Cricket Watering

A few of us were getting into ways to provide moisture to crickets as they await their demise in the mouth of a chameleon in the "how do you feed your chameleon" thread. So rather than keep any further comment on it buried there, I wanted to give it its own venue for as long as it can stay active. Whether you raise your own crickets, or just buy them from the store every week, etc, read the posts there pertaining to it and the use of fruits and vegetables, etc.

A point I wanted to get laid down under this thread title has to do with the ability to contaminate your crickets via their source of moisture, and turn them into "poison pills". Whatever your moisture source, you must change every 48 hours or sooner. When you change it, you must eliminate or disinfect the prior area of moisture presentation, and start a new one. If its a corner of a cricket holding container where you are putting fruits or vegetables, or a "cricket water" product, wipe it dry and use another corner for the next two days. If water bottles, wash and disinfect. If not done, crickets and their debris will start a good bacteria growth in that moisture spot. In 4-5 days you will have lethal amounts of bad bacteria being ingested by the crickets that can handle doses in excess of what you chameleon can. And they will deliver it to your chameleon, becoming "poison pills", creating major infections in the upper esophageal tract of your chameleon. Five or six major types of bacteria will fester. Without an antibiotic regimen, your chameleon will die in 2-4 weeks. Word to the wise.

I use oranges and potatoes. I change them every couple days simply because they will start to mold and dry out if I don't. I don't really clean the tub out but about every 2 weeks. Only when a new order comes in.

You can let the "clean-out" go for 1-2 months no problem, just so long as you manage the moisture. Dry is not your enemy. Wet is. Potatoes and oranges will get you by, and have shelf-life. But next time in the grocery store, wander over and look at what greens may be convenient for you. With lower cricket volumes, you may have to go with something that you want to eat too. If not fresh greens, a bag of frozen mixed green vegetables is great, or frozen spinach, as you can keep it in the freezer, and only put some in with your crickets every couple of days in a new spot, removing any old that is left. It'll defrost in 10-20 minutes, and is dirt cheap and easy.

I throw in spring mix greens that I have left from the dragons sometimes. They seem to work well and disappear pretty fast.

Jim,
So these cricket waterers can be dangerous? What about the water pillows? Can this cause a cham to be septic?

Jeremy

Jim,
Also, when you say that your chameleon can die in 2-4 weeks, is that 2-4 weeks of feeding infected crickets, or one time feeding infected crickets can cause death in 2-4 weeks?

Jeremy

Jeremy,
Any moisture exposed to crickets beyond 48 hours can start to become problematic if the moisture is standing, that meaning unchanged. Sponges, gels, vegetables that remain moist, even a spill that does not dry out. As to your second question, give it some thought as to what the variables might be. There are too many to give you a conclusive answer, and any doctor will tell you that. The greater your bacteria infestation, and the longer your crickets are exposed to it, the more they will take in and deliver to your chameleon. The health of your chameleon will play into it a little bit as well. Point being, moisture and warmth (bacteria grow better at 85-90F than they do at 65-70F) and time are your primary variables. Beyond 48 hours, the risks increase.

Thanks Jim, that is great information.

I use a small amount of whatever I have un for moisture and throw out the uneaten every day, seems like is always has cricket poo on it then I put in new in a new clean bowl. Ill start giving them more greens too.

Jim,
Do you think that it is ok to use the waterers as long as they are cleaned regularly? I bleach them every time I clean them out. It almost defeats the purpose of using a waterer though because the amount of water in it would never be used up in a day. I give fresh vegetables also so I might go ahead and do away with the waterers just to be safe. Thanks for the info.

Jeremy

If you define "regularly" as every 48 hours, then "yes", they are safe. I am not sure how you define "waterers", as that is a wide-open description. No need to come back and define it though. In our case, we use sponge-bottom water bottles. Maybe half full. The crickets never consume all the water in two days. However much you fill them, the "goal" is to have enough there so that it lasts until the next fill. But the purpose is to have clean water always available to your crickets, and I am not sure how that purpose is "almost defeated". As for products that basically get a one-time use, as in the crickets water gels, I cannot recommend them, as that would seem to be a waste of money. People (and the manufacturer) claim that it can be re-generated. I would not recomment that as it cannot be disinfected between uses. If would absorb some of the disinfectent, and then you would have a new problem. Many pet stores sell sponge waterers. Rough up the plastic ramps on them with sandpaper, and they work fine for smaller amounts of crickets. Takes 3 minutes to wash and reload every couple of days. If it is disinfected, and sitting with water in it, but not exposed to crickets and contaminants, it does not have to be re-cleaned every two days. In those cases, we let them go a week.