# Discoid roaches??  Good feeder vs dubia?



## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 20, 2014)

I was wondering how good Discoid roaches work as feeders.
I Have been using dubias for a year or two though. ::

Are Discoid roaches larger or meatier for T food or about the same?

---------- Post added 10-21-2014 at 12:34 AM ----------

Anyone use these roaches?


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## MrCrackerpants (Oct 21, 2014)

Ultum4Spiderz said:


> I was wondering how good Discoid roaches work as feeders.
> I Have been using dubias for a year or two though. ::
> 
> Are Discoid roaches larger or meatier for T food or about the same?
> ...



I keep discoid roaches as pets. They are about the same size as dubia. My dubia reproduce better for me. The dubia are also pets. I have a huge collection of predatory arthropods (spiders, centipedes, arachnids, scorpions) and I just feed red runners to everything. I use red runners for everything from small scorpions, to dwarf tarantulas to my large tarantulas like Lasiodora parahybana (Brazilian Salmon Pink Birdeater Tarantula) and Theraphosa stirmi (Burgundy Goliath Birdeater Tarantula).

Reactions: Like 1


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## Introvertebrate (Oct 21, 2014)

I've heard that Discoids are better than Dubia in one respect.  They're more active.  They're less likely to play dead.

Reactions: Clarification Please 1


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## MrCrackerpants (Oct 22, 2014)

Introvertebrate said:


> I've heard that Discoids are better than Dubia in one respect.  They're more active.  They're less likely to play dead.


Yes, that is true. Now red runners, on the other hand, literately scream "EAT ME!" when they run!


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 22, 2014)

Introvertebrate said:


> I've heard that Discoids are better than Dubia in one respect.  They're more active.  They're less likely to play dead.


Discoids are bigger? Do u think they would be good alternative for dubia picky Ts? And larger  7"+ Ts

I cannot keep red runners  as they can breed if loose, any loose home breed-able Roach is X'd not on my list!!! :bruised:


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## freedumbdclxvi (Oct 22, 2014)

Introvertebrate said:


> I've heard that Discoids are better than Dubia in one respect.  They're more active.  They're less likely to play dead.


here in Florida, discoids are better than dubia in one more aspect, in that discoids are legal.

Reactions: Like 1


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 23, 2014)

freedumbdclxvi said:


> here in Florida, discoids are better than dubia in one more aspect, in that discoids are legal.


Are Dubia & discoid just as food as feeders? I guess no answers hardly on this topic.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 24, 2014)

Maybe Ill just split my dubia colonly in half for , 2 larger ones later on. I guess Discoids are nothing special for T food  I need something bigger than dubia for larger Ts. They have endless appetite.


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## freedumbdclxvi (Oct 24, 2014)

Ultum4Spiderz said:


> Are Dubia & discoid just as food as feeders? I guess no answers hardly on this topic.


Since I can't own dubia, I have no way to compare.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 24, 2014)

freedumbdclxvi said:


> Since I can't own dubia, I have no way to compare.


Yeah O well, I was hoping for a larger feeder roach than dubia, but hissers shell is too hard & Discoids are fatter but got no proof they are better than dubia. 
Bigger Ts eat Dubia roaches like beef jerky, takes a lot to fill a big female T.


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## MrCrackerpants (Oct 24, 2014)

Ultum4Spiderz said:


> Discoids are bigger? Do u think they would be good alternative for dubia picky Ts? And larger  7"+ Ts
> 
> I cannot keep red runners  as they can breed if loose, any loose home breed-able Roach is X'd not on my list!!! :bruised:


They will not breed in your house (unless you have a ongoing serious inside water leak and they can lay their ootheca near it). If a female gets loose and drops an ootheca in your house it is just going to desiccate and the embryos will die. The nymphs will never emerge. The egg cases need to be moist. This species lays its egg cases in root bundles under the ground. I live very close to one of two military bases where this species was brought in to the U.S. They live in all of the root bundles of all of the plants in my yard. They wander in during the spring and fall but are never able to reproduce inside.


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## RegallRegius (Oct 25, 2014)

Plenty of threads on this forum to help you in your "research"....


