Cricket feeding

Hey guys,
I've been trying to feed Winston crickets to give him some variety (he still won't touch fruit/veg), but I'm not having much luck. I tried the small ones (2 weeks, I think), but he didn't seem to see them as food. I left one in his food dish to give him the idea, and I think he was more annoyed when it tried to jump on his nose. He had a 'why is my food moving' look on his face - he was not impressed. Should I try dead ones to give him the taste? I'm not keen on buying crickets if they're not going to be eaten.

Kendra

I have found that babies dont generally know what to do with them? Im not sure, perhaps i skimmed over his age in your post? I would really recommend starting with a meal worm. They are much less irritating, if you will. Sometimes cutting one in half & rubbing it near their mouth can stimulate their curiosity. With crickets, i dont feed them too often as mine prefer mealies or supers, but you can try putting him in the bathtub with a few at a time & see what he does.

Some hedgies just never take to eating bugs, my first female never touched them, however, one of my current females found an earthworm in the yard & ate it before i could stop her, SO it depends on the "taste" they have. I'd keep trying occasionally for a year or two, Beatrix didnt start to seem into her bugs until she was well over a year.

Good luck & happy bugging!

Half my hedgies LOVE crickets, more so than mealies. The other ones won't touch them, you would think you were offering....well, crickets. Ha. I really really hate meal worms anyway, so I prefer the crickets too. Now hubby does the mealies I do the crickets and we are both careful of what we pick up from the fridge! I think most people would be really grossed out by worms and crickets in their fridge, but us hedgie owners don't think twice!

I use canned mealworms and crickets with my hedgies and they are usually a big hit.

Sometimes it is a matter of them finally figuring out how to catch a cricket. I have had to hold them still while the hedgehog bites them for the first time. With mine, they usually started to learn how to hunt the little jumpy critters though once they figured out they were good eats.

Stick them in the fridge before feeding. They move more slowly when chilled so hedgie will have a chance to catch them.

Thanks for the ideas. He's about 9 months now and likes exploring new areas, so he should like this. I'll give that a try this weekend

Kendra

I know it sounds cruel but i pull the legs off so they cant hop and all my hedgies(5) love them.