Crickets and Mealworms

Thinus · Post by **Thinus** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 8:38 am

How can I feed crickets to my finches without them (the crickets) escaping?

Also can a mealworm be too big and cause harm to a finch? If so what sizes are acceptable?

mickp · Post by **mickp** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 9:11 am

before feeding crickets to my birds I always put the crickets in the freezer for a couple of minutes to really slow them down. have found over time that my birds have a preference for the smaller mealworms.

B CAMP · Post by **B CAMP** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 10:24 am

Never tried crikets,but mealworms smaller is what mine like .They seem to be afraid of large ones

Thinus · Post by **Thinus** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 12:28 pm

Thanks, I just want to make sure about these type of this before rushing into it.

Pukasand · Post by **Pukasand** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 5:46 pm

I snip my mealworms in half before feeding to my Bleus, they eat them all this way. When theyre whole, seems I find alot discarded. Good luck!

sean · Post by **sean** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 6:11 pm

i have found the mealworms-in-a-can are an easy way to feed my birds. i don't remember the name of the product, but i believe that it is for sale at fairest finches.

i usually snip mine into halfs or thirds, because i have found that otherwise the worms end up on bottom of the cage completely whole (and wasted).

L in Ontario · Post by **L in Ontario** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 6:13 pm

Okay so NOW I'm going to try snipping these awful things too! I've been giving one or two a day and they've all been left untouched... so far. Glad this has been mentioned before I go through an entire can!

atarasi · Post by **atarasi** » Wed Jan 07, 2009 7:16 pm

I've found that when the mealworms are moving around, my Gouldians are more interested then when they are motionless/dead.
But, I'm sure every bird is different!

williep · Post by **williep** » Wed Jan 14, 2009 3:09 pm

Thinus, I would recommend you rather use termites. They are available in most velds and are FREE. They are a great source of protein and small enough for finches. You can keep them in a container (like a black dustbin) for 2 weeks. Otherwise small mealworms will probably work just as well

gomer · Post by **gomer** » Thu Jan 15, 2009 4:23 am

termites are the ultimate food.I wonder though are they found in most continants

Here in Australia the correct ones are only found in Northern Australia.There are some in southern Australia(where I live)But are no good,So i have been told as thier pinchers are to big and dangerous.And even if they were ok, they are way to hard to find.

Thinus · Post by **Thinus** » Thu Jan 15, 2009 5:42 am

Thanks for all of your advice. There are quite a few termite mounds right across the street from where I live. (I stay across a big piece of veld). Seeing as you say I can keep them alive for a couple of weeks, I have decided to go and excavate some this afternoon and see how things go.

L in Ontario · Post by **L in Ontario** » Thu Jan 15, 2009 9:40 am

Ewwwww (shivers), but good luck!

franny · Post by **franny** » Thu Jan 15, 2009 11:45 am

We city/apartment dwellers don't have a readily available supply of termites (at least we hope not!

There are termites here on the west coast (live in rotten logs), but they are not so easy to harvest, should you want to...

And I guess for obvious reasons, they are not produced commercially. (Would you want to build a house next to a termite farm???)