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Gutloaded crickets with calcium powder--good staple?

schmiggle

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Daimler

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for amphibians one of the most important nutrients its the beta-carotene, it is important for the color pigment of all amphibians, stimulate the reproduction, improves the Immune system and the health in general.
to have crickets with hight beta-carotene, give them lots of carrots :D
 

manderkeeper

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I have very good luck using crickets for terrestrial salamanders and for my lizards, too. Unlike dubia roaches, they do not hide very well which is the reason I continue to use them.

Some people have had problems with crickets biting their pets. To prevent this, dont feed more than can be eaten in a few hours and injure some of the crickets legs so it cannot move very fast. This will ensure your pet will catch them before they become an issue. For salamanders, I also use earthworms, pillbugs, etc, I would never recommend one food source exclusively.

Vitamin A deficiency is also known in amphibians so I dust all crickets with calcium without D/3 every feeding and use reptivite once a week as it has preformed vitamin A and D3 in it. You can also get some preformed vitamin A in your crickets bellies by feeding some ground up chick layer mash along with the vegetables and greens you're feeding them. I think that along with the dusting will likely prevent vitamin A deficiency as I've yet to have an issue but it can effect eyesight and cause the tongue to be ineffective in food capture so you do want to consider it as serious thing.
 

schmiggle

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Luckily for me, I already feed my crickets with lots of carrots, since they're around, and it seemed healthy. :) Are salamanders able to convert beta-carotene into vitamin A?
I was not planning to use one food source, since so many places suggest a varied diet for salamanders. That's good to know about the vitamin A dusting, though. How easy is it to overdose with vitamin A? I've read that that can also be a serious issue.
Thanks for all the info!
 

Daimler

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Luckily for me, I already feed my crickets with lots of carrots, since they're around, and it seemed healthy. :) Are salamanders able to convert beta-carotene into vitamin A?
I was not planning to use one food source, since so many places suggest a varied diet for salamanders. That's good to know about the vitamin A dusting, though. How easy is it to overdose with vitamin A? I've read that that can also be a serious issue.
Thanks for all the info!

Yes and its really better then pure vitamin A because vit A can be toxic in hight level while beta not; because the caudata that feed with beta make only the vitamin A that they need (but with hight level of beta they become RED) :happy:
And about the cricket give them lots of carrot and lots of other vegetable :D
 
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