Roach colony questions

[stnick80]

I've done alot of research on the boards and I've decided I want to try a dubia roach colony for feeders. I only have one problem. I'm terrified of roaches. I cannot figure out for the life of me why I am. Did anybody else have this problem? How did you combat it, if you did? It's pretty pathetic actually. I'm scared of roaches like some people are scared of spiders and snakes. Living on the east coast as a kid must have traumatized me. Periplaneta americana used to scare the crap out of me. Still do actually. I used to have a problem with losing my appetite as a kid if I even saw one. The guy who has 50 Ts and 20 snakes is afraid of roaches, go figure. If I can beat my fear I still have to run it by the wife. Maybe I should call them dubia beetles?

 

[Scarp172]

It's funny you should mention that- my girlfriend, mother, and few friends refer to my dubias as "beetles" and after they started doing that they miraculously had no problems whatsoever with them:? Maybe it will work for you too!

 

[stnick80]

Okay.. Listen to this.

So I am asking about roaches and what not here on the boards. I sign off to go to bed for the night so I go downstairs and what do I find streaking across my floor at warp speed. An American Cockroach nymph. Looks to be 4th or 5th instar. The weather is getting colder here in Georgia and I think they have decided it's time to come into my house... I'd feed the little SoB to my tarantula if I wasn't worred about insectisides and various other microbiology the little yuck may be carrying. And yes he gave me the heebie jeebies...

 

[Scott C.]

........How did you combat it, if you did? It's pretty pathetic actually. I'm scared of roaches like some people are scared of spiders and snakes.........

Get yourself a pair of hissers, and handle them a bit, or a bunch. If they can't break your phobia then I don't know what will. They're so cool.......

 

[psionix]

i'd recommend reading this book

 

[IguanaMama]

Get yourself a pair of hissers, and handle them a bit, or a bunch. If they can't break your phobia then I don't know what will. They're so cool.......

OMG I was going to say exactly the same thing. Funny. I was going to donate a pair to my son's science class and tell the teacher to call them Hissers, NOT hissing cockroaches.

 

[Scott C.]

OMG I was going to say exactly the same thing. Funny. I was going to donate a pair to my son's science class and tell the teacher to call them Hissers, NOT hissing cockroaches.

They are cool aren't they? Gotta love 'em.....

 

[Aquanut]

Dubias are very cool, odor free, non climbing or flying and don't look much like the roaches of lore. My young daughter watched them, helped me feed them and soon she was handling them. It helped that she never has seen an infestation before as we live in Idaho. If it helps feel free to just call them "Dubias, kind of like beetles"

 

[OldHag]

Dubia nymphs are fun too, they will "play dead" when you pick them up They curl up almost like a pill bug! Its pretty cute.

 

[jojobear]

I agree with the hisser idea. I taught at a day camp this summer and 95% of the kids that were totally, completely freaked out by the idea of even looking at a roach were at least touching them by the end of the day. I also had an unatural adversion to spiders growing up and even as an adult. I now have over 30 T's and counting. So yes you can get over it but it might be the best thing for your wallet.

 

[IguanaMama]

I have well over two dozen species of roaches, and the ones my 5 year old likes the best are the dubias, not the hissers, btw.

 

[Aquanut]

I took the Dubias to my daughters 2nd grade class in a plastic container and it was nice since they couldn't crawl up the sides. I may get some Blaberus Giaganticus(spelling)for show (not for feeding) They are very impressive.

 

[Takumaku]

Another roach that can be tried to get over your fear/uncomfortness is Archimandrita tesselata (aka peppered roach). It's an extremely slow moving roach (slower than hissers).

 

[Luis138]

How I did it

I was also extremely scared of roaches. Terrified to the point of freezing when I will see one. I think I hate crickets more that I am scared of roaches. What I did is start with a colony of hissers and buy a looooooooong tweezer. I grab them with the tweezers and feed them that way. Honestly I don't remember when I started grabbing them with my hands. I am still a little nervous when I have them but not at all like I was at first. I hold them in my hand. Now I have maybe 6 or 7 different species. Some pets and some feeders. Go figure. :clap:

 

[Mechanical-Mind]

I agree with Scott C. and the rest that breaking your fear by 'practicing' with some hissers is a solid idea. In the end, however, if you can't pull it off - just use tweezers to move them. I'm fortunate enough to lack this anxiety towards roaches, but I still find some species (e.g. N. cinerea) easier to manipulate with long tweezers.

Best regards,
-Matt

 

[Zarathustra]

I sort of had a fear of roaches too. I got some hissers, and I wasn’t afraid of looking at them, but just did not want to touch them. I would touch one, it would hiss, and I would jerk my hand back. I just had to keep telling myself that they did not bite, and my fear was irrational. I kept reminding myself that I handle snakes that could definitely hurt me, so I should not be bothered by roaches. After forcing myself to handle them a few times, I completely got over my fear. Now I like to handle them.

 

[xelda]

Believe it or not, roaches used to creep me out too. I have always been fine with all insects except for roaches. I think it was because I grew up hearing stories about my mom finding them in her food but not until after she accidentally ate them. Even after I started keeping them, there were still some species that gave me the creeps. But after breeding them for awhile and spending so much time waiting and looking for baby roaches, I started to think of them more endearingly.

If I were you, I would stick with the plan of starting with B. dubia. The nymphs look more like rolly pollies than house roaches. And they have a general cute, soft look about them. I've sold roaches to a lot of nervous first time cockroach keepers who tell me they were surprised by how much they like their B. dubia.

 

[stnick80]

Thank you all for your replies. I'll talk it over with the wife and I will probably start a small colony of B.dubia to see what it is all about. Crickets are such a pain I feel that it is worth it to try and get over this silly fear I have. Now.. all I have to do is tell my wife they are dubia beetles and are a great healthy food source for my babies..

 

[IguanaMama]

I just want to reiterate that my 5 year old LOVES dubias, and he was not really a bug lover as a young child. He talks to them in a secret language. They are really really pretty, nice earth tones, slow moving. Just call them Dubias, no need to call them dubia beetles (why fib?). I suggest that you don't get any adult males at first. The only dubias that are slightly roach looking are the adult males as they have wings. Maybe just start with nymphs. That would be my advice.

PS: Crickets are soooooooooooooooo ugly, don't you think?

 

[Stylopidae]

My thoughts and suggestions on feeder roaches