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Geezle View Profile |
Overweight?
But the point of this is I was wondering if he looks a little tubby? I’ve seen a pics of skinnier (though not unhealthy looking) goldies and I’m wondering if that’s what I should be aiming for, or if I should just keep feeding as I have been. Thanks! |
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| 04/09/08 11:43pm |
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Madcowgreen View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1697012 Overweight?
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| 04/11/08 11:25am |
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KrazyKelli View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1697012 Overweight?
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| 04/11/08 01:38pm |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: KrazyKelli In reference to Message Id: 1698881 Overweight?
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| 04/12/08 10:20am |
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Gretchenellie View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1700097 Overweight?
i am curious as i have recently aquired a male Golden Gecko that seems to love his gecko mash diet and fresh fruit, but nothing else... thanks! |
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| 04/13/08 10:23pm |
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Madcowgreen View Profile |
Message To: Gretchenellie In reference to Message Id: 1702249 Overweight?
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| 04/15/08 12:13pm |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: Madcowgreen In reference to Message Id: 1704130 Overweight?
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| 04/15/08 07:40pm |
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KrazyKelli View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1704621 Overweight?
You can keep feeding superworms, but cut it down to one every three days, or longer if you feel it’s appropriete. You could also do this with smaller superworms instead of the monster-sized ones. The main thing is that reptiles have extremely slow metabolism rates. They don’t need to necessarily eat "as much as they can in ___ minutes". Feed less, less often to fix this problem. |
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| 04/16/08 12:44am |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: KrazyKelli In reference to Message Id: 1705075 Overweight?
Quote: I’m repeating myself constantly here, but superworms are more nutritious than mealworms and crickets, however they can be fatty if fed too often. Wait, didn’t I say all this in the thread I linked?
You say that as if I didn’t read the thread you linked... I’m aware that supers are fattier than say crickets or roaches. As it stands, my goldie has been getting roughly 3 supers 2x weekly for a while now since I noticed a while ago that he seemed kinda porky, and like I said, I’m trying to move away from the supers. Now I almost feel like I’m being blasted for asking for an opinion...not that I’m overly sensitive or really taking it to heart...maybe I’m reading more into it than you’re implying, but it’s hard to get a handle on tone over the interweb. I’ve never been a fan of "as much as they can eat in ___ minutes" either, mainly because some herps in general can be more aggressive feeders than others...I realize that you have to regulate the amount of food they’ll eat because you can’t count on them to do it themselves. |
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| 04/19/08 09:21pm |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1709521 Overweight?
Would I be better off feeding smaller amounts more often...like about one item per day, instead of say 3 items every 3 days? |
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| 04/19/08 09:42pm |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1709545 Overweight?
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| 04/19/08 09:43pm |
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KrazyKelli View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1709547 Overweight?
It’s much much better to feed one at a time instead of three at once. Not only are those suckers about one third the size of the gecko at times, but the gecko needs time to process the food and flush it from the system. Sometimes I’ll lack on food for a few days to achieve full digestion of what the gecko ate as well as that the gecko has worked everything else from the system, especially for slower geckos. You’d be outright surprised how long goldies can hold onto what they eat. During the winter this year, Sade decided not to eat for two weeks. When I caught him for a closer examination, he somehow crapped a super he ate that long ago onto me. Here I thought he was empty. And he was fine, just being a stubborn gecko in the winter. Though I’m not saying to purposefully starve the gecko for two weeks or anything. Winter and brumation are entirely different concerning an adult gecko’s eating habits. I may sound like the most heartless jerk in the world (though I usually never mean it), but it honestly wont hurt to stop feeding your goldie for five to seven days if it’s hulking fat. They’ll sometimes quit eating that long on their own before and after shedding periods. And it’s not like owners a decade or two ago didn’t feed their geckos every week to twice a week anyway (though this practice was changed). Nothing wrong with switching away from supers. The problem, though, is that sometimes supers can be addictive. Sade the goldie refuses to eat mealworms and will only rarely hunt crickets. I personally like mealies as my fav feeder insect as they are easy to keep, can be fed to goldies, and have a 50% nutritional value going for them - which means they’re easier to moderate at times. Crickets have the same value (give or take 5%), and they may even encourage your goldie to hunt... But they’re very hard to catch in a goldie tank and will bite the goldie if left unattended for more than a day. That and crickets die, hide, and breed so easily in humid tanks it’s ridiculous. The smell is terrible. |
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| 04/19/08 11:22pm |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: KrazyKelli In reference to Message Id: 1709639 Overweight?
