# Please advise - freeze dried mealworms?



## Shainahmac (Jun 23, 2014)

Hey guys, you've always given me good nutrition advice before so I'm seeking your knowledge again! 

Benny has this far snubbed every single treat I've tried to offer him. I'd get live mealworms, but the nearest place is an hour away. 

How bad are freeze dried mealworms? Are they dangerous? Is any one brand better than another? 

Thanks in advance folks, don't know what I'd do without yas!


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## lilsurfergrlsp (Dec 13, 2013)

They aren't recommended for hedgehogs because they've known to cause impaction. They're just harder to digest because of the chitin in the exoskeleton, and something about freeze drying them does something with the chitin. Not sure though, but I've read horror stories about impaction so live or canned is definitely safer.


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## Shainahmac (Jun 23, 2014)

Dang it. Fresh is an hour away and canned are like 20 dollars a can just to get it to me and they don't last. 

Thanks for the info anyway!


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## lilsurfergrlsp (Dec 13, 2013)

Yeah, it can be difficult to find live mealworms near you if you don't have a pet store that sells them. You can freeze the canned ones and thaw them out individually to help them last longer. Or, you could just buy a high count of live worms, and store them in your fridge (you just need to provide them with edible bedding, such as wheat bran and maybe an apple slice or carrot). They last for months that way.


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## Shainahmac (Jun 23, 2014)

My mother would murder me in my sleep if I put live worms anywhere near her fridge  hahaha


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## AlexLovesOlive (Jul 7, 2014)

You can order them online and start a mealworm farm, it is SUPER easy then you wouldn't have to go and buy them, all you need is some plastic bins or tupper ware, bran, and gel water (you can use a new sponge though) put them all together in the bran, with some gel cricket water (they eat the bran) then when they turn into pupae put them in another bin, when the pupae turn into beetles put them in a separate bin and they start having baby worms, but the baby worms in another bin to grow and when they get bigger put them back in the larger worm bin. It's that easy and you will never have to buy worms again!


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## AlexLovesOlive (Jul 7, 2014)

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Sterilite-3-Drawer-Unit-Set-of-6-Black/20699650 
I use this for my mealworm farm


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## rubydissolution (Feb 24, 2014)

http://www.hedgehogcentral.com/forums/12-diet-nutrition/26025-guide-insects.html

That might help. Its hhcs guide to insects ^^. Though I feed my hedge freeze dried crickets and mealies she does not get more than two or three a night. Live are preferred, but some hedgies are pickier then others.


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## gracefulchaos01 (Mar 19, 2014)

20 a can? Geez! Mine are like 1.99 a can. Or maybe less.


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## Shainahmac (Jun 23, 2014)

It's about 5 a can, plus 15 shipping. And again, I can't do live because I can't keep them in the fridge and still live to see another day.


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## AlexLovesOlive (Jul 7, 2014)

I don't even feed my hedgehog that many LIVE meal worms a day! I don't think that many is a great idea, and if you do a farm you don't need to put them in the fridge.


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## Shainahmac (Jun 23, 2014)

Worms that turn into beetles in the house = never gonna happen. Should've clarified, it's not just the fridge.


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