Crickets?

[sunshine22]

I've had my tegu for about a month now. The people we got him from said he is about a year old. When we first got him we couldn't get him to eat crickets. He barely ate anything. So we tried mealworms and he eats those. Should we try crickets again? The people that raised him said they fed him crickets with no problems.

 

[Harveysherps]

If it were me . I would get away from insects and go to mice or rats. Meat would be a better diet for a 1 year old Tegu. Some sweet fruit every so often. Superworms and big roaches would be alright if you feel the need to feed insects.

 

[sunshine22]

Well I tried to feed him some little pieces of strawberries and he didn't want anything to do with them. I will def. try mice this weekend though. Thanks for the advice!

 

[Harveysherps]

Just make sure to prekill them. That way if it's weak it won't have trouble with eating it. Most times young ones won't eat fruit. They are carnivores. They eat fruit and veggies as adults. Once their grown anything will keep them going almost. But while they are young feed them meat. Bobby says beef liver is good for them. Hamberger meat with and egg mixed in it they like to eat. Some say don't feed raw eggs but I eat raw eggs and it never hurt me.

 

[PuffDragon]

You have a Colombian right? If so, he/she will probably never eat fruits. Have you had it to the vet yet? Check for parasites?

 

[sunshine22]

Yep, the vet said he's fine. He also said he might not have been eating crickets because we had only had him a little while and he wasn't use to being there or anything.
And yes, he's a columbian, and I know that they don't eat fruits. He just seems to be a really picky eater or something. We've gotten him to eat meal worms and raw meat. He won't eat crickets for some reason so we gave up. I'm going to try again this weekend, and also see if he likes mice.

 

[sunshine22]

Just make sure to prekill them. That way if it's weak it won't have trouble with eating it. Most times young ones won't eat fruit. They are carnivores. They eat fruit and veggies as adults. Once their grown anything will keep them going almost. But while they are young feed them meat. Bobby says beef liver is good for them. Hamberger meat with and egg mixed in it they like to eat. Some say don't feed raw eggs but I eat raw eggs and it never hurt me.

I've never heard of mixing the raw meat with eggs. I've given him a boiled egg once, and I know you're only suppose to do that once in a while for a treat, so is giving him raw eggs like that too? Should I not do it very often?

Sorry I have so many questions. I'm just trying to learn all I can before I go giving him random things to eat, ya know.

 

[Harveysherps]

Yeah it's just one of those things to do when they aren't eating.To help kick them into eating . I wouldn't do it all the time. But everyonce in a while wouldn't hurt if it isn't eating good. It's not eating the crickets cause it is a waste of energy. Not enough food value and it probably doesn't want to waste the energy chasing them. Get yourself some T- Rex Leopard gecko dust and dust them. It makes their protein level jump to 25%. This may help and the dust is good for them. But I wouldn't waste my time feeding crickets. They're too nasty and stinky . But if you like feeding them try the dust. It will make them more visible for it also.

 

[sunshine22]

Well if I don't need to waste my time with cricket, trust me, I'm not going too! I hate them! Thanks for the advice.

 

[Harveysherps]

Me too. That's why I feed roaches. They aren't as bad and don't chirp all night long.