Whether you are raising or buying live crickets for your insectivorous pets, you need to feed and gut-load them to keep them alive. They are not like mealworms that can be frozen to make them live longer. However, they are healthy and a staple for many reptiles and amphibians.
While they can have dry foods like wheat bran, bran flakes, corn flakes, as well as many veggies, fruits, and others, by far, commercial foods will provide them with more nutrients, including vitamins and minerals.
Let us look at some of the commercial cricket foods and water gels that you, as a buyer or if you raise crickets, will find quite helpful.
1. Fluker’s 71300 Orange Cube Complete Cricket Diet
As a single diet, Fluker’s Orange Cube Complete Cricket Diet will give your feeder insects food, water, and vitamins. All feeder insects can also use this food, including roaches. Once you buy it, your insects have all they need to be healthy and nutrient-rich.
2. Nature Zone Total Bites for Crickets & Feeder Insects, Soft Moist Food
Designed to gut-load these and other feeder insects, these Nature Zone Total Bites are not dry, but moist, soft, and requires no hydration. That is not all. This food is easy to digest, has proteins, soluble carbs, and calcium.
Furthermore, it will also promote your feeder insect’s appetite, water them, and ensure these insects promote your reptile’s growth by providing them with minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates, and protein.
Additionally, Dubia roaches, mealworms, super worms, as well as pet roaches, arachnids, and isopods can also eat it.
3. Fluker’s 70008 High Calcium Cricket Feed, 6-Pound
Yet another excellent Fluker’s product, this feed is calcium-fortified feed to nourish and gut-load them to increase their mineral and vitamin content. If you have insectivorous pets that require high calcium diets, this is the perfect fit for you.
4. ABDRAGONS Premium Dubia Chow/Cricket Chow
This premium chow does not have dog food, chicken scratches, or cat food. Instead, its manufacturers make it ensure it so nutritious to benefit your pets maximally.
The ABDRAGONS Premium Chow has a high rating from users, and people note that these feeder insects love it. It will not disappoint you too.
5. Pangea Roach and Cricket Food
This Pangea brand comes in powder form. You can mix it with water to form a gel that will be good for hydrating and feeding these insects or feed it to them while it is wet or dry.
Furthermore, it is excellent for gut-loading your feeder insects, including roaches, as has minerals and vitamins. You don’t have to struggle with other foods once you buy it.
6. Josh’s Frogs Cricket Food
Josh’s Frogs Cricket Food has all the nutrients that these feeder insects need to stay alive, thrive, and breed that include vitamins, proteins, and minerals. Besides, it is ideal for gut loading as most of its nutrients will benefit your reptiles or any other pet that eat your feeder insects. Your crickets will enjoy this food.
Others
Besides the above, others include Zoo Med Cricket Block and Gut load Blocks and Repashy Superload. They are equally suitable for these feeder bugs.
Best water gel for crickets
Unlike mealworms, silkworms and other feeder insects that get all their water from their food, crickets need dechlorinated water, In watering them, you can either use a shallow dish (less than a quarter an inch deep) with an object in the middle to make it an island like such as a sponge or a potato slide or buy water gels.
Clean their watering dishes regularly, or If they become soiled and consider giving them potato and fruits will help in keeping them hydrated, especially watermelon or oranges.
Alternatively, since they easily drown, going for the water-absorbing crystals, gel or polymers will ensure these insects do not drown. That is not the only reason. Unlike ordinary water, some manufactures fortify them with calcium and other minerals.
Which are some of the best waterers should you buy?
1. Fluker’s Cricket Quencher
Fortified with calcium, this Fluker’s quencher water gels will help in hydrating these feeder insects without drowning them. It will also minimize any chances of bacterial contamination.
You need to put a small amount in a small shallow dish and refill when necessary. Afterward, you do not need an additional source of water.
2. Nature Zone SNZ54212 Water Bites Food with Calcium for Crickets
This gelled water bites will avoid spillage, drowning, excessive humidity, and reduce odor from these insects. Also, it will gut-load these feeder insects with calcium.
3. Zilla Gut Load Cricket Drink
The Zilla Gut Load Drink is an excellent safe source of water to your crickets that will ensure they do not drown or dehydrate as well as prevent bacterial contamination. Once you purchase it, there is no bacterial contamination or need for another water source.
Finally, your scorpions, tarantula, or pinheads use gut load drink, which could be standard or with added calcium.
4. Josh’s Frogs Insect Watering Gel
These watering gel, like others, will ensure your feeder insects do not drown. Furthermore, you do not need another source of water. Just put it in a small shallow bowl and refill it when necessary. Many users are certified with this water gels and have rated it well.
5. Josh’s Frogs Calci-mMm Insect Watering Gel with Calcium
If you need watering gels that have calcium, Josh’s Frogs Calci-mMm Insect Watering Gel with Calcium is a perfect choice. Your pets will benefit from the calcium.
All you need to do is to serve them these water gels in a small bowl and replace them if they dry or all consumed.
Others
There are many other waterers for these insects and others, including the Carolina Cricket/Roach Waterer, which work in a more or less way.