# Cricket breeding



## Dragoon (Jul 17, 2006)

Hello
Just thought I'd make a post about how I keep crickets, and get pinheads for all my infant arachnids.

I buy adult crickets by the box. I set them up in large bins with styrofoam plates for water. I like the plates for the big crix because they cannot drown, all crix can climb styro. And dirty water leads to die-offs. 
I keep the boxes clean, because dead crickets stink. The plates are easy to wipe clean.
For food, I use a dry mixture of mixed grain baby pablum and bulk fish flakes. Sometimes I add bulk oatmeal or wheat germ, but that depends on what is eating my crickets. Arachnids alone don't warrant the extra cost, IMO. The fish flakes are for protein. 
This adult bin is almost empty, but you can see the arrangement, and the dish of damp dirt for them to lay eggs. I lean the egg carton on the dish, so they can get to it to lay eggs easy. (not seen in this photo, drat)






I am into recycling. 
When I rehouse a T, I save the old peat/ecoearth mixture in a bin to use for cricket egg dishes. Because once the crickets hatch out, the dirt is garbage!  I fill a bunch of deli cups at once, and then rotate them weekly into the adult cricket bin. 
Here is my rack holding mini-bins containing one dish of dirt, dry food and water, and the baby crickets. I have all sizes, usually one week apart in age.






Here is a close up. 
For water for little crix, I use a folded square of paper towel. I dampen the towel and change it daily. If I forget one day to give fresh towel, they die. If you dampen used towel, they die. The water must be clean, and given daily, I have learned. Its amazing how fast you can kill off a whole bin by forgetting one day. (Larger crickets aren't as sensitive.) The dish of dirt is garbage when you no longer see white crickets crawling on it. White ones are newly hatched ones. 






That's about it. 
I use a little clear cup to scoop out whatever size I am looking for. The crickets all grow at different rates, so I can always find the perfect sized food. 
Cheers
D.


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## Arachnobrian (Jul 17, 2006)

*Wow, I am not sure I want that many crix.*

Looks like a good system, just curious instead of the wet paper towel or water dish, could you substitute the Cricket Quencher?? I currently use it in my two cricket tubs (one large crix, one small crix), with limited fatalities.

I also enjoy my weekly trips to the pet store to replenish my supply, as I get to see the new exotic arrivals. I also enjoy the disgusted look on dog and cat owners that look at my bags of bugs at the cash. It's almost priceless when I tell them they are for big spiders.


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## Dragoon (Jul 18, 2006)

I don't know what Cricket Quencher is...not sure i want to know...sounds expensive, LOL. 
a slice of orange works well, too. 

When my pack of N. chromatus were small, it was a pain getting enough small food for 20 hungry slings....lots of pinheads are good, they grow and eventually, something eats them. I have 70, it'll be over a hundred by summer's end.

Yeah, you gotta feel sorry for the poor, uneducated non-arachnid owners...they have no clue what they're missing out on, poor sods.
D.


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## geopet (Jul 18, 2006)

*Great Post*

I just wanted to say great post. I am personally tired of venturing every week to the pet store for crickets. I have 9 spiderlings eating 2-3 crickets a week. I tried buying the 1 week crickets in cartons of 25 and kept running out so I started buying the 50 cricket boxes which lasted. The problem is that the crickets GROW LOL. With the 50 cricket boxes they last longer but the crickets get too big after 8-9 days for the tarantulas (or at least I am not willing to risk it myself). I therefore have gone back to 25 cricket boxes and the pain in the behind of going each week to the store. 

Your system is an all around solution really.. . .cheaper, convenient and potentially maybe I can sell the extra crickets. 

I do have several questions though. I noticed the type of crickets I get shed after a time as they grow. With your large bins do you remove the sheds or just leave them in there? Will they eat the sheds themselves? Finally about how old do the crickets get when they breed and how long after do they lay eggs. . .how long after that for the cricketlings (LOL). Thanks for this post. It is absolutely EXCELLENT.

"doffs hat. . .bows deeply"

Marty


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## Dragoon (Jul 18, 2006)

hello
Thanks for the feedback!

Yes, all crickets accumulate sheds as they grow. And feces, and dead ones, etc.  It will smell if you leave it. 
Once a week, I get a clean large bin, spread more dry food on the bottom, and empty out the dirty bin.  What I do is shake the dirty bin real hard, so that all the dirt and crix are at the bottom corner. I then hold it over the clean bin, and all the (live) crickets walk out of the dirt and fall over the edge.  I have to nudge the stragglers. But eventually they all walk out and leave their dirt behind. 

Crickets will lay eggs as soon as the females have their long tubes present on their butt. Depending on how they've been fed, they can be either small or large when the butt tube is ready. Large well fed females lay more eggs. They only live a week or two after they've been mature, so I feed them off after they've laid eggs for a few days. I make sure no female crickets get put in tanks I must keep humid (my P.imperator, H. lividum, M. robustum, etc.) I pick out males or immature crickets for these tanks. 

You can feed mulitple small crickets to a large spider, or a single large cricket to a small spider. I just watch for spiders that don't kill food right away, I take the food out if that happens. Unless its an avic. Avics won't eat if you've touched their tank. They're prissy, and demand privacy. 

I sometimes spend more time with cricket maintenance than I do with the arachnids...crickets require daily attention.
D.


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## Arachnobrian (Jul 18, 2006)

*Cricket Quencher*

It's a Flukers product, it's a calcium fortified orange gel. No crickets can drown in gel. It's not overly expensive, however with the amount of crixs you have it could get pricey as I have only found it in 12 oz jars for about $7.


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## Arietans (Jul 19, 2006)

Great post. Very informative. Thanks


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## Scag (Jul 19, 2006)

Ottawaherp said:
			
		

> It's a Flukers product, it's a calcium fortified orange gel. No crickets can drown in gel. It's not overly expensive, however with the amount of crixs you have it could get pricey as I have only found it in 12 oz jars for about $7.



http://www.watersorb.com/prices.htm

cheaper then fluckers easier to store and um it works the same.


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## FourDeadFish (Jul 19, 2006)

One thing you didn't mention,

You can refrigerate the trays of soil at 50F for up to 6 months.   The longer they are cooled, the less you'll get hatching per tray, but it doesn't look like even 70% mortality would affect your needs very much.  That is one heck of alot of pinheads.


Did I mention I hate crickets! :evil:  Sorry, wrong thread!:wall:

Sincerely,
Paul E. Turley


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