Fear of Mealworms

[HogMom2B]

Okay so I consider myself to be a pretty tough girl. I am not a huge fan of snakes and rodents, but I can stand them. I don't scream and freak out over spiders, but there is one thing I hate...MEALWORMS. Something about them grosses me out big time. So I was happy to discover freeze dried mealworms, I knew I could brave through feeding those to my hedgie. One problem though, Rosie will not eat them!! She also won't eat freeze dried crickets. I don't really blame her, they are pretty crusty looking. So now I feel guilty cause I know she needs some bugs in her diet. Also, I haven't found anything else she likes as treats either, so I can't reward her with anything. So today I am going to Petco and buying live mealworms...I really can't believe it. I am so scared and grossed out. I hope Rosie will eat them, otherwise I will be going through this trauma for nothing. :S So wish me luck!!!

[chinchillas21]

could try one of those vibrating food dishes that they have for lizzards, worked for my bearded dragon with his greens,might work for the caned mealworms, and the crickets.don't know, just a thought

[Emilys_Exotics]

Good luck with the mealies. If you don't like touching them, then you can use tweezers to pick them up and feed them to the hedgies. I am actually going to be starting my own meal worm farm pretty soon--not only do my hedgies eat them, but I've also got many lizards that eat the mealies as well.

Emily

[Melody]

could try one of those vibrating food dishes that they have for lizzards, worked for my bearded dragon with his greens,might work for the caned mealworms, and the crickets.don't know, just a thought


Where did you find vibrating food dishes? I'm trying to convince two beardies that greens are GOOD, albeit boring!

[Emilys_Exotics]

Where did you find vibrating food dishes? I'm trying to convince two beardies that greens are GOOD, albeit boring!

I believe that zoo med makes some, or maybe exo-terra. I know we carry them at petsmart. I'm not sure how well they will work for greens, they are designed to attract reptiles to non-living bugs. How old are your beardies? When beardies are small, they will have little interest in greens. Adding a small ammount of something red to the greens (red pepper, tomato, etc.) can help attract them to the greens. Young beardies should have a diet that is only about 25% greens. As they grow older, they will develop more of an interest in greens, and adults should have a diet that is about 25% insects. Of course, if you have rescued adults that have never seen greens, then they might not think they are good food.

Emily

[hemi_mygirl]

Kathy,
I totally understand your fear of mealies.. I really can't stand to look at them either. Luckily for me, Hemi is afraid of them.

But when I try to feed them to her every couple weeks, I just use a plastic spoon, and scopp one out. Then, I put it in her bowl. If she doesn't eat it within a couple hours, back into the plastic margarine container it goes.

If you don't like the wiggliness of the mealie, try leaving them in the fridge (which also helps slow their change from worm to beetle). The cool air will slow them down, and they won't move as much, but will warm up and start moving within minutes.

As for other treats, my girl likes apple, cottage cheese, cheese slices, nectarine, shreddies (with a bit of milk) and unfrosted mini-wheats (with a bit of milk). She also likes hamburger, chicken, and turkey. She's also fussy.

How old is Rosie, though? Some hedgehogs just refuse to eat anything but their kibble for the first 6 or 7 months of their life. Hemi was like this, and I was losing hope until i tried hamburger on her. She loves it. As for hedgies needing insects, I think it's more for the protein than anything. If you can feed them meat, they'll get the same amount of protein as a mealie, without you being so grossed out. At least, I think that's the case... a more experienced hedgehog owner will be along to either approve or disprove this statement.

[Emilys_Exotics]

Don't know what opinions others on here will have on this, but I know someone who comes into our store who feeds her reptiles ground beef (cooked) rather than crickets and mealies. She can't handle feeding live food. The reptile vet told her that was just fine, as the protein content is similar in the beef and insects. I myself am not convinced. Of course, my lizards would not dare eat something non living!

Emily

[hemi_mygirl]

Ground beef would be fine, as long as it's fried lean, with no spices. It's also wonderful to inject meds into when a hedgie needs them. Hemi has never eaten insects due to her *convenient* fear of them, but she gets meat in place. She's happy and healthy, and has never had major health issues, other than her cancer (which is still not bothering her).

EDIT: Oh wait. You were talking about reptiles.. LOL. Nevermind..

[Emilys_Exotics]

EDIT: Oh wait. You were talking about reptiles.. LOL. Nevermind..

I was also somewhat answering the hedgie question. I would guess that any animal that primarily ate insects had similar dietary needs from the insect, and therefore if beef were a good substitution, it would likely work for all animals that needed insects, unless of course there were something in the beef bad for one animal but not the other.

Emily

[hedgehog69]

try putting one in with her bowl of food once she eats one she will love em