Iguanas eat plants, as it’s their main source of protein. However, they don’t like to eat crickets.
The majority of iguanas are herbivores, meaning that they spend their lives eating plants and leaves. Pet iguanas get their dietary needs through leafy greens such as spinach, arugula, and spinach in captivity.
Iguanas are opportunists, meaning that they will eat anything you give them. While they are unpicky reptiles, not all the food you give to them is great options. As a pet owner, give them a diet that has 95% plants to ensure they’ll grow properly.
No, Iguanas do not eat crickets as crickets insects that have animal-based protein. Since they are herbivores, giving them animal protein will lead to health issues. Thus, crickets are not a necessary part of an iguana’ diet.
Make sure that only 5% of their diet contains proteins. Younger iguanas are still in a state of growth and development. They can benefit from having 10% of their diet based on protein. However, this is still a small number of crickets, which might not be a great choice since smaller iguanas tend to eat less food.
Why Are Crickets Bad For Your Iguana?
Iguanas are built to consume plants. A dish full of greens will provide more nutritional value than having 1-3 crickets presented to them.
Crickets provide protein, but too much protein can be detrimental to your iguana’s health. Your iguana’s digestive tract uses fermentation to receive nutrition. Animal meat should be avoided because it’s unable to be digested through this process.
While it’s uncommon, an excessive amount of animal protein will lead to gout for your iguana. Also, health problems such as renal failure and dehydration can occur. But these issues only occur when your iguana has too much protein.
How to Prevent Crickets From Encountering My Iguana?
The best way you can prevent crickets from entering your home is by preventing them in the first place. Here are some ways how:
- Close Doors and Windows
Crickets are small bugs that can get into any cracks left open in your home. If your home is subject to cricket infestations, seal your doors and windows properly, so they cannot get in.
Additionally, you can add caulk to your windows. When doing so, buy the attachments that add screens to your vents and seal the doors. This will reduce the amount of crickets entering your home and keep your iguana safe.
- Avoid Debris and Moisture in Your Home
Crickets like debris and moisture. Also, crickets like to make their nests in plants and tall grass. Make sure you mow the lawn regularly and add pesticides around the area. If there are any water spills or stains in your house, remove them before more crickets arrive.
Clean your garbage can and wet areas, so the crickets don’t have a space to rest and breed. Compost and mulch piles can bring crickets to your home. Keep them a few meters away from your house and mow your grass regularly.
- Remove Bright Lights Around Your Home
Like most insects, crickets are attracted to bright lights. Use low-watt light bulbs that are designed to keep them away. Usually, you can find them in hardware stores, so buy a few to prevent crickets from entering your house.
- DIY
Molasses is the most effective DIY cricket repellent because it has a sweet smell that attracts crickets. When making a molasses cricket trap, make a bowl that’s shallow enough for them to enter.
Mix water and molasses to create a solution. Place the solution in the bowl and fill it up to a few inches. Crickets will jump towards the bowl and become stuck. Once this happens, empty the bowl and create a new molasses solution until all of the crickets are gone.
- Sticky Traps
Sticky traps are a great way to protect your iguana from crickets. Start by identifying the areas where the crickets originate from. After that, you can use sticky traps to prevent them from infesting other areas.
You can either buy sticky traps from the store or make your own. Homemade traps can be made through wax and butter paper. The sweet smell of the wax will trap the cricket and keep them away from your pet tarantula.
- Bug Spray
Bug spray is also effective at repelling crickets. Apply the bug spray on areas where they are hiding. In addition, use the bug spray near windows where crickets can sneak into. Also, you can use bug spray to eliminate cricket eggs.
- Keep Their Predators in Your Garden
Animals such as cats, birds, and crickets tend to hunt after prey. One way to keep them away from your house is by having their natural predators there. Don’t discard them or scare them away, as they’ll handle most cricket problems for you.
Conclusion
To conclude, iguanas will only eat crickets on rare occasions. Their herbivorous nature and their body anatomy cannot digest crickets properly. Give your pet iguana vegetables, fruit, and other sources of plant protein to maintain their long-term health.
F.A.Q.
Do Blue Iguanas Eat Crickets?
Blue iguanas are herbivores. They cannot eat crickets, and they tend to eat flowers, leaves, and fruits.
Do Green Iguanas Eat Crickets?
Green iguanas cannot eat crickets. If given excessive crickets, they can experience gout, bloating, and other health problems.
Do Baby Iguanas Eat Crickets?
Unfortunately, baby iguanas are unable to eat crickets. Before feeding your pet baby iguana crickets, wait at least three years for your baby iguana to grow into an adult.
Do Red Iguanas Eat Crickets?
No. Red iguanas eat leafy greens and fruits such as: collard greens, acorn squash, and mangoes.
Do Brown Iguanas Eat Crickets?
Brown iguanas eat plants, fruits, and vegetables. They tend to avoid crickets in the wild because they don’t provide the nutritional value they’re looking for.
Also Read
Do Iguanas Eat Snakes – Do Iguana and Snakes Get Along
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