Hungry, Hungry Gidget!

[KellyWood]

This is my first posting, but I am a big fan of this site! Hoping maybe someone has some ideas for me.
Gidget is our Beardie, he will be turning 3mo this Sunday. I can't believe his appetite!! I go thru 200 crickets a week! I know, first question, "Are you feeding him greens?" Yes, He loves his kale, apples, carrots, etc...
I have tried to feed him less crickets, but he makes a huge ruckus, demanding to be fed.
200 crickets in my area is $14, which is adding up quickly. I've tried keeping crickets, and would rather not have to. Any good, cost effective ways to increase his protein?
Thanks for your time!
Kelly

 

[renich]

Hey, Kelly. Welcome to the forum.

That is awesome that he is eating that much. Totally normal for his age. We'd love to see a pic of him.

I'm sure many members will recommend dubia roaches. I believe they are easy to start and maintain. I'm sure Janie (zebraflavencs) will welcome you and add her 2 cents.

BTW...offer kale and carrot on occasion. All in all, kale is ok on occasion, but I would not keep it as a regular staple. It has the oxalate issues causing calcium absorption to be lowered. Good greens are collard greens, mustard greens, carrot tops, bok choy.

 

[li]

http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html
Great resource for food.

 

[zebraflavencs]

Hiiiiiiiiiiiii Kelly! Yup, Renee is right.. I'm the Roach Queen !
I've fed all my reptiles, dragon and geckos on roaches from day one... and let me tell you.. They are fat and sassy !
Now, if you are interested in going with the roaches, I can highly recommend the Dubias.
They don't climb, they don't stink, they don't make a whole lotta sound ( some scrabbling around now and then when disturbed), easy to breed, easy to feed, and most dragons will go nuts over them !

Now, this is what you will need to set roaches up a nice home.

First, you will want like an 18 gallon or larger colored rubbermaid/sterlite container with the lid.
1- 10 gallon under aquarium heater
6- cardboard egg crates ( the ones that 24 count eggs come in, check your local diners as well as breakfast places for free crates)
Glue gun with glue sticks or some other sort of adhesive.
Metal window screening.

First, rinse out the container well, to remove any dust or dirt. You can use say 1 cup of white vinegar to 5 cups warm water. Slosh this around well, and rinse with water until the vinegar smell is gone, allow to air dry.

Once that is done, take the lid, and cut out the middle, leaving like 3-4" around the edges.
Take your screen and measure to overlap that 3-4", then using your adhesive, glue it down... Make sure there are no puckers, as this is a possible escape avenue.

Set that aside, and take the bin itself, flip it over, and taking the heater, peel off the paper, and adhere that to one side of the bottom of the bin.
Flip that over, and taking your crates, arrange them so they are on the side that the heater is on.
Now you can add two shallow containers, one for water crystals (I'll get to that later where they can be purchased), and one for food.

You can choose to either make your own chow, or go with a commercial blend that the roach dealer has available.
Now, Kelly.. are you on the East or West Coast ? Or somewhere in the middle ?
Or even in the UK, though I assume from what you have said so far, you are in the USA.
Once I know that , we can all suggest dealers in roaches.. I have one on the East coast.. and the West coast.. There are also several members that thin out their colonies and put these extras up for sale here in the forum (forsale)

Hope this all helps out !
Janie

 

[staylor]

You are lucky if you only have to feed 200 a week. My baby eats 1,000 ever 11 days, that come out to 2,700 a month!!! I buy bulk crix, 1000 at a time and save a ton of money, not to mention the pet store does not carry enough for me to buy the amount that I need

 

[Pogie]

Hi Kelly,

I know you said you dont want to keep crickets . . . but I failed at roaches and my cricket colonies are doing great, so If ever you feel you want to give cricket breeding a try, let me know.

I will leave the roaches to Janie . . . thats her territory.

Yu guys are soo lucky to get bulk crics that cheap.. The biggest tubs we get here are 400 and it costs R95-00 excl shipping. If you add that it works out to R232-00. I'm GREEN with envy