Mutant Crickets???

[Haligren]

I am...at a loss. And maybe I'm just ignorant, but I got some five week old crickets last week. Probably the healthiest bunch I've ever had....almost too healthy. >.>

Now I have an old becel container that I transfigured into a cricket keeper. I cut a hole in the top and duct taped a piece of wire screen mesh over the opening. Last night however, while I'm out with friends, I get a call from my husband saying that the crickets had chewed through the freakin' screen and atleast five had made a break for freedom.

I have never heard of a cricket chewing through such. I mean, I've been bitten by them but it doesn't hurt and I suppose there is a possibility that the screen is actually plastic (?) which would make more sense. Although I was told it was wire, as in metal. Now, after I get home from work, they had chewed through another part of the screen. I should post a picture of how my husband has solved the problem...it's pretty funny. (He cut a 1 litre pop bottle in half and duct taped it over the top of the container. The crickets seem to approve...or disapprove as they can't escape any more...Atleast I hope so anyway.)

Tomorrow I'm going to get an actual cricket keeper. One made of hard plastic and metal that those hungry crickets and their mutant mandibles cannot chew through.

Has anyone heard of this or had this problem? I was completely caught unawares. I normally get four weekers but none of my previous batches of crickets have lasted very long except for this one. I normally don't get crickets at all as I hate them with a passion, but Mandarin was growing bored of the supers and I do so like to offer a variety when I can.

That being said, are there any roach breeders in Canada???

 

[AndyRC]

Sounds like a pretty tough batch of crickets! I'm thinking that the mesh was made of plastic rather than metal. Crickets can chew through plastic in a very short amount of time. I stopped using crickets after some escaped from my cage. They are quite the escape artists, climbing the corners of the cage to get to the top and break there way out to freedom. I don't like crickets however, they cause a little too much trouble for me. I've got my gecko on a strictly-worm diet. And he's healthy as a horse! (well, a gecko)

 

[Haligren]

I normally don't feed crickets either because they are too much trouble. I can see where they have been chewing on the duct tape too. Now I'm wondering if I should even feed them to my gecko knowing that they've ingested not only the screen mesh but tape as well! Atleast, I'm not sure if they are actually eating it or simply chewing on it....

 

[ajveachster]

Wow! That sucks. We have ours in a plastic tub with the plastic screen on top. We have never had a problem with them chewing through, but we also have a good 6 inch clearance between the egg crates and the lid. I can understand your concern about the tape glue. I don't know that I would want to feed them to my gecko either.

 

[Dakota_Ghost]

I've noticed that once I've put crickets in my leo's tank they chew on the silicon tank sealant, the rubbery stuff that holds the glass together :/ Anyways, I don't use crickets anymore. I've changed to mealies and I've also just bought some locusts.