Worms?

Mealworms. Not an ideal feeder for anything, but passable enough. They do have the benefit of being refrigeratable, which is honestly the main thing they have going for them besides cost.

Jarlath said:

Worms?

Worms.

Reader-added tags include "Anti-city-girl deterrent weapon", "Mosaic required", and "No. Not even once." (Specifically taken from a catch phrase for a narcotic/stimulant anti-abuse campaign by the Narcotics & Stimulants Abuse Prevention Center.)

It's just a survey, nothing to be afraid of:

What are you bad at dealing with?
• Insects
• Reptiles
• Birds
• Animals
• People

aaah, mealworms. The one I used for feeding my Arowana. Yup, they are gross. Pretty gross... I feel you kogasa wife ;D

Unless we're talking about some other kind mealworms, they aren't that bad.

Maybe two inches max and a few millimeters thick, only a handful of legs at the front of their body, smooth shell so they aren't slimy. Give them a moist sponge and put them in a jar of paper shreds or bran, with airholes, and they'll be alive for a week or two for feeding your pet. Don't keep them around for too long or they'll mature into beetles. They can start to smell a bit but that's it.

Main issue is that they're high in fat and chitin and relatively low in protein. Almost any other feeder that isn't a waxworm (which might as well be the feeder insect equivalent of deep fried butter) is better. If you're keeping a reptile, or at least a bearded dragon, an all mealworm diet will block up their digestive tracts and cause an impaction. Best feeders from a protein vs chitin standpoint goes to the roach feeders, while best feeder for a healthy calcium/phosphorous ratio goes to black soldier fly larvae. Best feeder for providing water happens to be silkworm caterpillars, btw.

Garrus said:

Mealworms. Not an ideal feeder for anything, but passable enough. They do have the benefit of being refrigeratable, which is honestly the main thing they have going for them besides cost.

I've read that mealworms can digest styrofoam. That has to count for something.

Moonspeaker said:

It's just a survey, nothing to be afraid of:

Actually, I'm fine with most animals people are afraid of, from spiders to snakes to any insect that isn't essentially a giant ball of slime like some grubs are, but what creeps me out are crustaceans like lobsters. Cockroaches make me uncomfortable, but insects are generally small enough I can ignore it, but giant creepy articulated legs trigger some primal rejection instinct in me.

Garrus said:

Main issue is that they're high in fat and chitin and relatively low in protein. Almost any other feeder that isn't a waxworm (which might as well be the feeder insect equivalent of deep fried butter) is better. If you're keeping a reptile, or at least a bearded dragon, an all mealworm diet will block up their digestive tracts and cause an impaction. Best feeders from a protein vs chitin standpoint goes to the roach feeders, while best feeder for a healthy calcium/phosphorous ratio goes to black soldier fly larvae. Best feeder for providing water happens to be silkworm caterpillars, btw.

Tell Sanaewife that mealworms aren't enough, she needs to start letting roaches into the house.

NWSiaCB said:

Tell Sanaewife that mealworms aren't enough, she needs to start letting roaches into the house.

My family has the same reaction. The only reason I have them is because, honestly? Crickets are SO much worse. They're noisy, the die fast, they smell horrid, if you leave them in with your pet they'll try and nibble on them, they get all over the place... there's nothing nice about them besides the fact they are cheap and generally have the #2 spot for protein vs chitin (largely thanks to almost every other feeder insect being some kind of fatty larva).

Ironically, cockroaches are the cleaner of the two and smell less, and easier to keep contained and handle to boot. The feeder ones, anyway. The german or american cockroach? Whole other ballgame.

edit: Well, one thing in favor of crickets is that they'll run around a bit before trying to hide. The roaches are much more aware of their place on the food chain and will bolt for cover ASAP.