Meal size(Bearded dragons) - Page 2

Dragon_Slave · 06-17-03, 11:43 AM

The only one being rude and defensive is you. When someone says ''lots of mealworms'' without giving a number, it makes me think of a number that would be the equivalent to ''lots''. And by ''varied diet'', what do you mean? How many mealies do you feed by meaning ''lots''. I never meant that you were taking bad care of your animals, I was just warning all others who read that post. When you aren't specific in what you are saying, people assume things.. and whether they assume right or wrong, you cannot know. I believe you that your animals are healthy, and did not mean that you were ''killing'' them.

Chobdragon · 06-17-03, 11:53 AM

I have to agree with V.hb. I have heard all the rumors about imaction from to many mealworms r supers, I have never had a problem with my 3 generations of waterdragons, and my wifes Beardies, which have just successfully bred!

V.hb · 06-17-03, 11:55 AM

Ha ha i was just trying to explain that a varied diet consisting of mealworms, leafy greens, the odd fruit, crickets etc works well. And ruling out mealworms is rediculous. You jumped into it claiming that I'am killing my animals. Thank you for your concern! But I think what I'am doing is in their best interest.

Dragon_Slave · 06-17-03, 11:58 AM

V.hb... I am concerned about everyone's dragons. It is a PROVEN fact that bearded dragons can get impacted from the chitin in mealworms... you can't argue with a proven fact. You CAN however, feed the freshly shed mealworms as a diet basis with no problems to dragons over 12 inches. As far as dragons under 12 inches, mealworms should not be fed, that's the bottom line. Read books, do some online research... you will find that NONE of them EVER recommend feeding mealworms to dragons. Oh, also, not to mention the fact that mealworms can cause hind-leg paralysis in beardies. There's some food for thought.

V.hb · 06-17-03, 12:11 PM

Hind leg paralysis usually gets caused by impactions... And its incredibly hard for an animal to become impacted if supplied with :
1. Adequate temperatures (mine are kept quite hot in spots, very hot.)
2. water available at all times (yes my beardies do drink)
3. Varied diet consisting of lots of insects and equal amounts of vegitation.

Yes, of course. To much of ONE thing is not good for anything, however when used properly it's fine. However, iam still highly skeptical of a large quantity of mealworms being used in a diet really causing as many problems as you say if the animal is kept in the right conditions. You have to think to yourself, that most people who keep beardies dont even give them the proper temps and lighting. Of course a hard exoskeleton such as the one found on the worm will cause problems given the animal has no heat to digest his food, or the proper lighting to utilize the vitamins that its fed. This is my arguement, and I feel its quite valid. Thanks for your input.

Dragon_Slave · 06-17-03, 12:14 PM

Ok... ''To each their own opinion''. Case Closed... I dont feel like getting into a heated argument and wasting any more time on something so pointless, if you aren't going to believe me, then that's your own decision.

V.hb · 06-17-03, 12:38 PM

Just answer this, have you run into problems with your beardie eating mealworms? Or have you even tried? Most people believe everything they read from an individual standpoint. Iam a firm believer that proper husbandry overrules alot of other errors people create. And i've already agreed with you on the point that too many is no good, But am still yet to see any ill results from it.

Dragon_Slave · 06-17-03, 01:31 PM

Yes, I have fed mealworms to my dragons.. and no, there were no resulting problems. But I only fed them for about a week, imagine what blockage could happen over a years time. It's like smoking a cigarrete, you don't automatically get cancer from one cigarette.. but if you keep smoking, cancer develops over time. And not all people get cancer, but it can happen.

V.hb · 06-17-03, 02:01 PM

you're comparing ciggerettes to mealworms?! haha ok this arguement has really gone sour....... But you proved my point when saying "Not all people get cancer, but it can happen."

Dragon_Slave · 06-17-03, 02:12 PM

Why laugh? It may seem silly, but if you think about it, it makes sense. Or maybe it's like in Billy Madison.. eh.. oh well, it makes perfect sense to me!

reptilez · 06-17-03, 07:33 PM

I think dragon_slave made a good point:
"And not all people get cancer, but it can happen."

Not all beardies get Impacted by mealworms, But it can happen.

reptilez · 06-17-03, 08:59 PM

I think dragon_slave made a good point:
"And not all people get cancer, but it can happen."

Not all beardies get Impacted by mealworms, But it can happen.

Dragon_Slave · 06-18-03, 12:10 AM

Thank You!

I knew it had to make sense to someone other than me! Lol.

eyespy · 06-18-03, 11:51 AM

I've assisted on bowel resections of hundreds of adult beardies that have gotten impacted on mealworms, so I do know it can happen. Owners will tell us what their setup is and we have no way of knowing whether they are really kept at those temperatures or not so we don't really keep track of how many were kept at inadequate temps, there's just no way to verify that.

Dehydration is sometimes an issue but most of the dragons in my experience were well hydrated. Being kept on sand seems to be a bigger issue than dehydration in my opinion. Many of the impactions had both sand and exoskeleton in them. But of course one vet tech's experiences is far from being a scientific study.