Re: [gecko]crested gecko eating issues

[Julie Bergman]

Hi Jim, Jim Hammond wrote: We're providing fresh mealworms and gut-loaded crickets for our Crested and he seems to prefer baby food. That is ok! I would provide that by mixing it with the Gargoyle food so he gets enough protein. This is a baby Crested, yes? I can account for all but two of the crickets we've put in his house in the past 3 weeks. We're supplementing the baby food with D3 and bee pollen. Is he getting what he needs? If you are going to supplement babyfood which is not not mixed with anything else, you need a balanced supplement that includes at least Calcium, phosphorus (Ca:phosphorus 2:1) , D3, and beta-carotene (pre-cursor for Vitamin A). There are several products on the market that would fit this bill - the T-Rex (ICB) Insect Cricket Balancer would work although is really meant to "balance" crickets fed (ILF) Insect Loading Formula to acheive the proper ratios. RepCal with D3 mixed 50/50 with Herptivite would work, also the good Dr. Susan Donoghue (herp vet nutrition specialist and fellow gecko lister) could provide you something at http://www.herpnutrition.com.  So no, just D3 and bee pollen will not be adequate and is harmful because of the metabolic imbalance. If you use the Gargoyle Gecko food mixed with babyfood there is no need to supplement. Let us know if you have any more questions! Julie B. Thanks, Jim -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of Julie Bergman Sent: Monday, March 01, 2004 11:13 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: [gecko]crested gecko eating issues Hi Dana, If he is eating crickets then I don't think there is any cause for worry here. Your frequency of feeding this guy babyfood is probably too much from what I am seeing here. Save it for every third day or so, and DO NOT hand feed (creating a bad habit that may be hard to break). Be sure to use the Gargoyle and not the Crested T-Rex food at this point. He wants protein more than babyfood at this point in his growth and the Gargoyle food is just what he needs as far as that goes. Julie Bergman www.geckoranch.com GGA lifetime member Dana wrote: Hi Everyone - I wrote to this listserv last week about my newly acquired juvenile crested that wasn't eating his baby food (for reference, he is about 4.5-5.0" and does seem to be growing). Thanks for the responses - they were helpful. Unfortunately, he still won't eat the baby food on his own. He will eat a little bit at a time when I hand feed it to him - he eats so little each time that some days I have fed him small amounts twice a day. When I leave the food in his home he won't eat it by himself. I am feeding him the same flavor baby food mixed with the T-rex crested gecko diet just as they had been feeding him at the store where I bought him. I have tried different flavors of food, food without any supplements, food with Rep-Cal supplements (very light) instead of the t-Rex - the only thing that I haven't tried, which I will do tomorrow is puree some fruit myself and offer that to him - any other suggestiong that I haven't tried? He has been eating crickets - he really likes them, but how concerned, at this point, should I be that he is not eating the baby food on his own (he's had plenty of time to acclimate to his new home as it has been 2 weeks since I brought him home)? - Thanks, Dana _______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko _______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko _______________________________________________ Global Gecko Association http://www.gekkota.com Classifieds http://www.gekkota.com/cgi-gekkota/classifieds.cgi gecko mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.gekkota.com/mailman/listinfo/gecko