The NEW Crested Gecko Diet - Smoother & Sweeter

[Anthony Caponetto]

About six weeks ago, I started noticing that my geckos were eating less crickets than usual...which at first had me a little alarmed.? Thing is, they're still laying eggs like mad, so I started looking at their CGD cups and realized that they were eating more CGD than they normally do.? We all know where CGD ranks compared to live crickets when you ask a crested gecko, so I knew something had to be up.

Allen and I talk quite a bit and I know he's always testing new formulas at home, so the next time we talked, I said "By the way...what exactly did you do to the diet?" and he started laughing.? ?He said that he took out some of the unnecessary fillers that were killing the texture (alfalfa, wheat germ, etc.), and then he added more honey to sweeten it up.? Apparently the nutritional profile is effectively the same, but the diet is something like 50% sweeter and a lot smoother in terms of texture.

I'm not sure why they haven't made a public announcement, but I would guess that they're just waiting to see if anyone notices a difference before they go around advertising it as "new & improved".

If you've tried it before and your geckos didn't take to it, I'd definitely recommend trying it again...especially if you have a larger collection and spend a lot on crickets.? ?I've cut crickets down to 1-2 days a week (saves me about $250-300 a month) and am still only feeding the diet 2-3 days a week...they just eat more diet now, so less goes to waste.

BTW, If you get the little bottles of diet at Petco or a pet store, you may be getting the last of the old batch, so don't be too quick to judge if that's the case.

[Rhacodactyl]

That's awesome, I can't wait to get a new batch now 

[sciteacher]

Yep, I finally ordered one of the "big jugs" last month, and I noticed the texture was smoother and I knew my geckos were starting to eat more. I figured that part of this was due to the warming temperatures in my lizard room... maybe the new formulation has something to do with it also. I've got a couple of pickier eaters that had been eating baby food before I got them, and I've generally been feeding them a mixture of 1/2 CGD and 1/2 Clark's to give it a little more sweetness. It will be interesting to see if they will now take the straight CGD with more gusto.

Gary

[NYCrestie]

WOW
this should be interesting. as soon as my clarks runs out im gonna have to pick some up. dont know if i can wait that long though, lol, might have to pick it up sooner 

sciteacher- keep us, and by us i mean me, updated if u could.

[Crestie101]

Is this the crested gecko diet sold by T-Rex? At first I had a problem with my crested going to it, so I emailed T-rex and there reply was odd, it said to just but its face in it so they may get a taste of it. Now I have noticed that feeding it crickets are not as frequent. Good stuff!!

[Flamed 1]

Were can I purchase some at my locale pet store doesn't have the 2lb. and I'm tired of using the the little bottles there gone in two weeks!

[sciteacher]

Were can I purchase some at my locale pet store doesn't have the 2lb. and I'm tired of using the the little bottles there gone in two weeks!

I used to buy from Sandfire Ranch. I would buy a "6 pack" of the smaller jars at a discounted price, but last time I checked, they had stopped carrying the T-Rex diet. The large jug I just got recently I think came from LLL reptile. Have to pay extra for shipping, but at least it's not as expensive as shipping a gecko.

Gary

[Anthony Caponetto]

That's because Allen is no longer with Sandfire.  Allen can sell you a case (six) of the bulk diets.  I've been buying it by the case just for my own collection (I go through a 2.5lb container every week or two), so I might start selling it on here or on my main website...just not sure if I want to deal with selling something else.

[NYCrestie]

any chance he will eventually market it as "new and omproved" or something along that line?
if not, any chance we can get an inside tip on maybe what upc code number we should be looking for at our local pet shop for the small jars?

[b|ue Ash]

So does LLL reptile sell the new diet formula. I went to about 4 or 5 Petco's today in Virginia and Maryland but all they had was the old stuff. It's the only store I have ever seen which sell the T-rex products, specially the Crestie formula.
I'd really like to try the new one for my next Crested.

[whtwulf]

I know my petsmarts around Atlanta carry it, try them if you have that chain in your area.

P.S. to everyone else,
Has anyone figured out how to tell if your buying the new or old formula?

[b|ue Ash]

We have Petsmart, lots of them, but they don't carry the T-Rex supplies like that.

I figured we could find it by looking at the ingredients on the bottle.

[Raquel]

Freddie is a picky eater. She does not like CGD straight up (well, at least the 'old' formula), so I mix a little baby food with it. The other night was the first night that I gave her the 'new' CGD formula without any baby food. She was at the top of her tank when I put her food dish in. She immediately went right to it and started to lick the CGD from her food dish for about a good 2 or 3 minutes.

I took the opportunity to take some photos. Here she is:
?

I don't have to coax her with the baby food, anymore. So, YES, I did notice a difference between the 'old' and 'new' formula, not just with Freddie, but with all my other cresteds.

[whtwulf]

I have been seeing the same results over the past month with my cresteds.  They are definitely eating more of it.

[MdngtRain]

Hmm, I must still have the old batch, even my female (who LOVES food) is not excited about CGD anymore...