Not Eating? & Keeping Superworms

Hey everyone..
I just wondered if it's normal for leos to go through times when they don't want to eat alot of food. It was a struggle to finally get my fussy leo eating superworms.. she was eating them fine for ages.. 3/4 superworms every other day. Suddenly, she isn't eating as much.. maybe 1 or 2 every other day. Just wanted to know if it's normal? or if it's something bad?

I also have a question about how to keep morioworms (superworms).. and gutloading. Right now, I just keep the worms in the plastic containers that they come in when I get them from the pet store. I give them carrots atm. and I leave all the bran mixture in that the pet store keeps them on.
I don't really know what to feed them? It has to be things I can get at home.. because I can't afford to buy gut loading 'bug grub' stuff. And should I move the worms into a bug container (those little pet carriers with the ventilated lid and handle on) ? Should I feed them everyday?

thanks
I thought I'd get posting right away.

Over the winter period it is completely normal for leos to cut down on their food intake or even not eat at all.
And 1 or 2 supers every other day will still keep her well fed so its nothing to worry about

Carrots work fine, i belive itis actualy what most people use. carrots and potatoes.
if your family or you ever make a stew or casserole or anything that involves peeling or cutting up a vegetable, its good idea to just give them the peelings and that since you dont need them.
so most fruit and veg are fine.

No need to feed them every day, once or twice a week is fine.

Also its a good idea to keep Supers in a well ventilated enclosure as if its get too humid and moist they will die.
I experienced this when i kept a load in a regular fliptop box. and it all condensed up.
But the boxes they come in are normally adequate enough.

Hey Jordan
thanks for your help.
I'm not worried about her feeding habits now.. that helps alot.. i was getting soo stressed about it. i was worried i was doing something wrong.

ohhh sooo i'm feeding them right then? that's good to hear. I've been getting them carrots and carrot peeling like whenever i see them in the kitchen.. my mom usually puts all the peelings and other veggie bits in a bowl for the rabbits soo i just steal them :P

Sooo.. i should just leave them in the plastic tub thingie? ... i have one of those containers that I use to put my physco jirds in when im cleaning their tanks.. soo i could move the morioworms into that.. but if the tubs okay then thats easier for me

haha no problem, glad i could put your mind at ease.

yeh, some people consider the Bug grub stuff to be better since it was made specifically for this purpose but its not really necessary. Once the feeders have gotten all the nutrition from a veggie then they are nice and healthy for the gecko to eat.

Its up to you, both tubs are fine. Whatever is easiest for you to feed and look after them in.
you may have seen in my thread in this section about how sometimes the feeders at the bottom don't get to the food. So if they are all squashed up and piled on in the tub that they come in then it could be a good idea to move into a tub with a bigger surfece area at the base. Thay way they will all get food.

hey

well.. i keep the plastic tubs after i've used up all the superworms. i could just seperate the worms into two seperate tubs soo there's more of a chance they will get to eat will that help?

i'll read your thread now.

that would help it yes however if your having no problems with them all getting the food then there is no need.

I will seperate them when I buy my next batch. these ones are almost gone.

I keep my supers in the second size up cricket/pet carrier with the ventilates lid in a bed of old fashioned oats and some crushed up high quality dog food (I've also heard that you can use a good fish food flake but I personally have never tried this). For gutload I keep 2 baby carrots, a potato wedge and a bit of apple (No seeds tho because the seeds produce arsenic if eaten/digested), but you really do have to change the veggies out every 3-4 days or they will rot and mold in your keeper and that is bad. Some of my superworms are approacing 3-4 nches long keeping them like this and I have had none die. Eros eats 1-3 per feeding 3x a week during the winter. He's just started picking h9is feeding back up. Also if your female is ovulating or coming into a shed she will slow down her eating habits as well.

Kermit wrote: Also if your female is ovulating or coming into a shed she will slow down her eating habits as well.

Not necessarily, ive found some gecko's actually eat more during ovulation, but stop when near laying. And shed never effects any of my gecko's eating habits.
Personally id say its definitely the winter thats slowed down the eating, as its still freezing here Kel. The temp still hasnt really picked up yet...

I would agree Jordan it likely is the winter slow down and don't think we're any warmer here in the states yet either We're still quite cold here with a foot of snow on the ground. As far as the eating while shedding thing I notice Eros always slows down his eating on days when he's completely ghosted up. He'll be luck to eat 1 super then he eats his shed and no dinner at all for a day or so then in a few days he's back on schedule with eating again.

Okay Thankyou Kermit
When I get my next lot of superworms, I will house them in my pet carrier

And I'm interested... what are the signs that a female is ovaluating? I don't know the exact age of my banana but I know she was just over a year when i first brought her home in october. So I guess she's around a year and 4/5 months. Do they ovaluate then? what's the starting age for ovaluation?
sorry about all the questions.. but I find it very fascinating and It's always good to know loads about your pets ^ ^

When the female is ovulating, when you look at her tummy you can see a small pink dot in the middle, also you may see small developing eggs at each side.
Your girl will have defnitely ovulated once before and will do again this year.
They usually first ovulate around 5 - 8 months, and when they are around 35g - 45g is normally when they first reach sexual maturity and have their first ovulation cycle.
And then from then on they will ovulate every year during breeding season which is Jan to Sept roughly. So yours may be ovulating now or starting very soon.

wow cool thanks.. i'm going to look at her tummy tomorrow