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 25, 2014)

RegallRegius said:


> Plenty of threads on this forum to help you in your "research"....


Not really I used search couldn't find any good info, might as well use google....

Dubia roach info is way more plentiful on AB.


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## xkris (Oct 25, 2014)

i dont have discoids, so i cant tell you about that. i hear they are a bit larger. could be a good feeder. 
lots of my T are huge and i want them to have a substantial meal. 

i do have hissers, and no matter what you hear, hissers make a good feeder. for a adult, you'll need a big T, 14cm+ (6,5-7inch+). their shell is a bit  harder, but its nothing a grown up T isn't designed to handle.
dont know if you ever feed mice to T? they can puncture a rodent skull with no trouble. (bird, frog, snake skull also) small hissers also make a good feeder. they start as just a tiny bit bigger than dubia and even slings can eat them.
so if your looking for a big meal, hissers are worth considering. only minus to them is that they climb, climb real good, but are not really fast moving. infestation is not so huge deal with them. but if they escape, they will crawl into anything they will fit into.

consider other blaberus species also, they are all nice big meaty roaches. like craniifer or colossus or giganteus. none of them climb. i have craniifer, they are way faster moving than dubia, its uncanny for such a large roach to sprint so fast they also sort of fly/glide and jump really well. male and female have wings. giganteus are huge and a arboreal roach, they fly real good. craniifer can sort of fly/glide. giganteus can lift off and fly, but dont do it often.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 25, 2014)

I have fed mice a few times before , but large species of roaches seem a lot cheaper in the longrun. My LPS charges $1.70 ea mouse.

Dono which of those huge roach species are easiest to care for but blaberus, craniifer or colossus or giganteus might be hard to buy are they real expensive?
Hissers are a bit pricey also but cheaper than mice, less messy cleanup also.


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## xkris (Oct 25, 2014)

you're right about that, in the long run a large roach species is the best way to go. i also occasionally buy mice. my cats do bring me dead ones every once and a while, (they also eat them but i dont want to use that. they could have gods know what not. 

out of all these you mentioned, hissers are the cheapest and the easiest to get here. 
if you want to talk about the ease of keeping all of these, its about the same. no extra special requirements, except giganteus need more vertical climbing spaces. all blaberus appreciate some kind of substrate. 
and hissers climb. also all of them need protein in their diet, dont forget that. 

you might be able to find craniifer, be careful about light wing hybrid. it breeds a bit faster, but is smaller than black wing pure one. also people are really really really against hybrids.

i my self would love to find giganteus, but they are rare and expensive here, like they are made of gold or something.   


if you can, get one of these huge roaches, give them some time and let nature run its course, you'll have plenty in no time. its way cheaper in the long run that way. 
i assume breading mice is out of the question? its out of the question for me too. some things i just dont want to keep


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## BobGrill (Oct 25, 2014)

Mice can injure a tarantula pretty bad. Stick to invertebrate prey.

Reactions: Like 1


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## freedumbdclxvi (Oct 25, 2014)

BobGrill said:


> Mice can injure a tarantula pretty bad. Stick to invertebrate prey.


pinkies can't.


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## BobGrill (Oct 25, 2014)

freedumbdclxvi said:


> pinkies can't.


True. I don't believe he specified although I May be wrong.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 26, 2014)

BobGrill said:


> Mice can injure a tarantula pretty bad. Stick to invertebrate prey.


Baby pinkies/ fuzzies 2" or under body size really die instantly, adult mice 3.5"+ however are dangerous!! 
Hissers might be better choice, now I gotta find a cheap deal someday. Mice got teeth , can injure a undersized T.

Less cleanup w/ roaches!


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## Introvertebrate (Oct 26, 2014)

MrCrackerpants said:


> ............I live very close to one of two military bases where this species was brought in to the U.S............


So, the Gulf War was good for something after all.  We got a great feeder out of it.


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## BobGrill (Oct 26, 2014)

Ultum4Spiderz said:


> Baby pinkies/ fuzzies 2" or under body size really die instantly, adult mice 3.5"+ however are dangerous!!
> Hissers might be better choice, now I gotta find a cheap deal someday. Mice got teeth , can injure a undersized T.
> 
> Less cleanup w/ roaches!


