Night crawlers good feeder or no?

[redtail2426]

I have heard they are high in moisture and calcium but I have also heard they carry bacteria, pesticide and parasites. I wanted to get some from wal mart and was wondering if anyone has any experience or knowledge on this topic? Thanks.

 

[COWHER]

I dont know more than that i give them to my tegu and he goes ape s#!t over them its the only food he has a feeding response to :twisted: as for being safe???? i would like to know that too :roll:

 

[VARNYARD]

Worms are great, they are really a good food sorce.

 

[PuffDragon]

if you have an outside enclosure I am sure they grab one here and there

 

[VARNYARD]

I am sure they do, I would also bet there are many other things they grab when given the chance.

 

[pythonman13]

ok i know this the one's that our used as bait have alot of chemicals and pesticide in them so do not use them you will have to get one's that our bred to be feeders i only know one place that carrys nightcrawlers as feeders
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[redtail2426]

How do you know that they have chemicals and pesticides in them what proof do you have? I bought some out of a bait vending machine today they look good, they are 12 days old kept cool, I called the guy who stocks the machine today about them and he says all he knows is that they order them in bulk from canada and I asked him if they are safe to feed to my lizard and He told me that the place he gets them from picks them off of golf courses and i asked him about pesticides and he said if they are off the golf course then probably would have pesticides in them. He then said he has people stop in to get worms and minnows for there turtles and other pets. I would think that pesticides would kill the worm anyways??

 

[greentriple]

Worms are resilient, much like roaches, so they may not dies from ingesting pesticides, unless specific to them. Like snails or other wild bugs you could put them on a diet you know is clean for a few days and then feed them. Better safe than sorry, I can't imagine you want to run the risk of poisoning your Tegu.

 

[redtail2426]

Ok well I recently got some european nightcrawlers from carolina pet supply and my little guy went through them pretty quick so now I am looking to get canadian nightcrawlers and I know that wal mart sells them for a 1.50 a dozen and they are from dmf bait company and there website says that you can feed them to your pets as long as you check with your vet and I emailed them and asked them if they are pesticide and chemical free and safe for my tegu and they wrote me back and basically said they have no idea whats in them and if they are safe. So I found some online from reptilefood.com for a 1.84 a dozen but I dont understand what the difference could be from there canadian nightcrawlers and the ones wal mart sells? Dont they all come from canada and probably from the same handful of bigtime sellers out of canada?

 

[WhiskeyTango]

What about the ones outside in the yard?Are those ok?

 

[redtail2426]

If they are nightcrawlers and you dont treat your lawn with anything I would assume so but im not positive. If anyone has any input on the post I have two posts up please let me know thanks.

 

[Tux]

They are a great feeder IMO. It is true that many you buy at bait shops arent too safe due to internal parasite load but those bred by feeder shops should be safe. Their nutrition breakdown is good, low fat high protein. I don't think they've been tested as a main feeder before but I've used them here and there and it seems to work for me.

 

[DZLife]

I have witnessed the feeding response to nightcrawlers, but I agree that one must be careeful considering what the worms may have been exposed to...I would never use ones sold as fishing bait. If I found one in my yard, as we never use any sort of pesticides, I might use it as a Tegu snack.

 

[WhiskeyTango]

I own barn that I use to raise rabbits in and its packed with earthworms..I never use pestisides in our yard either.

 

[snakehandler]

I feed them to lots of my animaks.

 

[redtail2426]

where do you get yours from snakehandler?

 

[snakehandler]

I breed them in my garden with compost.