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Grubco Crickets and Mealworms

Posted By: Anonymous

Grubco Crickets and Mealworms - 02/28/06 01:16 PM

Okay I know a lot of you are probably tired of seeing such posts, and I did post something yesterday about my conversation with Dale, but thought I would pass this information on once more for those interested:

To start out, aflotoxins are formed from a fungus known to grow in molds found in quite a few products: Corn, cotton seed, grains, processed feed and other food products, but mainly found in corn products. If fed to animals, the aflotoxins attaches to the animals DNA and could possible be passed to young, no research that I can find has proven otherwise. In fact, the FDA does allow a certain percentage of foods containing aflotoxins present in processed foods, to be used in consumption.... AMAZING!!
Consumption of low concentrations by animals sensitive to aflatoxins can lead to death within a 72 hour period. Also, the FDA has regulated that the sale of corn products containing aflatoxin levels of 20 parts per billion or more cannot be sold in interstate commerce and in general should not be fed to young poultry, swine and livestock, or to lactating animals, and must not be milled for human consumption. This is what the FDA came up with, so we all have a very small level of aflotoxins, if we eat corn products. In other words, 19.9 parts per million is an acceptable level. UNBELIEVABLE, HUH!! (Actually, that's really not a big number when you look at the entire amount, but it does sound like it!!)

MEALWORMS:
I have my own mealworm farm, so I know what my mealies are fed. NO CORN, just Wheat products vitamins (herptivite) and calcium are in our bedding. However, I happen to talk to Dale at Grubco just yesterday regarding the bedding of mealies, and Grubco only bed their mealworms in Wheat bran, NO CORN. So, in my opinion, Grubco has safe mealworms. In fact, that's where I received my worms before farming. The content of the mealworms should be observed when feeding a balanced diet, but it really does your suggie a great justice to feed some sort of insects, (IMO). Mealworms are high in phosphorus, so dusting with calcium or sprinkling calcium in the bedding before feeding to your suggies would cut that ratio a little, which is what we do. As a general rule, depending on the size of your mealies, this is the table we live by:

Small: feed 8-10 mealworms
Medium: feed 5-7 mealoworms
Large or Jumbo: feed 3-4 mealworms
Superworms: feed 1-2 superworms

CRICKETS:
I also spoke to Dale regarding cricket bedding; he told me some interesting facts;
Grubco has done bookoos (sp.) of research regarding the cricket bedding, and even experimented by trying to farm them with no corn products, after talk of the dangers of aflotoxins, even though he had not remembered any incidents of this at Grubco, and the results were that the crickets were very short lived and did not grow. So they have determined that the bedding that they have had so much success with is that similar to chicken mash, containing 4% of corn product. He took a lot of time with me as I was seriously thinking of starting my own cricket farm, however, unlike mealworm farms, cricket farming is a lot more work. He seemed very knowledgeable and IMO Grubco has a reputation that I would buy crickets from. However, some glider owners would disagree, but I still feel that it really depends on your source. Grubco's clientele consists of some major chain pet stores and have had a huge success with their crickets, per Dale.

MEALWORM FARM BEDDING
Also, those of you who do farm mealies: The bedding I mentioned above that I farm mine in consist of:
Dry Baby food
Wheat Bran
Rolled Oats (old fashion kind)
Rep-cal Herptivite
Rep-cal Calcium with D-3 (same kind used in BML)
(We used to use Wheat Germ, but found out from Kretschmer, that the oils turn toxic after not refrigerating for 72 hours)

However, Dale also told me that they had done some research on the outcome of nutritional content of the mealies feeding this type feed/bedding to the mealies at a very young stage and that the mealies did not gain any mentionable nutritional value by feeding such a bedding, so I found out that I am basically going to a whole lot of expense, unnecessarily. He advised me to just use a wheat bran bedding until the last week or so, prior to feeding to my suggies, then to use the fortified bedding that I mix. How’s that folks!!! He saved me some bucks on that bedding info, because the wheat bran, vitamins and calcium really can run into some bucks!!!!!
Well, I was impressed, anyways!!
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Posted By: Anonymous

Re: Grubco Crickets and Mealworms - 02/28/06 07:59 PM

Thank you Cy for taking the time to find this info out! I've been really nervous about buying mealworms and I'm happy to know that Grubco is a safe place to get them!
Posted By: Xglider

Re: Grubco Crickets and Mealworms - 03/01/06 09:05 PM

good info to have thank you!
Posted By: Anonymous

Re: Grubco Crickets and Mealworms - 03/01/06 11:18 PM

Yes, thank you! I`ve been looking for this information about Grubco <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/multi.gif" alt="" />
Posted By: Anonymous

Re: Grubco Crickets and Mealworms - 03/02/06 05:18 AM

Thanks for taking the time to find all that out and more time to type it all out. It is good to know they are aware of the problems that could arise in crickets and take precaution to prevent the aflatoxin. I still want to give my guys crickets because they love to chase them in the tent plus it is something different for them to have. Now you have helped show me a company who does everything possible to prevent that from happening which I think is all any of us can ask for <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
Posted By: Anonymous

Re: Grubco Crickets and Mealworms - 03/02/06 07:23 PM

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />It was driving me bananas not knowing too!!!

Something else I remember now that he said, that any company that tells you they don't use any corn isn't being very candid with you... I was genuinely impressed with his honesty.

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