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Post by animalsgetrevenge on Dec 10, 2008 12:50:13 GMT -5
I have a few questions about feeding bug that I was hoping you guys could help me out with...
1. How many bugs total can I feed each ferret a day or week? 2. Can 1 very active ferret eat 12 meal worms through out the week or is that too many? 3. Is $3.00 an okay price for 35 meal worms? Too expensive? 4. What kinds of bugs would you recommend? Meal worms, crickets... what else?
Didjeridu and Pepina will both eat and love meal worms, and Pepina will eat crickets. Ramona and Ernie won't touch bugs so far.
Thanks for the help guys!
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Post by Kerit on Dec 10, 2008 17:34:07 GMT -5
$3 seems expensive to me. I pay $2.49 for a cup of 100 mealies, and the same for 50 superworms, and even that is a little high... just the most convenient for me.
I don't think a dozen a week is too much. I gave the two boys a dozen superworms at once as a snack, and they crunched them down and sniffed for more. I say watch to make sure all of them get eaten, though... one got dropped outside the bowl, and superworms can skedaddle. I have no problem with a half-eaten mouse, but I think I'd have hysterics if I came across a loose superworm.
Waxworms are another common insect option at pet stores. They're soft and high in fat. Nightcrawlers are easy enough to find wherever there's bait... just check to make sure they don't have fish attractant additives or anything similar.
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Post by suds on Dec 10, 2008 20:14:22 GMT -5
Crickets,Wax worms,Silk worms ,Meal worms, Super Worms are all good treats you can give them as much as you want for snacks just make sure they dont fill up on them and dont eat there regular meals
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Post by animalsgetrevenge on Dec 10, 2008 21:30:04 GMT -5
Thanks guys. 100 for $2.50! Dang! I will have to call around because that is the price at the closest natural pet food shop and I refuse to buy from Petco or PetSmart.
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Post by fuzzymom on Dec 11, 2008 21:15:32 GMT -5
$3 is a bit much for mealworms. I'm trying to get a colony of mealworms going so that I can provide mealworms to the ferrets as snacks. I was told that the following were fine to feed....
Crickets Meal worms Super Worms Wax worms Nightcrawlers
(I'm wondering if dubia roaches and silkworms would be ok?)
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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 17, 2008 18:15:23 GMT -5
I was thinking about starting my kids on some bugs... well... actually, on actually buying them bugs to eat. Diesel is apparently a master at catching house flies. Don't ask me how, but the other day I saw him catch one, devour it, and look around for more!
I'll have to look for mealworms and crickets. I bet he'd love them!
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Post by suds on Dec 18, 2008 6:21:58 GMT -5
bet he would love chaseing the crickets too
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Post by spiritualtramp on Dec 18, 2008 16:18:42 GMT -5
That was my thought too Frank!
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Post by Chelsea on Dec 22, 2008 19:03:15 GMT -5
Wow thats kind of expencive for mealies? I used to get 1000 mealies for $6. ( I dont buy them anymore, i use Supers) The price in petstores is still pretty expencive for mealies (compared to the usual) since the mealie shortage. Personally i think supers are better. I tried giving my ferrets supers and they loooved them. Supers are bigger and move alot more, which the ferrets seem to like.
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Post by animalsgetrevenge on Dec 22, 2008 20:31:21 GMT -5
Thanks for letting me know Spazzy. I have never bought bugs for my ferrets (or any other pets) so I had no idea what a decent price was. 1000 for $6 good lord! I will keep looking for bugs in other places.
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Post by Chelsea on Dec 23, 2008 7:04:54 GMT -5
Thanks for letting me know Spazzy. I have never bought bugs for my ferrets (or any other pets) so I had no idea what a decent price was. 1000 for $6 good lord! I will keep looking for bugs in other places. No problem I just know because of my collection of reptiles. I breed my own crickets and supers now, but i used to buy them. I doubt you will find mealies that cheap in petstores though. I never bought insects at petstores, its just such a rip off. If you really want them for your ferrets then I'd get them online (just make sure you know the ferrets will eat them before you buy a 1000 of them lol) I always bought from Millbrookcrickets.com. They have free 2nd day delivery. I always bought supers from them and i always got way more than 1000 in each box. In the summer one time it was really hot, and all the supers in the box arrived dead. I emailed them and they sent me a new box of 1000 for free. Their mealies are more expencive than other sites, they are $ 9 for 1000 i think but, with free shipping it think its worth it. All other sites ive found have like $20 shipping fees. Mealies and supers are pretty easy keepers too. Mealies you can keep in the fridge and they will go dormant. Do NOT put supers in the frigde, they will die. They can stay up to a year i think in their "worm" state. Make sure your ferrets know how to kill um quick, supers bite back
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Post by animalsgetrevenge on Dec 23, 2008 10:44:39 GMT -5
Thanks for the site Spazzy I will check it out right now!
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Post by nwheather on Dec 27, 2008 9:51:42 GMT -5
On the topic of bugs...can anyone provide info on raising/breeding the mealworms & such? I ready mice like the mealworms too, & I'm just starting my mouse colony, so it might be good to kill two birds with one stone & raise the mealworms as well.
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Post by fuzzymom on Jan 6, 2009 17:43:24 GMT -5
Breeding mealworms is so incredibly easy. Get a few containers of meal worms from the store. A few hundred should be enough, although I started mine off with about 150-200.
Get a wide container, preferably deep and not see through. Punch some tiny holes in the lid or top of the sides for ventilation. (If you plan on checking on your wormies at least once a day, this is probably not necessary). Fill the container with oats (store brand rolled oats), corn flakes, bran flakes, and cherrios. Add vegetables like potato, carrot, and such as sources of moisture, but replace often. Dump the meal worms into the container, and cover. Wait. Wait. And wait some more.
Check daily for pupated meal worms. Transfer these to their own container. Allow 1-3 weeks for beetles to emerge. Check this container every few days for beetles. Beetles will eat other pupa, so best to get them out soon.
Transfer beetles to their own container with the same kind of food as the worms eat. In a few weeks, these beetles will start laying eggs, but you won't be able to see them. After a while these beetles will begin dying. Remove them. Check the substrate (food) often for any signs of small wiggly worms. Once you see them, try and transfer all the live beetles to another container and empty the contents of the original beetle container into the main worm container. Replace beetles in their own container and continue this. The little worms will grow in a matter of weeks but it can take as long as 8-10 weeks for them to reach full size (almost ready to pupate).
These beetles lay massive amounts of eggs. I think I read somewhere that each female lays a couple hundred eggs before she dies and a good majority of those will live.
Hope this helped.
(Something I have found useful for this, is to use one of those plastic 3 drawer units from walmart. You can use each drawer for each stage and they have enough sizes that you can pick the one that fits the size colony you want to establish)
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Post by spiritualtramp on Jan 6, 2009 17:46:21 GMT -5
Wow that does sound pretty easy, and I love the three-drawer idea. Fantastic. Maybe when I move to a bigger place I'll try it!!
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