# Capturing Escapees - Woodies / Crickets



## Skitzmixer (Dec 16, 2011)

Recently decieded to give feeding my CBD's some woodies a try and well they love them! The only problem is because they're so damn quick the odd one or two escape and bury themselfs into the substrate. So now I've burried a plastic tub and covered the rim in fluon, they're always in the tub and the lizards have worked out thats where they always are, i even put a thumb tack into the side of the tank to stop the lizards accidently flipping the tub over (tub sits under the thumb tack). But now they jump into the tub and the woodies just run up there legs and escape. Its a never ending battle.

How does everyone feed there dragons? Surely there's an easier way to do this.

Skitz.


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## Beard (Dec 16, 2011)

I used to feed my beardies woodies and crickets in a tub outside the enclosure with the lid on.


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## Skitzmixer (Dec 16, 2011)

hm.. ok.. i've got some young hatchies that i dont like to handle much so this might be a good option for the adults but not so much for the hatchies..


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## mad_at_arms (Dec 16, 2011)

Fridge them before feeding, it will slow them down.


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## Herpaderpa (Dec 16, 2011)

where are the hatchies kept and why dont you like to handle them? The only option is to take them out and put them in a tub for feeding... otherwise you hand feed your beardies every single bug or accept that you will have escapees  lol
Put the fluon around the top of the tub as well. It truly is the easiest and best way. I put a textured floor tile inside the tub as well for traction. If you are feeding crix make sure the tub is high enough they cant jump out LOL


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## MathewB (Dec 16, 2011)

Can partially bury the tub so it doesn't flip?


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## Skitzmixer (Dec 16, 2011)

mad_at_arms said:


> Fridge them before feeding, it will slow them down.



oh snap! i didnt even think of that.. thats a wicked idea.


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## saximus (Dec 16, 2011)

Fridge only works if they eat them in a relatively short time frame though. What about a smaller container so the lizards can't actually stand in it but can just stick their head in?


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## miss2 (Dec 16, 2011)

can we see a pic of the tub? im also curious coz this happens to me to


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## feathergrass (Dec 16, 2011)

i have a cricket keeper with removable black tunes in it and i slide a tube out and tap out a couple of cricks out at a time and wait till Buddha eats them then tap out another couple and so on till he loses intrest ...only problem i am having is getting the crickets from their store packet into the keeper lol...needless to say we have had a few cricks chirping all night here as they have grown while on the lose


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## ingie (Dec 16, 2011)

Teach your Beardies to eat from tongs (round ended surgical type ones are best). Then you know exactly how many each eat, and no escapees. All my lizards eat like this.


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## Beard (Dec 16, 2011)

ingie said:


> Teach your Beardies to eat from tongs (round ended surgical type ones are best). Then you know exactly how many each eat, and no escapees. All my lizards eat like this.



How do they pick the tongs up? Pretty clever beardies you've got there ingie.


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## Skitzmixer (Dec 16, 2011)

Herpaderpa said:


> where are the hatchies kept and why dont you like to handle them? The only option is to take them out and put them in a tub for feeding... otherwise you hand feed your beardies every single bug or accept that you will have escapees  lol
> Put the fluon around the top of the tub as well. It truly is the easiest and best way. I put a textured floor tile inside the tub as well for traction. If you are feeding crix make sure the tub is high enough they cant jump out LOL



The hatchies are in there own enclosure, 4x2x2, heaps of things for them to run around and climb on, no hides though. Using newspaper as the substrate for now. I dont like to handle them because there only a week old, i figured i'd rather not handle them until they get a little bit older. They just feel so brittle, im scared i'll hurt them by accident if i pick them up to much.



feathergrass said:


> i have a cricket keeper with removable black tunes in it and i slide a tube out and tap out a couple of cricks out at a time and wait till Buddha eats them then tap out another couple and so on till he loses intrest ...only problem i am having is getting the crickets from their store packet into the keepei r lol...needless to say we have had a few cricks chirping all night here as they have grown while on the lose



haha yeah i let some go by accident, found them chirping away in the next room.. maybe theres a woodie keeper i could get haha


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## maddog-1979 (Dec 16, 2011)

Beard said:


> How do they pick the tongs up? Pretty clever beardies you've got there ingie.



kinda like chopsticks....maybe they're asian beardies

i put a bit of calcium powder and vitamin powder in a plastic tub, then stick the food item in. shake em around so there all coated, them put the beardie in.....the powder coated bugs cant climb the plastic, and feeding only takes about 30 secs