I just need you to clarify one thing for me as well...are you suggesting that mealies are better than supers for golden geckos? I ask because I’ve always heard that supers are more nutritious than mealworms, and their chitlin isn’t as tough to digest, which *should* make them a better choice, no? Is there a specific reason you prefer mealworms? And yeah, crickets suck, plain and simple. I’ve moved 4 of my 6 lizards over from crix to roaches as their staple, and the remaining two (the goldie and my brown basilisk) are getting mainly supers now...I’m trying to get them on to the roaches but they’re just not terribly interested. |
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| 04/21/08 05:53pm |
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KrazyKelli View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1711524 Overweight?
Some geckos and lizards should not be fed mealworms, but goldies can handle them fine provided you keep the humidity and heat correct. I like mealworms for many reasons. Smell, care, easy to breed, can be refrigerated, and biggest of all Ron Tremper (major breeder of Leos) proved that leopard geckos who eat mealies instead of crickets lived longer (by a few years). I feel it should be the same for goldies as well as other gecko species that can eat mealies. Contrary to other opinions, they’re pretty easy to gutload for me and I can dust them absolutely fine. But if you’re feeding roaches, go ahead and keep feeding roaches. I love roaches just as much due to the care, breeding, nutrition and their real low chitin. Roaches can also come without wings, which I love. If you put a little bit of mashed up banana or mango in the dish with the roaches, it may entice the goldie to eat them... Or at least lick the dish. But don’t use that as a full-time solution as fruit is addictive. Don’t worry too much about starvation. The general rule is to see a vet if the gecko starves itself for more than ten days, but since goldies are extremely stubborn you can always try a different bug or method of feeding. |
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| 04/21/08 08:23pm |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: KrazyKelli In reference to Message Id: 1711744 Overweight?
I’ve definitely become a big fan of the roaches since I first got them for my monitor, for all the reasons you stated. They’re just so easy to maintain, don’t stink like stupid crickets, and once you’ve got an established colony you’re pretty much set. I have a colony of discoids that I’ve had for about 7 months now, but I only started feeding them off about 4 months ago, at first only to the monitor, and then I slowly just started switching them out for crickets with my other lizards. I also like the wide variety of sizes you get with the roaches...I can get ones up to 2" for the monitor, and I have little 1/2" ones for my baby leopard gecko. But enough about the roach colony...I like the idea of putting a little fruit in there with the roaches...I have bananas here now, maybe I should try sticking/smearing a little on the back of the roaches and see what happens? I’m sure once he eats one or two and realizes they’re food it’ll be all good...it’s just a matter of getting to that point. And about the fruit being addictive, don’t worry, I know that one too. I pretty much never give any of my reptiles fruit anymore, none of the ones I have *need* it, and I don’t feel they understand the concept of a treat, so I just try to stick to giving a variety of bugs with the staple being the roaches. I’m also definitely not worried about starvation...he’s got plenty of fat reserves that’ll keep him going, it’s not like he’s terribly active. Just gotta make sure he stays hydrated. If he goes more than a couple weeks I’ll probably toss him a worm since I know he’ll eat that, and then I’ll leave him with the roaches again. |
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| 04/21/08 09:58pm |
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Geezle View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1711889 Overweight?
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| 04/22/08 11:06am |
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KrazyKelli View Profile |
Message To: Geezle In reference to Message Id: 1712296 Overweight?
There are other people around, but not many people post asking questions on this forum, so you wont see them as much as me. It’s all fine and good. It’s not like I’m telling you to throw your goldie in a swimming pool or feed it pinkies every day =P |
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| 04/25/08 11:45am |
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