
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: August 2nd, 2009, 10:44 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •