Feeder Roaches

[Gustavo]

im sorry about bringing up a subject that has been touched on so much but i was wondering what is the best species of feeder roach for t's and their slings?

and about how many t's should be the minimum for started a collony?

 

[Mike H.]

Blaberus discoidalis roaches are great feeders IMO, they are easy to keep and breed well...I would start out with 20 to 30 adults and within a few months the colony should start to take off...


Regards, Mike

 

[BigToach]

for T slings even roach babies are sometimes too big. i have a colony of B. dubia and i still use pinheads for my slings till they have molted a few times then i transfer them over to roaches.

 

[Gustavo]

ok ty for the info about how many t's did you guys have before you started a collony?

 

[Snipes]

I also have discoids. I use mealworms for smaller slings, but soon i may have so many slings that i will need pinheads. I got 200 nymphs and subadults about a month ago, and a lot of sub adults are now adults and i can see new babies already. Im sure you dont need THAT many, but it was a sale. Right now i have about 20 ts. It doesnt really matter how many ts or other predators you have, if you get too many, just sell some and make some $.

 

[Code Monkey]

for T slings even roach babies are sometimes too big. i have a colony of B. dubia and i still use pinheads for my slings till they have molted a few times then i transfer them over to roaches.

Why not just cut the 1st instars in halves or even quarters? I fail to understand why people pay money for crickets once their roach colony is underway.

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As for the original question, ask yourself what you want and then do the research since we're all going to tell whatever it is we happen to have chosen

For example, I think B. dubia is the better feeder roach out there even though they're slower to start out than something like the discoidales that was recommended above.

 

[BigToach]

roaches have come way down in price since i started my colony. i sucked it up and bought 200 when they were expendsive. depending on howmany mouths you have to feed i would suggest starting out with at least a few hundred. if i had to do it all over again i would start off with 300-500 B. lateralis.
this looks like a great deal to me. http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=74444
they will already be breeding and hatching when they arrive.

 

[Snipes]

Why not just cut the 1st instars in halves or even quarters? I fail to understand why people pay money for crickets once their roach colony is underway.

I find when i cut prey up, it makes things easier for bacteria since there is a huge gaping side. just my 2 cents on that

 

[Gustavo]

when you say sell them ... is it hard to find a buyer or sending them once you do? the only pet store close by just closed down and the nearest one from that is almost an hour away but do petstores usually buy feeder roaches?

 

[Code Monkey]

I find when i cut prey up, it makes things easier for bacteria since there is a huge gaping side. just my 2 cents on that

And? The bacteria are already covering every square micron of the feeders' surface to begin with (and every square micron of the sling for that matter), as well as filling the digestive tract of the feeder. What is the difference if they suddenly have access to the insides of the prey? The bacteria get digested right along with everything else.

The only thing about feeding dead prey versus live is you do have to remove the remains before it begins to mold. Otherwise, the sling could care not care less.

 

[eman]

Why not just cut the 1st instars in halves or even quarters? I fail to understand why people pay money for crickets once their roach colony is underway.

I agree entirely... the only problem is that when you have 30-60+ small slings to feed, cutting 1st instar roaches in smaller pieces is simply not an efficient method of feeding - hence the reason why some people still choose pin-head sized crickets.

 

[OldHag]

Get those Turkistan roaches (Blatta lateralis) Their babies are like pinheads. They look almost like wee ants or termites to me!

 

[Parahybana3590]

Well, for smaller T's and slings I would recommend lobster roaches, just because their babies are nice and small and full grown adults grow to about an inch to a inch and a half. This species is also an excellent breeder.

For bigger T's, the only other roach I have is Madagascar Hissers. They get nice 'n big for larger adult T's and their young are the right size for larger slings and any juv (unless the T is like a dwarf species).Note: This species is also an excellent breeder.

 

[Rounder]

I started out with about 50 discoids a couple years ago, about 25 were adults, they took a LONG time to reproduce and get a to reasonable number that I could begin to feed them off without worrying about the numbers. They also do not seem to reproduce well with normal indoor temperatures. On top of that, the size of the adults seemed to "scare" alot of my Ts and I had to prekill them for my B. smithi and GBB to take them.

This summer I switched over to lobsters and couldn't be happier. Yes they are climbers and they are significantly smaller than discoids, but they reproduce like crazy. I started out with 250, at probably 25% of the cost of that many discoids and I can't estimate how many I have now, barely 2 months later. The nymphs are great for even the most tiny slings - I do prekill the nymphs though. They are currently in my garage, where temps get to 95 daily.

While I was at ArachnoCon I talked to DaveGrimm1 about roaches, I'm considering getting a colony of the b. lateralis going as well, non-climbers, don't burrow much and reproduce well. They are a little small in size but would work great for slings and Ts up to 4".

 

[BurrowDweller]

I got 300 B. lateralis about 2 months ago and they have multiplied to several thousand. Of course most of these are nymphs of various sizes, but dang these things can breed like you wouldn't believe. Got mine from the same source BigToach referred to above, great roaches.

The newly hatched nymphs are tiny, I don't think there would be a sling that could not eat them.

Until the colony got rolling well I was chopping up full grown males to feed to my slings. Didn't worry one bit about bacteria or mold, the slings pounced on them as soon as the bits hit the substrate.

Just keep them warm, fed and hydrated and B. lateralis will supply you with enough feeders for your Ts and those of 20 of your closest friends!

 

[dymndgyrl]

They are a little small in size but would work great for slings and Ts up to 4".

Can't you just feed your bigger T's more of them, or are there some reasons that feeding larger prey is preferable?

 

[Nerri1029]

Blaberus discoidalis roaches are great feeders IMO, they are easy to keep and breed well...I would start out with 20 to 30 adults and within a few months the colony should start to take off...


Regards, Mike

Must Agree
and they do not smell bad either

 

[Gustavo]

Ty guys so much this will all help me i guess in a few months i will prob start one up considering ill be gitting some new adittions

 

[Rounder]

Can't you just feed your bigger T's more of them, or are there some reasons that feeding larger prey is preferable?

Yeah you can feed bigger Ts more of them, that's what I do. Just takes a lot of them to make a 7" T. blondi happy, hahah.

Looking back, I'd be very tempted to go with Blatta lateralis instead of lobsters, simply because they are non-climbing. I might get a colony of those going next summer.

 

[Parahybana3590]

Yeah you can feed bigger Ts more of them, that's what I do. Just takes a lot of them to make a 7" T. blondi happy, hahah.

It's also alot less taxing on a colony to feed the 7" T.Blondi 1-2 large prey items than 7-10 small ones...but then again, if you've got a crap load of little roaches, maybe it aint so bad .