Best Gut Load

Tofuman

Arachnopeon
Joined
Mar 6, 2011
Messages
31
What's the best gut load to use for feeders? I'm having a hard time deciding what brand to use.
 

Pssh

Arachnoknight
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
197
I prefer to make my own. I plan to sell it soon. :) It usually contains these items give or take one or two depending on what is available.

(no order): brewers yeast, bee pollen, pearled barley, spirulina, dried fruits (maybe, papaya, apples, oranges, raspberries, other berries, blackberries, pineapple, pear, etc) dried veggies (maybe - collards, mustards, turnip greens, dandelions whole, kale, carrots, squash, sunflower sprouts, mixed lettuces, etc.) rice, oats, raw sunflower seeds, peanut, granola, millet, black eye peas, lima beans, yellow split peas, wheat bran, wheat germ, alfalfa, milo, black beans, pink beans, red beans, white beans, kelp/dried seaweed, oak leaves, hibiscus leaves, flax seed meal, soy flour, grape nuts, teeny bit of powdered skim milk, small bit dried coconut, marigolds/powder, rose hips.
 

cacoseraph

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 5, 2005
Messages
8,325
i am unconvinced gutloading works in carnivore obligates like most of our pet bugs on here are


i don't see them having a mechanism to digest the gutload if it isn't you know, meat. generally speaking, a creature only has the chemicals and gear to really digest what they are supposed to eat. also, the setup in higher animals is fairly different between herbi's and carni's. carni's tend to have shorter digestive tracks and to poop out food faster.

plus, remember tarantulas and other spiders use external digestion. they have to be able to dissolve their food before they slurp it up through a quite small opening. this kind of plays into what i was saying before
 

Pssh

Arachnoknight
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
197
Oh, are we talking about for other insects/arachnids? I was under the impression that this was for reptiles/mammals.
 

cacoseraph

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
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Jan 5, 2005
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8,325
also, you might want to look into marigolds in bug food. i think part or all of them is at least repulsive if not actually toxic to herbi bugs. i am not sure what the effect would be in a vert
 

beckett5000

Arachnopeon
Joined
Nov 24, 2009
Messages
36
What's the best gut load to use for feeders? I'm having a hard time deciding what brand to use.
What are you trying to gut load them with? What are you feeding them to? If you're using the feeders for reptiles it's never a good idea to gut load your insects with calcium. I have read many times over that high calicum can actually kill the insects. If you look at all the gut load products pet stores sell there's not alot of calcium in them either. I have three colonies of roaches I use for feeders, and the most important thing I look for when feeding them is high protean. they also get fruits and veggies three times a week. I use reptl calcium on the roaches when feeding them to the lizards.
 

Pssh

Arachnoknight
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
197
Never had a problem with marigolds/calendula. It's only a very very small part of the diet anyways. In haven't tried feeding the gutloaded insects to pet inverts yet, though all of my roaches and dry/heat loving beetles eat this. I'll have to experiment and figure it out.

I've also never had an issue with high calcium diets in roaches. Mine are fed almost exclusively high calcium veggies and fruits with the dry gutload. I also only use natural, non-animal protein sources like nuts, spirulina, etc.
 

cacoseraph

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
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why do you go with non animal?

most of my roaches love to eat meat, dead crickets, etc
 

Pssh

Arachnoknight
Joined
Nov 12, 2010
Messages
197
Because any of my roaches may be sold at any time or be used as food. While it may not matter too much with Ts, a high protien diet can give my chameleons gout. Plus they are much healthier for feeding off when fed well from birth/hatching.
 

Tofuman

Arachnopeon
Joined
Mar 6, 2011
Messages
31
I plan on mostly feeding reptiles. But some people have told me that Arachnids benefit from it too.
 

Bigboy

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 18, 2004
Messages
1,234
obligate carnivores cannot break down plant cell walls efficiently but if they have already been broken down in the gut of your feeder then the animal eating them does reap the benefits.

Cats for example, considered hypercarnivores, get their carbohydrates among other things from the intestines of their prey items.
 

cacoseraph

ArachnoGod
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 5, 2005
Messages
8,325
yes, it depends on how the animals eat, though. a cat's internal digestion is much more able to reap benefits from partially digested material than a spider's external digestion.


and you have to realize that the cat is going to poop out most of their prey's gut's plant contents before they can be digested, anyways. in mammals, herbis tend to have digestive system that take a day or more to cycle through, hardcore carnivores have systems that cycle in much less than a day. that is because even with a system custom built for breaking down plant material it still takes quite a while


i think the real trick is to just raise your own feeders and make sure they are healthy. as far as bugs go, i've watched my internal digester carnivore obligates steer around carrot loaded guts before. funny as heck. and found what appeared to be the gut remains in boli
 

Bigboy

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 18, 2004
Messages
1,234
yes, it depends on how the animals eat, though. a cat's internal digestion is much more able to reap benefits from partially digested material than a spider's external digestion.


and you have to realize that the cat is going to poop out most of their prey's gut's plant contents before they can be digested, anyways. in mammals, herbis tend to have digestive system that take a day or more to cycle through, hardcore carnivores have systems that cycle in much less than a day. that is because even with a system custom built for breaking down plant material it still takes quite a while


i think the real trick is to just raise your own feeders and make sure they are healthy. as far as bugs go, i've watched my internal digester carnivore obligates steer around carrot loaded guts before. funny as heck. and found what appeared to be the gut remains in boli
That is a really cool observation.
 
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