Yeah, the mess left behind is a turnoff for me.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 26, 2014)

Smell of a dead mouse is very bad too.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 27, 2014)

xkris said:


> you're right about that, in the long run a large roach species is the best way to go. i also occasionally buy mice. my cats do bring me dead ones every once and a while, (they also eat them but i dont want to use that. they could have gods know what not.
> 
> out of all these you mentioned, hissers are the cheapest and the easiest to get here.
> if you want to talk about the ease of keeping all of these, its about the same. no extra special requirements, except giganteus need more vertical climbing spaces. all blaberus appreciate some kind of substrate.
> ...


Do Blaberus discoidalis roaches get big enough for larger T's?
Can Orange head roaches attack Ts? 
if i found really cheap seller I could try Blaberus discoidalis & orange heads see which one gets bigger:biggrin:

---------- Post added 10-27-2014 at 10:26 PM ----------




freedumbdclxvi said:


> pinkies can't.


Neither can little fuzzy mice, 2" or smaller body size get munched like potato chips. Less armor than a roach also. Adult mice though are dangerous.


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## RegallRegius (Oct 28, 2014)

Just buy some Hissers. Problem solved.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 30, 2014)

Hissers might be too noisy room to keep in my bedroom , discoids however are bigger than dubia and not as noisy.


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## punkrock868 (Oct 30, 2014)

If not hissers you could always look into Blaberus fusca as a large feeder


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Oct 30, 2014)

punkrock868 said:


> If not hissers you could always look into Blaberus fusca as a large feeder


Yeah Good idea, They are bigger than discoid & dubia right? Dono were I can find them cheap though.

They grow just as fast as discoid ? Dubia are too small my larger Ts could prob eat most of my colony. Dubia did way better when I had a heater in my room.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Nov 6, 2014)

punkrock868 said:


> If not hissers you could always look into Blaberus fusca as a large feeder


Yeah I actualy might get those, Dubia colony of mine is big but Id rather feed a spider one Roach than 2-5 female dubia.


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## Akai (Nov 6, 2014)

Why don't you feed your larger Ts more then one Dubia?  I feed my T. stirmi and anything larger then 8 inches 3 or 4 Dubia at a time.  What do you think people who use crickets as feeders do?  They toss in for or 5 crickets at a time. Its not like it's going to make a dent in your Dubia colony.  Lol  I feed off females sometimes too especially to gravid Ts.    There are pros and cons to every feeder, you just have to make good with what you got.


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## Ultum4Spiderz (Nov 6, 2014)

Akai said:


> Why don't you feed your larger Ts more then one Dubia?  I feed my T. stirmi and anything larger then 8 inches 3 or 4 Dubia at a time.  What do you think people who use crickets as feeders do?  They toss in for or 5 crickets at a time. Its not like it's going to make a dent in your Dubia colony.  Lol  I feed off females sometimes too especially to gravid Ts.    There are pros and cons to every feeder, you just have to make good with what you got.


 Yeah I am currently doing that. some of my 6-7" Ts eat this much.  I don't own a Goliath right now wish I did, my first Goliath didn't turn out so well. It well, arrived w/a cyst.


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## Akai (Nov 6, 2014)

Like I said there are pros and cons to all feeders.  Some of the larger species don't reproduce as fast, or smell/defensive odors, fight with each other or have specific husbandry requirements like they NEED substrate etc.  I actually think hissers are better pet roaches then feeders because they don't reproduce as often and don't produce enough offspring which is a common trait with larger species.  You have to  find a happy median with whatever feeder you go with.  I know larger species eat more which means you have to feed more and that requires more work and effort on your part.  In the end if you are putting in more work with your roaches then you are with your Ts, then you might want to switch your hobbies around.  lol


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## Eli824 (Dec 13, 2016)

MrCrackerpants said:


> I keep discoid roaches as pets. They are about the same size as dubia. My dubia reproduce better for me. The dubia are also pets. I have a huge collection of predatory arthropods (spiders, centipedes, arachnids, scorpions) and I just feed red runners to everything. I use red runners for everything from small scorpions, to dwarf tarantulas to my large tarantulas like Lasiodora parahybana (Brazilian Salmon Pink Birdeater Tarantula) and Theraphosa stirmi (Burgundy Goliath Birdeater Tarantula).


