Anyone tried Repashy Superfood for BTS?

[DrakeLineous12]

I know Repashy is very popular worldwide for their meal replacement powders and that a lot of people have already had great success in feeding their animals this gel food as an entire diet. Nearly all crested gecko keepers feed their lizards just the crestie food and many large carnivore owners, myself included, have had great success in giving monitors,tegus, etc. the meat pie reptile gel. What I haven't tried yet though is feeding a blue tongue the veggie burger or savory stew omnivore gels. As we all know they will eat non-moving food, unlike a lot of other lizards like beardies, so in theory it would seem like a good idea. What do you guys think? On their site they do list BTs as one of the recommended lizards to feed it to.

Attached are links to the diets in question:
http://www.store.repashy.com/veggie-bur ... z-bag.html
http://www.store.repashy.com/savory-stew-4-oz-bag.html

[Susann]

I don't think there's anything in either of those that would be bad to feed, the reason I haven't tried it is because of its consistency. As I understand it, they both make a gel or paste, and personally I don't want to use something that soft/runny as a staple for my BTS.

[Lea]

Having a read through the ingredients list, I would say that both the veggie burger and savoury stew are a no, since it contains a lot of fish and shellfish for starters, but it both mixes contain a lot of items which would not be good as a long term diet for blue tongues, rice bran, coconut flour, paprika extract (which is an irritant) and yeast! It has a lot of additves and preservatives, one naming copper as a main ingredient which can easily lead to toxicity in small animals.

Woody herbs, like rosemary, contain essential oils which can be toxic, leading to liver and kidney damage, even with a topical application, never mind ingestion.
Rosé hips contain small amounts of cyanide and arsenic and when in a concentrated form, such as after grounding down and adding to a mix, they may lead to poisoning.

On a personal note, i would also be disgusted if I got offered a veggie burger in a gel form and the big, bold letters "NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION" also put me off. If there is a reason why I can't eat all of those "naturally" occurring seed, fruit and fish extracts, then it's reason enough not to feed it to my skinks.

[DrakeLineous12]

Having a read through the ingredients list, I would say that both the veggie burger and savoury stew are a no, since it contains a lot of fish and shellfish for starters, but it both mixes contain a lot of items which would not be good as a long term diet for blue tongues, rice bran, coconut flour, paprika extract (which is an irritant) and yeast! It has a lot of additves and preservatives, one naming copper as a main ingredient which can easily lead to toxicity in small animals.

Woody herbs, like rosemary, contain essential oils which can be toxic, leading to liver and kidney damage, even with a topical application, never mind ingestion.
Rosé hips contain small amounts of cyanide and arsenic and when in a concentrated form, such as after grounding down and adding to a mix, they may lead to poisoning.

On a personal note, i would also be disgusted if I got offered a veggie burger in a gel form and the big, bold letters "NOT FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION" also put me off. If there is a reason why I can't eat all of those "naturally" occurring seed, fruit and fish extracts, then it's reason enough not to feed it to my skinks.

Whoa, see now that's why I like to ask questions about new products before using them. I'd never expect those ingredients to be as bad as they are, and I'm pretty good in chemistry and biology. Guess I better uncheck them from my list.

On a side note, I've tried a lot of veggie burgers and one was, seriously, in gel form. Not bad actually lol

[Lea]

I would say that in small, hmm, perhaps minute amounts, most of the foods aren't hideously bad, but when you look at how many are grouped together in one product ... then fed on most likely what would be a regular basis, since that is what the product advertises, in moderation goes out of the window and potential toxicity comes flying back in. A concoction of many somewhat harmful items, becomes more dangerous because of the stress each individual item puts independently on the skink.

It's much better to know and understand every element of what you feed- dog foods have fewer ingredients and it's easier to see what is what and where you might slip up with a dodgy product. Fresh ingredients give us the most control, but are not always practical for some. The more you question something, probably the more you could identify problem areas, but it's good to examine and question before giving to our pets, to prevent potential problems.

[DrakeLineous12]

While I've got you here, may you check the ingredients for these two dog foods?
http://www.petco.com/product/114595/Inn ... -Food.aspx
http://www.petco.com/product/114594/Inn ... -Food.aspx

They're what I fed my pup but since he's no longer here, I still have some left and it seems a shame to toss them out. I haven't fed my bluey dog food at all, but I figure they'd make a good emergency food ration. Also, do you use dog food?

[Lea]

While I've got you here, may you check the ingredients for these two dog foods?
http://www.petco.com/product/114595/Inn ... -Food.aspx
http://www.petco.com/product/114594/Inn ... -Food.aspx

They're what I fed my pup but since he's no longer here, I still have some left and it seems a shame to toss them out. I haven't fed my bluey dog food at all, but I figure they'd make a good emergency food ration. Also, do you use dog food?

Dry dog food is not recommended as it absorbs water and can swell. I haven't looked at the ingredients for this reason as I wanted you to first be aware of that.

I occasionally feed wet dog food to baby rescues or picky skinks, but I'm lucky enough to have a good butcher, hence a reliable source of meat, mainly kangaroo, lamb or beef, which I feed both raw and cooked and chicken, which I always feed cooked. I have nothing against dog food, as long as all nutritional aspects are considered in the diet, but I can prepare fresh, so much prefer to do so, along with a mix of greens and veggies, which I am also very lucky to get of excellent quality at the fresh produce market.

[DrakeLineous12]

Mmmmm, boy do I miss kangaroo, and salties as well.

I was actually thinking of soaking it in water if I ever need to use it, as that's what I do with all dry/pelleted foods, or would it still be unsafe?

[Lea]

I can't see an ingredient list, but on a comparison level it would be hard to analyse dry food over wet food, without first considering the content on a dry matter basis, compared to a hydrated dry mix. Volume wise, once hydrated, dry food contains less protein per a given volume than a wet food mix and since all matter of ingredients are "diluted" once water is added, it would be fair to say that a dry mix would be far less nutritious than a wet dog food. The dry mixes often have a higher sodium content which could adversely affect cardiac and vascular health, as well as having a negative effect on the renal system.

There is always a risk of continued absorption of fluid by the dry food once ingested, so no matter the content, I would use great, great caution before giving it to your skink, preferably would be not to give it at all. Think pasta or rice- we cook to al dente, but it actually has the capability to absorb far more water after the cooking process, one reason many people bloat when they eat them. Your skink can not risk to be bloated out, so it's best to stick to what we know is the safest for them and avoid dry foods.

[HVani]

Interesting discussion.

I use repashy fish food almost exclusively for my saltwater fish. Sometimes the gel cubes(I make it up in an ice tray) get a little hard for my fish so I will break up the pieces and feed it to Edgar. He gobbles it up and seems to have no ill side effects. I wouldn't feed it exclusively but as a treat it's a nice way to add some variety.

[xxmonitorlizardxx]

Allen Repashy told me he is making a diet for Tiliqua.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sa0xjWw45Dc

[kahluafeeders]

I was just looking at these Rephashy foods the other day for my new BTS. I'm glad that I didn't spend the money as I was planning on having it as a "meal" once or twice a week.

[Toria Dawn]

I personably use Repashy Superfood "Superveggie" all-in-1 herbivore supplement powder on the food I already give my skink. Emphasis on it being a supplement. He actually seems to really like it, I just sprinkle a tiny bit on each serving of fresh veg and meat that I feed him. I dont know but I think if Allen Repashy did come up with a teliqua diet food, I'd still only use it as a supplement and not at an entire meal. Even for us silly humans, nothing compares to fresh food.