Advice needed

[RaeAnn]

Hey guys Ive been super busy with classes this semester and haven't had a lot of time to get on here lately. I hope everyone is doing well.

We are currently dealing with a bad super worm addiction. When she began refusing her Dubias a little over a month ago we cut super worms out completely. The issue is she is not caving in at all. We have been offering roaches multiple times a day with no luck. It has been about a month now since she has eaten a good protein meal and I'm beginning to worry.

She doesn't look underweight yet but she has lost over 30 grams. I have been giving her weekly slurries just to get some vitamins and nutrition into her. Once in a blue moon she will resort to eating a little salad and a tiny amount of grub pie. And she still goes crazy for hornworms which makes me think she has to be hungry.

What do you guys think? After a month should we just cave and give her supers or should we keep moving forward and try to break this addiction?


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[Canicke]

give her the supers. I'm going through this with my girl right now. but then - she aint eating her greens or anything else, either. not that she's big on veggies, but she will eat them. waitin for spring - I'm thinkin she may be just slowed down for the winter. what ya gonna do?

 

[Eavlynn]

Canicke is the soft parent, I'm taking the stand of the tough parent haha. I wouldn't cave, you've already come this far. If I remember right, Spyra was a chunky little gal, so it's unlikely that she'd starve herself too severely. Don't give in!

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[RaeAnn]

Thank you both. I am just like Canicke lol however Maddie is much more like you Eavlynn and believes we need to stay strong. We compromised and decided to order BSFL I'm praying she will actually eat them but we will see.

Yes she is a chubby girl which is why Im not too upset about the weight loss. She actually looks a lot healthier. We are going to hold our ground and at least try different feeders first. I just wanted to make sure we aren't being cruel at this point. What do you guys think about the weekly slurries? Should we continue with that so that she still gets her vitamins and calcium?


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[Eavlynn]

I think you two made a great compromise BSFL are always a good idea. It sounds like a little weight loss is doing her some good, I'd look at it like she's getting ready for swimsuit season haha.

I'd keep offering food until she takes it. On days that she turns her nose up completely, whip up a little slurry just to keep something in her system. I'd go light on the supplementation, especially if she goes for the BSFL. A good baby food base, a tiny sprinkle of multivitamin, and maybe a few dubia if you can handle putting them in the blender (I always feel guilty...). I'm sure that stubborn little Spyra will be just fine. You guys watch her like a hawk and will spot any change before it becomes an issue.

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[RaeAnn]

Thank you Eavlynn that all sounds great. I'm new to slurries so I have been mixing grub pie, veggie burger, regular calcium (no D3), multivitamin, bee pollen, dandelion leaf powder, and water together. If you have any recommendations on anything I need to add to, or take away from, this list of ingredients please let me know.

She's definitely almost ready from swim suit season haha just a few more grams to go. And yes she is the worlds most stubborn girl I believe. She needs lizard bootcamp [emoji23]


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[Eavlynn]

That's not a bad slurry concoction. I've never used grub pie or veggie burger, so my default is usually a stage one vegetable baby food. I like the dandelion leaf powder, I may have to get some of that

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[RaeAnn]

That's not a bad slurry concoction. I've never used grub pie or veggie burger, so my default is usually a stage one vegetable baby food. I like the dandelion leaf powder, I may have to get some of that

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Thanks for the feedback, I figured the grub pie would save me from needing to blend up insects lol. I get the dandelion leaf powder from either beadeddragon.co or beautifuldragon.com (I get the two confused) but I'm sure it can be purchased organically at many other places


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[Eavlynn]

Thanks for the feedback, I figured the grub pie would save me from needing to blend up insects lol. I get the dandelion leaf powder from either beadeddragon.co or beautifuldragon.com (I get the two confused) but I'm sure it can be purchased organically at many other places


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I've heard of grub pie, but don't know much about it. Prepackaged food products for reptiles make me nervous.

I should be able to order dandelion powder from my mom out in IL. She runs a health food store out there and has pretty much everything imaginable haha.

