Treat your beast

Hornworms are the larval stage of the tobacco hornworm moth (Manduca sexta), a soft-bodied caterpillar prized as a feeder insect for reptiles. Bearded dragons, leopard geckos, chameleons, and crested geckos all eat them readily. Hornworms are high in moisture and calcium, low in fat, and have a healthy calcium-to-phosphorus ratio, which makes them a strong staple or treat feeder for most insectivorous reptiles. Pioneer Feeders raises every hornworm we ship in our Michigan facility and sends them out the same week they're harvested, so they arrive plump and active.

A cup of live hornworms typically lasts 7 to 14 days at room temperature, depending on size and how often you feed from it. Hornworms ship small (around 1/4 to 1/2 inch) so they have headroom to grow inside the cup before they outpace the food. Keep the cup at 72 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit, ventilated, and out of direct sunlight. Avoid refrigeration — cold temperatures harm hornworms and cut their lifespan dramatically. If your cup arrives ahead of when you plan to feed it, just leave it on a counter and let the worms grow into a feeding size over the next few days.

Yes. Silkworms (Bombyx mori) are the second-most popular feeder we ship, after hornworms. We raise our silkworms on a clean mulberry-based diet and ship them at multiple sizes, from small starter cups for picky-eater geckos up to large feeder cups for bearded dragons and chameleons. Silkworms are softer-bodied than hornworms, higher in calcium, and a strong choice for keepers who want to load up calcium without using a powdered supplement. Both hornworms and silkworms ship under the same Live Arrival Guarantee, packed for the weather forecast at your delivery address.

No. There's no minimum order for either retail or wholesale customers. You can order a single cup of hornworms, a single cup of silkworms, or any combination, and we'll ship it the next available shipping day. Wholesale-account pet shops and breeders get flat tiered pricing on every order regardless of size, with the same live arrival guarantee retail customers receive. If you're a pet shop interested in opening a wholesale account, fill out the wholesale application on our site and we'll get you set up within one business day.

We ship Monday through Wednesday only, so your order never spends a weekend sitting in a UPS hub. Most orders placed before 11am Central on a Monday, Tuesday, or Wednesday go out the same day. Transit times depend on where you are: in-state Michigan customers usually receive their order in 1 business day on UPS Ground, Midwest cities like Chicago, Indianapolis, and Columbus take 2 days, and East Coast or Southeast destinations are 2 to 3 days. For warm-weather or long-distance routes we recommend 2nd Day Air or Next Day Air, both of which carry the live arrival guarantee.

Pioneer Feeders backs every order with a Live Arrival Guarantee. If the majority of insects in your order or cup arrive deceased, we'll replace them or refund you. To file a claim, take a clear photo of the deceased insects on a white surface alongside your shipping label and email it to us within 24 hours of delivery. The guarantee applies to UPS 2nd Day Air and Next Day Air shipments by default, and to UPS Ground shipments when weather conditions allow it. We add cold-weather heat packs and hot-weather cool packs proactively based on your delivery forecast — there's no extra charge for that.