Can I house discoids with my Dubias I just purchased 1000 discoid nymphs 1/8-3/8 size but I don't have another heat pad or tank I'd like to just put them in with the dubia and watch them grow then I can separate them after I attain another tank and heat pad


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## MrCrackerpants (Dec 13, 2016)

Eli824 said:


> Can I house discoids with my Dubias I just purchased 1000 discoid nymphs 1/8-3/8 size but I don't have another heat pad or tank I'd like to just put them in with the dubia and watch them grow then I can separate them after I attain another tank and heat pad


I would invest up front and get a tank and heating pad now. I can think of many negative issues you would avoid by giving these two species their own separate enclosures. Good luck!


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## Draketeeth (Dec 13, 2016)

Ultum4Spiderz said:


> Hissers might be too noisy room to keep in my bedroom , discoids however are bigger than dubia and not as noisy.


I have a small group of hissers in my bedroom (6 pets), and the noise was only a serious issue when I had a container that was too small for them. I upgraded them from a large KK to a 5 gal tank, and all my noise issues vanished overnight. The males still spar now and again, but it went from hissy fits every other night, to hissy fits maybe once every two weeks. Having sufficient space is important. Don't think I could ever use the adults as feeders though, the hissing as they're nomed would kill me.


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## Ran (Dec 13, 2016)

Like punkrock mentioned B. fusca colony if you can find them. I have a colony started, it took them quite awhile to get started but the colony is now growing quickly. I have dubia and lobsters also and fusca are much larger and very active like a huge red runner.


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## UltimateDracoMeteor (Dec 19, 2016)

Ultum4Spiderz said:


> I was wondering how good Discoid roaches work as feeders.
> I Have been using dubias for a year or two though. _O:
> 
> Are Discoid roaches larger or meatier for T food or about the same?
> ...


Even though it's two years later, I'll still give my two cents for anyone who stumbles upon this question via google. Discoids get a lot bigger than dubias when adult and can make fairly good individual pets due to this, but their lifespan is short. As feeders, adults are probably only good for the largest Ts/pedes/scorpions, as they get very big (2.75 inches or so). Both dubias and discoids are unable to climb, which helps so that when you open the feeder cage you don't have roaches spilling out. I'd say dubias probably make better feeders based on my observations, although I've never used discoids for feeders.


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## Eli824 (Dec 20, 2016)

UltimateDracoMeteor said:


> Even though it's two years later, I'll still give my two cents for anyone who stumbles upon this question via google. Discoids get a lot bigger than dubias when adult and can make fairly good individual pets due to this, but their lifespan is short. As feeders, adults are probably only good for the largest Ts/pedes/scorpions, as they get very big (2.75 inches or so). Both dubias and discoids are unable to climb, which helps so that when you open the feeder cage you don't have roaches spilling out. I'd say dubias probably make better feeders based on my observations, although I've never used discoids for feeders.


Ok so I heard discoids have a defensive odor that deterred me from using them although today I noticed humidity in my dubia tank and I decided to clean it out that's when I noticed a foul smell I guess the humidity and the roach poop just didn't mix so my question is if I put baking soda in the tank would that harm the roaches ? Would it help with the odor ? And would it absorb potential humidity ?


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## Ellenantula (Dec 21, 2016)

I fed a huge adult female discoid to rosie once and it was pretty ugly.  Dirt flying, the two of them rolling and tussling (had no idea discoids had such long legs) and occasional banging hitting enclosure sides.  Discoid AF gave rosey a good fight and it must have taken 45 minutes before rosie had her subdued enough to begin dining.  I even considered the possibility rosie might not win the fight.  And rosie was an adult and hungry.  Took her a whole day to finish eating the blasted thing -- no problem finding that bolus.  Ugh.
I am sticking with B lats.


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