Cute roaches?

[Lorgakor]

Anyone get attached to their roaches and not want to use them as feeders? I think they are so cute! They almost seem smart too. I can't feed them yet anyway as they are not established, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to. Crickets are just gross and nasty, but these guys are really neat.

Couple of questions though. I have B. discoidalis, no adults yet. Some are getting pretty close though. But do these guys bite at all? I've seen some pics of people holding them, but wasn't sure if they do bite. Also, I know that apples and oranges are good for breeding, but will they still breed with no extra heat source? It is pretty darn hot here right now, but I don't know if it is warm enough. Is the heating pad necessary for breeding?

For dry food I am using a mix of dry dog food, dog biscuits, oatmeal, Flukers cricket meal, and fish flakes. Does this sound okay? Anything I should be adding or not using? I also feed a regular supply of fresh veggies and they have fresh water at all times.

Here's a pic of my setup, hope it's okay. They are always in the cork sheets, or burried in the dry food!

 

[xelda]

I don't blame you at all for not wanting to use them as feeders. Discoids are one of my favorites. In regards to your set-up, my suggestion is to add more hides. Throw in some paper towel tubes and pieces of paper egg cartons. Discoids are pretty skittish and will appreciate the extra coverage.

 

[NiGHTS]

Roaches won't bite you, and they don't carry diseases, so it's perfectly fine to handle them. Just watch out because they can be fast! I believe that it has been proven that roaches "can" bite...but unless they think you're a decaying piece of flesh, chances are that they won't. I handle my Hissers and Lobsters all the time and have never had anything close to a bite happen (although the large hissers can scratch a little bit with their legs).

As for breeding, they should be ok without a heat source in the summer. Just remember to keep the humidity up. I see you're up in BC, so you'll probably need a heating pad in the winter. I think the ideal temp for discoids is 80 - 95 F degrees.

James has a really good caresheet for discoids on his web site: http://blaberus.com/PDFgallery2.htm

 

[KJE]

From what I understand the warmer it is the faster they breed. I am not using any extra heating at the moment for my discoids. The temp. has been between 74 and 76 degrees all summer because we run our air all summer. They are still breeding with no problem. During the winter I use a black light for a little extra warmth on one side of the enclosure.

How many do you have right now? After they become adults you will probably still want to wait at least 4 months before you start using them as feeders, unless you don't have very many things to feed.

I know what you mean about getting attached to them. When I first got mine I had to overcome the thought of roaches being in my house. That didn't take long! Now that my colony has grown from about 20 to about 275 in 5 months I sometimes find it hard to use them as feeders. Of course, when I open the cricket container I'm reminded of the reasons I'm switching to roaches to begin with.

I'm still not feeding only roaches yet. I'm waiting until some of my juvies mature into adults since I have 33 t's and a crested gecko that eats them. I just want to make sure I don't let the colony get too small. Plus, I've had trouble with the roaches burrowing in the substrate and not knowing if my t's are eating them at a later time. This is mostly a problem with my slings and baby roaches.

Good luck with your colony!

 

[Randolph XX()]

hi Laura
u got them from Walter?
anyway, my colony just started to establsihed, i started with 3 doznes , but i've fed a lot of them too.basicaly i threw everything eatable into the bin, the temp is always 85-90f.
anyway, i am looking forward to get Blatta lateralis, anybody reckon?

 

[Digby Rigby]

Discoid setup

Your set up looks okay but too much wasted space. Roaches like it dark and somewhat crowded. You might be better served if you putthem in a smaller container until their numbers grow. Also they derive swcurity by being in contact on the top and bottom in their hides, meaning they like it snug. I like the way you made the roach condos as they usually prefer such set ups to egg carton. Also having them vertically oriented helps to clean the frass much easier as it falls down instead of collecting as it does in horizontal applications. So in conlusion keep them in smaller containers so they have less 'dead space' as they like it crowded until the numbers grow keep them hot like 90-95 or so and keep them dark and have their hides fit snugly.

Digby Rigby

DigbyRigby@exoticfeeders.com

http://exoticfeeders.com

 

[ScorpDemon]

Roaches won't bite you

SHHHH.. dont tell my orange heads that.. they bite the piss out of me everytime i get one out of the tank

 

[galeogirl]

I used to keep Nauphoeta cinerea and I was quite fond of them; they bred like crazy, I was practically giving them away just to keep the colony healthy and manageable. I don't think that any of them ever tried to bite me.

I want to set up a roach colony again, but need to figure out how to hide it from my landlady.