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[RaeAnn]

I've heard of grub pie, but don't know much about it. Prepackaged food products for reptiles make me nervous.

I should be able to order dandelion powder from my mom out in IL. She runs a health food store out there and has pretty much everything imaginable haha.

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That's awesome I would take full advantage of that lol.

Repashys products are the only prepackaged foods I trust. They go through lots of testing. The one thing Im not crazy over is the percent of fat in their products. It's a little too high for my likings. I can see it being really good for a malnourished dragon or as an occasional treat but I can't say I'm comfortable feeding it all the time for that reason.


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[Eavlynn]

That's awesome I would take full advantage of that lol.

Repashys products are the only prepackaged foods I trust. They go through lots of testing. The one thing Im not crazy over is the percent of fat in their products. It's a little too high for my likings. I can see it being really good for a malnourished dragon or as an occasional treat but I can't say I'm comfortable feeding it all the time for that reason.


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I'll have to do some more digging into their products. I wanted to look into grub pie when I first heard of it a few months ago, but got sidetracked a couple hundred times over haha. I'll add it to my list of topics to research

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[RaeAnn]

Let me know if you find out anything interesting (good or bad).

I also wanted to update you and let you know Ms. Stubborn ate some BSFL today. The last time we purchased any it was a waste of money and insects because she would not touch them. Now she's on a worm kick I guess lol but I'm not complaining. If she will continue to eat them I'll keep them coming.


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[PatsyB]

Ugh, i'm a caving parent. I give Dexter supers when she won't eat silks but because she won't eat veggies and she needs to put on some weight. Now, with Dolly I practiced tough love and the day I was going to cave in and syringe feed her she started eating.

With Dolly, I started feeding her Pangea crested gecko diet instead of making her a slurry. She gobbled it up and it has vitamins and nutrients in it. In fact, Beautifuldragons.com is favoring CGD over Critical Care.

 

[RaeAnn]

Ugh, i'm a caving parent. I give Dexter supers when she won't eat silks but because she won't eat veggies and she needs to put on some weight. Now, with Dolly I practiced tough love and the day I was going to cave in and syringe feed her she started eating.

With Dolly, I started feeding her Pangea crested gecko diet instead of making her a slurry. She gobbled it up and it has vitamins and nutrients in it. In fact, Beautifuldragons.com is favoring CGD over Critical Care.

She doing well so far with the BSFL eating about 15-20 large sized larvae a day. I was very close to caving lol. She is a lot like Dexter with veggies so I can relate. Once in awhile she may eat a tiny amount. I usually stick a few pieces in her mouth while she's chewing insects which was hard to do while she was on a hunger strike.

I have heard that the CGD is good stuff. I'm a big fan of Repashy products so I'm sure it works great


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[PatsyB]

That's what I do with Dexter! When she chews a super, I shove a green in with it! Hey, a mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do!

 

[RaeAnn]

That's what I do with Dexter! When she chews a super, I shove a green in with it! Hey, a mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do!

Haha that's exactly right


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[RaeAnn]

So we tried a small sized roach today and sure enough she ate them. It seems she only likes small roaches. Any size bigger than a half inch she will not eat


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[Eavlynn]

So we tried a small sized roach today and sure enough she ate them. It seems she only likes small roaches. Any size bigger than a half inch she will not eat


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Such a silly girl. I suppose eating bite sized food is more lady-like haha.

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[RaeAnn]

Well it's official Fat momma does not like Dubias anymore. She is now eating BSFL as a staple and refusing all roaches. We have a growing colony now with no reptile to feed them to lol just my luck. I wish one of you guys were close by, I refuse to waste them. Hopefully we can find a few individuals searching for some.

I think I may have the worlds strangest beardie lol. She use to hate BSFL and love Dubias I swear she constantly changes


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[Canicke]

my kids are also going through a "dubia? yuck!" phase - I'm sure it will pass. I just ended up freezing most of my colony cuz they were getting too big - and the kids wont eat them! sigh