Lise
Well-Known Member
SQ said:
Protein from a bug as a treat is a much much healthier protein, than protein from a Greenie as a treat!
And how many people are guilty of giving their rats Greenies...
can rat eat cooked meal worms and crickets?
- Thread starter bruxxy
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Protein from a bug as a treat is a much much healthier protein, than protein from a Greenie as a treat!
And how many people are guilty of giving their rats Greenies...
Willow Bean
Well-Known Member
I just remember that my rat has to kiss me afterward and that keeps me from feeding bugs to them! :laugh4: Especially since Willow likes to stick her head in my bf's mouth and clean his teeth!! :laugh4:
I Forgot to add! I was disgusted when my bf brought how the bearded dragon, Errol, because I knew he was going to have to eat bugs (now know that there are bug substitutes and he gets fed those most of the time instead). But I did research about bugs, wondering if they feel pain. This is one of the things that I found: http://en.allexperts.com/q/Entomology-Study-Bugs-665/insects-feel-pain.htm
I hope this helps, bruxxy and everyone else!
I Forgot to add! I was disgusted when my bf brought how the bearded dragon, Errol, because I knew he was going to have to eat bugs (now know that there are bug substitutes and he gets fed those most of the time instead). But I did research about bugs, wondering if they feel pain. This is one of the things that I found: http://en.allexperts.com/q/Entomology-Study-Bugs-665/insects-feel-pain.htm
I hope this helps, bruxxy and everyone else!
AlexandraBoo
Well-Known Member
Edit
Meal worms, are bred for being eaten. they are gunna be eaten. Whether we feed them to our rats or not. ITS the food chain. It is not sick of someone to feed a mealworm to an animal that would eat that in the wild.
And yes now people are gunna say, Well snakes eat rats and mice in the wild. Feeding a live rat causes the rat pain, and can harm your snake if the rat decides to attack it. a mealworm cannot be even compaired to a rat or a mouse. sorry, rats and mice are intelligent, meal worms, have never been proven to do tricks... or even remember where the food is. So .. a meal worm in my books is not very important for me to complain over. Id rather complain about all the dogs and animals dying in the chinese furr farms, or maybe all the animals being tested on for cosmetics. like really you must have no life, to complain about a mealworm FED live. like come on people. ITS A WORM. and a yucky one at that. yes im sure its sad, but think of all the other actual ANIMALS that die every day, why not complain about that?
anic: :wallbang:
Meal worms, are bred for being eaten. they are gunna be eaten. Whether we feed them to our rats or not. ITS the food chain. It is not sick of someone to feed a mealworm to an animal that would eat that in the wild.
And yes now people are gunna say, Well snakes eat rats and mice in the wild. Feeding a live rat causes the rat pain, and can harm your snake if the rat decides to attack it. a mealworm cannot be even compaired to a rat or a mouse. sorry, rats and mice are intelligent, meal worms, have never been proven to do tricks... or even remember where the food is. So .. a meal worm in my books is not very important for me to complain over. Id rather complain about all the dogs and animals dying in the chinese furr farms, or maybe all the animals being tested on for cosmetics. like really you must have no life, to complain about a mealworm FED live. like come on people. ITS A WORM. and a yucky one at that. yes im sure its sad, but think of all the other actual ANIMALS that die every day, why not complain about that?
anic: :wallbang:For some people it does not matter whether the animal is lovable and furry or not. The same argument can be applied by others towards a variety of other animals that you or anyone else cares about. Please keep that in mind before making comments like this.
Even though I have fed worms to my ratties, does not mean that I don't care for them. They might be bugs but they are still alive and deserve respect just like everything else IMO. I make sure they have a stimulating enclosure (for meal worms that means lots of oatmeal mix to burrow in) and food while they are with me. I guess I sound like a hypocrite but the same can be said about people who say they love animals but eat hamburgers, drink milk or eat anything that comes from an animal for that matter.
theratlady
Well-Known Member
live feeding insects is not the same as live feeding rodents. if you kill the insects first its not much different then what the rats do to them with the first bite. like mamarat said you can slow them down considerably in the fridge first. mealworms are quite fattening so should really be a treat. i mean if you already raise them for other critters then its not so bad but if you buy them most are not gutloaded or nutricious for lizards or rodents.
and the larger "mealworms" are not waxworms but referred to as "superworms" those things are quite scary but rats will not swallow them whole so no chance of injury internally but because they are so big they could pinch while the rat is trying to eat them and to me they could be prekilled before feeding.
and the larger "mealworms" are not waxworms but referred to as "superworms" those things are quite scary but rats will not swallow them whole so no chance of injury internally but because they are so big they could pinch while the rat is trying to eat them and to me they could be prekilled before feeding.
