# Mealworm question - Did I buy the right one?



## itbrti (Dec 4, 2010)

I went to pick up some more mealworms for Mocha a couple days ago and I noticed (when I got home) that they were a darker color that the first ones I bought a while ago. Now at the time I thought nothing of them, and gave her one. Later that same night (or early the next morning) I woke to the scent of something terrible. It looked (and smelled) like Mocha had diarrhea. Could it be that I bought dead mealworms, and should I just disgard them and get her fresh new ones? :?









(the ones of the left are the original ones, and the one on the right are the new ones)

-Dustin


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## HedgehogsAnonymous (Dec 30, 2010)

Yeah that batch on the right are definitely dead--it happens sometimes. I bought one container from Petsmart and got great looking mealworms (as if they can really be great looking) and then bought another container from Petco and they were all dead and crappy looking. Only one of my guys actually eats mealworms and he seems to snub the dead ones. 

I'd take them back and get "fresher" ones, but I don't know that it makes a difference.


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## karennoel (Dec 20, 2010)

Yes the right ones are dead and from what I've read on here it isn't good to feed them the black dead ones. I always open my container at the store so I can check to make sure they are fresh.


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## itbrti (Dec 4, 2010)

Hrm, from what I saw and smelled last night I guess Mocha didn't like them too good. Well I guess I'm off to the store tomorrow to get some new ones then. Thanks


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## Nebular (Dec 28, 2010)

If you can, you might want to find a place that sells them loose. There's a chain in my city called Best Pet Foods that just has them in a small aquarium filled with feed. I can buy as few or as many as I need and they'll sort 'em out and make sure that only the live ones end up going home. No skins. No aliens. No corpses. I gave up on Pet Smart since they keep saying they're supposed to have them but have been out of stock for the past 4 or 5 weeks and never bothered to re-order them. :roll:


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## mcwojo (Dec 29, 2010)

I've never had a problem with Petsmart and they keep there worms in oatmeal instead of sawdust. I read on here somewhere that it's not good to feed our little ones worms that have had sawdust. The person at petsmart has always opened them in front of me so I could see them and we both could see that they are alive and look good.


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## itbrti (Dec 4, 2010)

Well I went back today and told them the story and they were more than happy to get me some fresh ones (which they were) free of charge.


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## NoDivision (Aug 29, 2010)

Pulling this up from a while ago rather than starting a new thread - I got a mixed batch of worms, some live and lovely, some dead. The problem is, Sherlock doesn't want to eat the live ones. He wants to eat the dead ones. I waved one at him without really thinking and he gobbled it up and now he won't touch the live ones -_- does this happen to anyone else?


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## CritterHeaven (Feb 21, 2011)

mcwojo said:


> I've never had a problem with Petsmart and they keep there worms in oatmeal instead of sawdust. I read on here somewhere that it's not good to feed our little ones worms that have had sawdust. The person at petsmart has always opened them in front of me so I could see them and we both could see that they are alive and look good.


I think this depends on how your local PetSmart is run. I have only got one container so far and they were alive and well. But they keep them in sawdust NOT oatmeal (I wish). So I have to rather carefully dust each one off. Truffle loves them so much he tries to lick the tweezers when they are done. He definitely goes after the live ones.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

Mealworms can be hit or miss in pet stores. There are a lot of possible reasons why they die. They may have gotten too cold, had them too long without feeding, etc.

I always stand at the insect fridge in the store, open the container, flip through the top layer, or gently shake the container to look through the top. If there are dead they will typically be on the top. If possible, I also try to look at the bedding at the bottom. Occasionally these containers get water in them and the bedding at the bottom will be "solid." Never buy one like that either as it will have mold in it.

I have had times where I was in a store, and went through almost every container before finding one that didn't have too many dead in it.


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## lmashbri6983 (May 29, 2009)

Here's a similar question to the original... I've never fed my hedgie mealworms but want to try it out and am wondering if it matters whether you get the live ones or the freeze-dried ones? I want to get as small of a container as I can either way, because I have NO idea if Layla will eat them or not. She doesnt seem to like anything other than her kibble. Suggestions?

Thanks!


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## ThePliny (Jun 3, 2010)

I would suggest getting a small container of live ones. Pliny ate the freeze-dried ones for a while, but never really liked them. But as soon as he sees he grub spoon with a live one he launches himself at it and gobbles them down (likes the juicy ones I guess :shock: )
Layla might not got for them at first. A lot of hedgies are resistant to trying new things; but just be patient and keep trying. PJM often suggests leaving one in the kibble bowl overnight so the piggie might 'accidentally' eat it and discover how much they love them! Pliny refused to eat the mealies when I first got him, but once he 'accidentally' ate one, he has gone bonkers for them ever since!


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## lmashbri6983 (May 29, 2009)

Haha, I suppose I can try that and put one in her food bowl. Will the thing crawl out though??? I dont like the idea of it crawling around in Layla's cage and me not finding it right away :? , I dont know how mobile mealworms are.


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## Nebular (Dec 28, 2010)

If you're looking to try them out and see if he even likes them, you can try to find a place that will sell them individually as opposed to a container. Most of the places around me sell them in packs of 50 or 100 or something along that line. I wasn't too sure if Norman would like them so I didn't want that many around in case he decided they were icky. I found a place near me that just has a small aquarium of them that sells them individually so I grabbed 10 and took them home. If he didn't like them, it wasn't going to be a big deal. They set me back a whole 50 cents and are easy enough to get rid of.


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## lmashbri6983 (May 29, 2009)

Nebular said:


> If you're looking to try them out and see if he even likes them, you can try to find a place that will sell them individually as opposed to a container. Most of the places around me sell them in packs of 50 or 100 or something along that line. I wasn't too sure if Norman would like them so I didn't want that many around in case he decided they were icky. I found a place near me that just has a small aquarium of them that sells them individually so I grabbed 10 and took them home. If he didn't like them, it wasn't going to be a big deal. They set me back a whole 50 cents and are easy enough to get rid of.


Thanks, I hadnt thought of that, I wonder if the PetSmart near me has some that I can buy individually. I'll definitely pay a WHOLE 50 CENTS to see if my LaylaBear will like a new treat!! 

If she ends up not liking them, do you think there's a chance that she'd still like the freeze dried ones?


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## lmashbri6983 (May 29, 2009)

Well I've tried but unsuccessfully. Layla wont have anything to do with the mealworms. Do you guys think it's alright to plop a mealie or two in her food bowl and leave them there overnight and hope she eats them & loves them? Otherwise I think I'm out of luck and might as well just bring them back to the store.


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## Kalandra (Aug 25, 2008)

I'd leave them in her bowl and see if she tries them that way. Hedgehogs can be extremely resistant to new things and sometimes I think they refuse to try things we offer to them just because they can. But will try it if they come across it on their own.

Cooper wouldn't touch a mealworm for a very long time. I kept offering them to him, but he would ignore my offers every time. I had him out on a blanket one day; he was exploring while I was taking pictures. He came across one on his own and it disappeared. After that he has willingly eaten them for me. I had a similar experiences with other hedgehogs who had never had them before too.


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## itbrti (Dec 4, 2010)

You could always put a mealworm by where it is sleeping. I did that when I switched Mocha's food over and she quickly moved to the new food.


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