MorbidTecolote
Arachnopeon
- Joined
- Dec 18, 2018
- Messages
- 20
So something interesting happened to me at Repticon last weekend.
A bit of backstory, I'm an avid isopod keeper, and have been branching out into other inverts, including two milli species and a scorpion. I also have a general fear of roaches, based on the fact that there were giant flying ones where I grew up and they would often fly at me when they got in the house. Despite this, I wanted to work on my adversion to roaches with encouragements from one of my roach enthusiast friends. I decided on hissers because they were the least-roachy, couldn't fly, and looked kind of cool. I had hoped to get one or two, just to warm up to them.
Fast forward to the reptile convention. I was already disappointed because there weren't as many inverts as I had hoped. Then I saw it, partially stuffed under the sellers table, a large bin with an ill fitting lid marked "Hissing Roaches: Enquire for Price". I got pretty excited over seeing them, thinking I might be able to pick up at least one species on my wish list. The seller noticed, came over, and I asked her the price.
"I'll give you the whole tub for 35$".
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. As it turns out, she hated roaches. She had only gotten them to feed her savannah monitor, but the monitor wouldn't eat them. The ill fitting lid combined with poorly glued mesh vents along the sides led to many escaped roaches, and she looked visibly worn as she told me she had started finding them in her cereal. She wanted rid of them, and I decided to take them all on.
I hurried the bin home as quickly as I could, worried they would start escaping in my car. The bin was in a sorry state, filled with frass, old egg cartons, spiders, and roach carcasses. After some intense sorting, I got the remaining ones into a more secure bin with petroleum jelly along the top.
So now I have approximately 30 hissing roaches. I'm still learning about their care, and to be honest I'm still a little scared of them. I live in fear for what will happen when one of the females produces another clutch of babies, the colony is already well into self reproducing. However, I've resolved to sell/give away any excess as they appear, and not give up on these guys.
A bit of backstory, I'm an avid isopod keeper, and have been branching out into other inverts, including two milli species and a scorpion. I also have a general fear of roaches, based on the fact that there were giant flying ones where I grew up and they would often fly at me when they got in the house. Despite this, I wanted to work on my adversion to roaches with encouragements from one of my roach enthusiast friends. I decided on hissers because they were the least-roachy, couldn't fly, and looked kind of cool. I had hoped to get one or two, just to warm up to them.
Fast forward to the reptile convention. I was already disappointed because there weren't as many inverts as I had hoped. Then I saw it, partially stuffed under the sellers table, a large bin with an ill fitting lid marked "Hissing Roaches: Enquire for Price". I got pretty excited over seeing them, thinking I might be able to pick up at least one species on my wish list. The seller noticed, came over, and I asked her the price.
"I'll give you the whole tub for 35$".
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. As it turns out, she hated roaches. She had only gotten them to feed her savannah monitor, but the monitor wouldn't eat them. The ill fitting lid combined with poorly glued mesh vents along the sides led to many escaped roaches, and she looked visibly worn as she told me she had started finding them in her cereal. She wanted rid of them, and I decided to take them all on.
I hurried the bin home as quickly as I could, worried they would start escaping in my car. The bin was in a sorry state, filled with frass, old egg cartons, spiders, and roach carcasses. After some intense sorting, I got the remaining ones into a more secure bin with petroleum jelly along the top.
So now I have approximately 30 hissing roaches. I'm still learning about their care, and to be honest I'm still a little scared of them. I live in fear for what will happen when one of the females produces another clutch of babies, the colony is already well into self reproducing. However, I've resolved to sell/give away any excess as they appear, and not give up on these guys.