SQ
Senior Member - Vegan for the animals
Lise said:
No idea, hopefully not many ....
Many people, such as myself, only give their rats healthy treats, not things like greenies, etc.
.... my rats think treats are vegs such as peas, fruit, mushy lab blocks, organic field greens, oatmeal, etc.
Lindsay
Well-Known Member
I have many reptiles and amphibians at my home and I feed live mealworms and crickets. Why? Because my animals will not even touch or notice an insect if it's not moving. My female leopard gecko will walk over to a mealworm and poke it with her nose first. If it moves she will eat it, if not then she will walk away from it and never touch it. I wonder if it has anything to do with some sort of self-protection against parasites that could have potentially killed the bug in the wild? Maybe it's instinct?
Either way... like Alex said, these bugs' sole purpose in life is to provide food for other species. Their death while being eaten is instant, unlike a mouse that would suffer under the crushing pressure of a constrictor snake... or the slow, swallowing-whole, eating habits of other snakes.
Either way... like Alex said, these bugs' sole purpose in life is to provide food for other species. Their death while being eaten is instant, unlike a mouse that would suffer under the crushing pressure of a constrictor snake... or the slow, swallowing-whole, eating habits of other snakes.
Phyllis
Well-Known Member
My ratties get baked chicken Breast, tidbits of steak & pork chop & ham on special occasion, wouldn't feed that nasty stuff to me kids, also I hate all live feeding!
SQ
Senior Member - Vegan for the animals
Lindsay said:
I don't think so!!!!
That may be what you have decided their purpose is ....
But the purpose of animals is not limited to their place on the food chain.
And there isn't much point in discussing which types of death are less cruel than others.
Each of us makes our own personal food choices.
Live feeding is wrong.
lilangel
Well-Known Member
i give my ratties mealworms they love them as treats.
It has already been established that different people have different opinions on the subject of live feeding. Every viewpoint has been addressed. The opinions on the matter no longer pertain to the original topic of this thread. Please keep it on topic from now on.
Lindsay
Well-Known Member
Well, like I said in my last post, my animals will NOT eat anything that's already dead... so unless there's an alternative out there that I haven't already heard about that will work for them, I will continue to do as I always have.
I do know that there are those vibrating dishes that you can put bugs on to make them appear alive to attract herps to them, but most are afraid of those and won't go near them...
To stay on topic though, I have given my rats the occasional mealworm and cricket. They seem to enjoy them. They don't get them very often though. Only on a rare occasion.
I do know that there are those vibrating dishes that you can put bugs on to make them appear alive to attract herps to them, but most are afraid of those and won't go near them...
To stay on topic though, I have given my rats the occasional mealworm and cricket. They seem to enjoy them. They don't get them very often though. Only on a rare occasion.
I've started to give my ratties bugs once a month. A few months ago I went to a place that sold waxworms and butterworms so I picked up a few of those and the rats loved them. They don't have the hard shell like the mealworms so they are much easier to swollow.
The butterworms and waxworms are high in fat, protein and calcium so they should only be given as a rare treat.
I wonder if you could use waxworms and butterworms to help keep a good weight on certain rats that are loosing too much weight for whatever reason (tumors, old age, general illnesses).
The butterworms and waxworms are high in fat, protein and calcium so they should only be given as a rare treat.
I wonder if you could use waxworms and butterworms to help keep a good weight on certain rats that are loosing too much weight for whatever reason (tumors, old age, general illnesses).
Lindsay
Well-Known Member
It might work. I know it works well for fattening up a thin lizard.
