Any roach breeders here?

[Mclaughlin]

Just curious if anyone here breeds roaches. I just started two colonies yesterday and was curious of any tips or tricks....

 

[Herpluver]

The other day I had a long conversation with a very educated gentlemen named Joe from South Texas Dragons. He told me a few things for success. He said 100-110 on the hot side will help promote the best breeding temps. Giving them an orange or any citrus fruit every now and then can make them breed like crazy. He said to disturb them as infrequently as possible as they do best when left alone. If you are providing a dome light on top for heat, make sure they have plenty of space to avoid the light. Otherwise, tape a under tank heater to the back of your tub/enclosure. Placing it on the bottom, if the tub is moved somewhat frequently, can cause rub spots in the flexwatt/heat tape and could cause a fire in the future. I've also heard its best to only change out the tubs twice to three times a year.

That the best information I can provide. Hopefully others have some good tips too!

 

[unkempt1]

I've met Joe before, at the convention down here in San Antonio. Really nice guy.

Ive had a roach colony for about 10 months now and it's great. I'm not 100% reliant on it, because I like to mix my reptiles' diet up a bit with mealworms, crickets, and superworms. I like my colony almost as much as I like my "real pets." They're just so fascinating to me, especially to watch them eat! :evilgrin:

I come from the camp that keeps the temp closer to 95 degrees on the hot side. Maybe it's because I live in the South, but males don't really like it that hot. I myself haven't experienced it, but friends in the trade down here have experienced male die-offs at temps over 100 degrees. Just something to consider!

To the OP: The best thing you can do is provide us a picture! If you can't, I'd recommend looking at the YouTube videos. The more popular ones are spot-on. At the end of the day, as long as you keep the temps right, offer constant hydration while keeping an eye on mold, and keep your male/female ratio right it's really hard not to have a successful colony! Cheers!

 

[indyana]

I'm going to post here rather than start a new thread. I'm interested both in starting up a small colony and keeping a bin of feeders around. Emphasis on the word small here, as I don't need thousands. What would everyone feel is the minimum size container to keep them in? I've read that they enjoy close quarters, but then other sites say they need adequate floor space... Any opinions/links would be appreciated.

 

[unkempt1]

I'm going to post here rather than start a new thread. I'm interested both in starting up a small colony and keeping a bin of feeders around. Emphasis on the word small here, as I don't need thousands. What would everyone feel is the minimum size container to keep them in? I've read that they enjoy close quarters, but then other sites say they need adequate floor space... Any opinions/links would be appreciated.

If you are going to feed 1-3 geckos, I'd recommend a colony of maybe 20-30 females and 4-6 males. Even with a colony that small, I'd still go with the 18 gallon Sterillite bin. They don't mind close quarters, but people are right about having a bit of floor space. But I think that idea is more about having room for food and water crystals, since you will notice the only time they use the floor is to eat or look for something to eat. Having a bit of space gives them room to eat and also will prevent mold from clutter and such.

Here's a decent link: http://amazingly-wildfeederz.webs.com/caresheet

 

[indyana]

Thanks for the feedback and link. I think I might have a container that size already... have to go digging in the basement/shed.

 

[unkempt1]

Thanks for the feedback and link. I think I might have a container that size already... have to go digging in the basement/shed.

Be careful! When I first started I used some cartons from the garage that unbeknownst to me had chemicals sprayed on them. My first whole colony almost completely died in less than an hour!

 

[indyana]

D'oh! That must have been disheartening.

I ended up having to buy a new storage container anyway; we'd filled up all our extras. I set it up Saturday, but it will probably be another couple weeks before I can actually get any dubia for it.

 

[unkempt1]

D'oh! That must have been disheartening.

I ended up having to buy a new storage container anyway; we'd filled up all our extras. I set it up Saturday, but it will probably be another couple weeks before I can actually get any dubia for it.

Oh man... I spent so much time researching, waiting for the reptile expo, and setting it up it really ruined my day! I made lemonade from lemons, though. I keep the survivors in a separate bin and test different foods and environments on them. They're doing pretty well.

But its good you've got it set up! If you haven't already, you have time to check the temps and humidity. Then you will know if there's enough circulation from the screen size and what not.

 

[indyana]

Yeah, I need to pick up a cheap digital humidity gauge. I have a thermostat to regulate the heating pad on the container. The only trouble I'm having is how to stop the little ones from climbing up the probe wire. I'll have it routed through the edge of the screen and taped down, but I don't want them getting up to the top of the bin. Think wrapping clear packaging tape around the wire in a couple places will stop them?

 

[myshell]

If you take a small amount of Vaseline or veg. oil and rub it around the top of the bin it will create a slick surface that they can't climb.

 

[indyana]

Okay, got some dubia in there last week. Used packaging tape around the bin rim, and that appears to be working just fine. Haven't tried routing the probe cable in yet, but I'm going to have to this weekend. I can't keep the temp up enough with the probe on the outside because the thermostat I have only goes to 94. Temps are running 77-81 degrees right now. Humidity is in the 60s.

Worst problem I'm having is trying to get some out for feeding. I shake the egg flats and... nothing. Little buggies have a death grip on the things! So I'm sitting there for 10-15 minutes trying to individually chase down ones that are the right size.

 

[kelii]

My roaches really enjoy eating yellow squash baby food. They clean the plate in just a couple hours every time I offer it. They also like the banana orange flavor. I give them baby food because they seem to eat more of it then when I give them whole veggies.

 

[LymieBunz]

I haven't heard anyone mention anything about fumes the plastic containers may give off because of the heat pad/tape. Can anyone talk to this? Does it stink up the place? Mine would be in my closet in my bedroom.

 

[indyana]

A new bin may have a plastic smell for a week or so. It's not really bad, but you can smell it. The smell wears off in time. I actually set mine up and ran it a few days before my first roaches arrived.

 

[Treefolk]

Hello,

I started with 500 females and am somewhere around 15k roaches now. I keep them in large tupperwares with tightly packed egg flats to provide the most surface area possible. I feed all ages oranges, carrots and bananas; the younger nymphs seem to appreciate greens more then adults. Ultimately I feed what is in season (except oranges and bananas). During summer they LOVE watermelon.

I feed organic chicken starter crumbles (26% protein). Sometimes I add organic milk powder to bump up the protein content for young nymphs.

I mostly leave them alone and try to clean them out once a month (sometimes less often). I try to keep them around 90 degrees which is more difficult in winter.

Idk, they breed like roaches. LoL