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## leamos (Dec 16, 2011)

I use a ceramic ramekin to feed out woodies, its heavy enough not to be flipped, herp shop sell roach traps haven't tried them myself but apprently are great for catching escapees. I'm going to try them out in the new year as i have a breeding population of woodies living behind the foam background and everytime i lift up the food bowl 20 or so babies scatter


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## Skitzmixer (Dec 16, 2011)

leamos said:


> I use a ceramic ramekin to feed out woodies, its heavy enough not to be flipped, herp shop sell roach traps haven't tried them myself but apprently are great for catching escapees. I'm going to try them out in the new year as i have a breeding population of woodies living behind the foam background and everytime i lift up the food bowl 20 or so babies scatter



thats a good idea, im heading into bunnings, my second home.. I might try and pick something like that up.


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## mudgudgeon (Dec 17, 2011)

I like the idea if a little bowl in the enclosure for the strays to fall into.

Does it really matter if some hide? or if you don't know how many they eat?
I just chuck a handful of bugs in, if some escape into substrate I figure they are going to get caught eventually, plus my EWDs like digging through the substrate for snacks.
I've had colony of woodies in my enclosure before too.


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## Chris1 (Dec 17, 2011)

i either hand feed woodies or take the beardies out into the garage one by one to throw a few roaches around,...(i throw, they run, skid, scoff,...lots of fun)


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## Morgan_dragon (Dec 17, 2011)

Put the crix in the fridge for a couple of minutes before you try and empty them into the keeper. You dont get escapees that way



feathergrass said:


> i have a cricket keeper with removable black tunes in it and i slide a tube out and tap out a couple of cricks out at a time and wait till Buddha eats them then tap out another couple and so on till he loses intrest ...only problem i am having is getting the crickets from their store packet into the keeper lol...needless to say we have had a few cricks chirping all night here as they have grown while on the lose


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## SYNeR (Dec 17, 2011)

I just shake an egg carton of woodies from my colony into a grocery bag, and put them in the fridge for 5-10 minutes..
Then I just individually hand feed each woody to my dragons.


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## Smithers (Dec 17, 2011)

I think someone used a Bonsai dish and possibly fluon the inner rim. As the bowl/dish has a curved rim at the top they can't climb over and fall back into dish. Worth a shot if you can find fluon these days.


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## Skitzmixer (Dec 17, 2011)

SYNeR said:


> I just shake an egg carton of woodies from my colony into a grocery bag, and put them in the fridge for 5-10 minutes..
> Then I just individually hand feed each woody to my dragons.



Good idea, i'll give it a shot and see how it goes. Heaps of awesome ideas floating around..  glad i asked.

I found a little tub for .75c at bunnings, painted it with fluon and put it in between some logs so the hatchies can jump in get a feed and get out. Seems to work, took them a little while to work out how to get in, but some are getting the hang of it. Bitta fun watching them..


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## GeckoJosh (Dec 17, 2011)

Tear their heads off


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## Skitzmixer (Dec 19, 2011)

Geckoman said:


> Tear their heads off



Well that'd certainly do it!


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## black_headed_mon (Dec 19, 2011)

leamos said:


> I use a ceramic ramekin to feed out woodies, its heavy enough not to be flipped, herp shop sell roach traps haven't tried them myself but apprently are great for catching escapees. I'm going to try them out in the new year as i have a breeding population of woodies living behind the foam background and everytime i lift up the food bowl 20 or so babies scatter


 place a bowl painted with fluon in the enclosure overnight with some shredded carrot,pear etc etc,guaranteed to work!!! no more colony


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## maddog-1979 (Dec 20, 2011)

vaseline works as well as fluon too, i think herpshop said fluon is gonna be very tough to get from now on as price in the states has skyrocketed


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## Jeannine (Dec 20, 2011)

*put crickets and woodies in a click clack (remove the hoppers to prevent crickets from hopping away) then hold the container to the door of your enclosure and when your babies come running open the door slightly and let them get in with the food, eat as many as they want to and then put your babies back into their enclosure and return any uneaten food back into their containers

i do this with my girl and she sees me getting it all ready and comes flying down to the door from where ever shes been sitting and scratches at it till i open it a little then she jumps into the container and has her fill

this way none get away (have a little vaseline around the top of the click clack to prevent woodies escaping and have removed hoppers from the crickets) plus you dont have to worry about the BD's digesting any substrate you might be using
*


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