# Is it important to feed mealworms?



## readthebook (Dec 15, 2011)

We are expecting our first hedgie in about a month. We plan on feeding him a high quality cat food after reading the posts on this forum. Do we need to feed mealworms in addition? The whole mealworm thing is a bit for me to take (I know, what can I say) but I will do it if it is a necessary part of their diet. If I can get by with the cat food and other items from my kitchen, I'd rather go that route. Thanks.


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## CarlaB (Nov 16, 2011)

I don't think you really NEED to feed mealworms (or crickets or beetles...) - they can get all of their nutrition from their main food source, but most hedgies love them and so we give them as treats. If you really can't handle feeding insects, there are lots of other treat options - cooked chicken or turkey (unseasoned), cooked egg (again, no seasoning or butter/margarine), various fruits and cooked veggies - most hedgies LOVE watermelon. There is a thread somewhere on the forum(In the diet/nutrition board) that has a list of treats that are safe to feed.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Hedgehogs are insectivores/omnivores, so...really, if you can get past it and give them mealworms, it's really to their benefit. There's plenty of ways to get around it, you can avoid touching them by using chopsticks, tweezers, plastic spoons to feed them. There's many people on here that are very bug-squeamish and make themselves work past it so their hedgehogs can have mealworms. I believe someone (Hissy-Fit-Hazel?) posted a thread with no-touch mealworm farming, or you can just buy small tubs at the pet store and keep them in your fridge. If you take them out once a week for an hour or two, they get a chance to eat and don't die, but while you have them in the fridge, they stay cold and hibernate, so they don't move as much. That might make it easier too.


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## Christemo (Oct 5, 2011)

Aquarium feeder tongs are the best for that.


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## readthebook (Dec 15, 2011)

I'll do it if important, who knows maybe I'll get lucky and ours won't like them. ;0 It sounds like they prefer live ones to the dried variety? Do you ever just put them in the cage with them or do the majority feed them with tweezers? Do you feed dried crickets as well or only meal worms? Here I was thinking my son was getting a hedgehog instead of a reptile and I wouldn't have to deal with live insects.....


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## Christemo (Oct 5, 2011)

I wouldn't use the dried because it can compact their bowels. Live or canned are best, but know that the canned smell TERRIBLE.


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## NoDivision (Aug 29, 2010)

Mealworms are much less gross and scary than crickets or the bigger superworms. I'm pretty bug squeamish, and the mealworms worried me at first, but I really don't mind them at all. Start with the smallest container of live ones that you can get at your pet store and go from there.


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## casxcore (Jul 28, 2011)

I have the canned ones and when I take them out of the fridge and open it, they don't smell as bad as I had heard they do. Maybe I'm just stuffed up because its winter? :lol:


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## readthebook2 (Jan 16, 2012)

ok, I went to Petco to see what the mealworm situation was like... they had plastic tubs on a shelf that held mealworms that said "Do Not Refrigerate" -- we opened it up and they were in some type of sawdust wriggling around, and then they also had a refrigerator with mealworms as well. What is the difference? They looked so BIG too - do young hedgehogs eat a whole one?! This is still grossing me out but I'm trying to be brave, and I did find the aquarium tweezers too, thanks for that tip!


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## NoDivision (Aug 29, 2010)

The not refrigerated ones were probably superworms - those are something completely different and you don't want to get into that. You want the ones in the fridge.


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## readthebook2 (Jan 16, 2012)

Thank you!


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## readthebook2 (Jan 16, 2012)

Do you start feeding baby hedgehogs mealworms or need to wait until they get older for any reason? How many do you feed them at a time? I realize this varies, I'm just trying to get an idea, new to all this


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

You don't need to wait for a certain age. If they're old enough to be in a new home, they're old enough for mealies. However, treat them as a new treat unless you know the breeder or previous owner's fed them to the hedgie before. So, make sure you're not introducing any other new foods at the same time, and keep an eye on them for any adverse reactions. I've never heard of a hedgehog allergic to mealworms, but who knows? :lol:


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## readthebook2 (Jan 16, 2012)

What is the lifespan of refrigerated mealworms?


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## hanhan27 (May 12, 2011)

That all depends on the temperature in your fridge and if you decide to feed the mealworms.

When Milly and I were living with my fiance, our fridge wasn't very cold and I didn't ever feed the worms. They lasted about 2-3 weeks on average.

Now that Milly and I are living with my mom, we have a nice new fridge that keeps the worms really cold, which causes them to hibernate. I also put a tiny piece of potato in the container once every 5 or 6 days. The last batch I had lasted about 6 weeks, and then the potato made the worms moldy. *Gag*


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