Breeding madagascar hissing roaches

[Defalt]

I thought that I'd try my hand at breeding these guys, but before I start, is there anything I should take note of? My most successful past experiences breeding roaches were with suriname roaches. How different are these from those? How long does it take for em to get settled in and start breeding? Thanks in advance for any help

 

[Tangled]

I've bred the common hissers and halloween hissers. If you start with nymphs, it will be several months before they are producing. Adult will obviously produce quickly for you but it will be several months before the new nymphs create their own little nymphs. I keep mine in a large plastic tub. I got silicone for the top barrier because at 80+ degrees, the vasoline kept sliding/melting down and they would crawl out. I don't use substrate, just egg crate. I use dog food and water crystals as their main sustenance but they reproduce much better when fruits are thrown into the mix.

 

[Defalt]

I see, what sort of fruits do they prefer? Also, should I try to keep the enclosure dry?

 

[Tangled]

I think they prefer some amount of humidity but I don't let them have it since I want to be able to sort them when I need to. I usually offer apples, oranges and bananas. They will eat squash too. I've offered broccoli once and they ignored it. My colony of common hissers started with an adult pair that gave birth in their deli cup at the pet store where they were sold. That was with 1 piece of egg crate and 1 piece of that orange cricket food. I figure if they'll give birth under those conditions....

 

[The Mantis Menagerie]

I've bred the common hissers and halloween hissers. If you start with nymphs, it will be several months before they are producing. Adult will obviously produce quickly for you but it will be several months before the new nymphs create their own little nymphs. I keep mine in a large plastic tub. I got silicone for the top barrier because at 80+ degrees, the vasoline kept sliding/melting down and they would crawl out. I don't use substrate, just egg crate. I use dog food and water crystals as their main sustenance but they reproduce much better when fruits are thrown into the mix.

I agree with these recommendations except for the substrate part (I have heard that cockroach allergies could be caused by their frass drying out and getting airborne). I have a large hisser colony, and I keep them in an approximately 15 gallon Sterilite tub with the foam gasket and a thick layer of coconut fiber to maintain high humidity. They breed pretty well, but these definitely take a lot longer to grow than Suriname roaches, and the females do not seem to give birth very often. I will say though that if you have the opportunity to see them in person, then pick out a very plump roach as it will likely be a female that is about to give birth.