feeding roaches

[Jason P & lexx]

ok i looked and didn't see a post i may have looked over it but is there a age or size to start feeding roaches compared to crickets or can you feed roaches when there lill just the baby roaches maybe im just over protctive i plan to start a colony b/c buying seem like alot of money in the long run then just having your own colony and if i can start feeding now imma get started on the colony asap .

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

You can start feeding roaches at any age.

 

[stumpy]

Just make sure there not to big and that ur dragon chews them not swallow whole. Unless there tinny

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Just make sure there not to big and that ur dragon chews them not swallow whole. Unless there tinny

I don't think you will have to worry about a dragon chewing up feeders well enough.
Standard rule of thumb as far as proper size to offer is no bigger than the space between their eyes.

 

[stumpy]

I don't think you will have to worry about a dragon chewing up feeders well enough.
Standard rule of thumb as far as proper size to offer is no bigger than the space between their eyes.

It's just my over protectiveness lol. I worry when I feed her the lil bigger ones than the small small. I know she can eat em np but I tell her to chew good lol. It's fun watching her chase them or eat them off my finger and sit there and crunch on em

 

[Jason P & lexx]

Any suggestions on where to get supplies like egg crates and size of tote to keep my colony in?

 

[Germ]

I can't remember the size they are considered, but to me they are a regular sized tote. Just wide enough to fit an egg flat in, about 6" taller & twice as long.

To give you a visual of the bins I use, you could check out the vids of my Discoids being fed.
http://us.gnbdragons.com/videos/discoid-roach-colony-feeding/youtubegallery?galleryid=3

I get my egg flats from a small neighborhood cafe that serves breakfast specials, they just throw them away anyway, so many owners are just glad to see them put to use & will set them aside for you. Call around, I have not had any trouble finding one or 2 in the 3 cities I've lived in since I started in the hobby.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

I use 30 gallon Sterilite bins from Walmart. Just make sure that the bins you get are the ones that are slick inside. Some of the bins they have the insides have a bit of texture. You will definitely be able to tell the difference.
I get my egg flats here and use the 12 x 12 size.
http://www.eggcartons.com/Egg-Trays-Filler-Flats-s/1820.htm

You will also need a piece of window screen for ventilation. My bins have an 8 x 8 inch hole cut in the lid and I have the screen covering the hole and hot glued in place.
Another thing you will want to get is some clear packing tape. On the inside of the bin a few inches below the rim you apply a line of the tape all the way around as an extra precaution to keep them from escaping. Should one somehow make it to the tape line they can't cross over the slick surface of the packing tape. Some folks use a line of petroleum jelly for the same thing but I don't cause I don't like the mess of fooling with it. The tape works just fine.
Also when buying bins make sure that they are solid color. You don't want transparent or translucent bins because they will let light in. Roaches need and love the dark

 

[Jason P & lexx]

Ok sweet I'm deffanetly gonna get a colany started ill take pics or a bid of when I get everything and put it on here Ty for your help

 

[Jason P & lexx]

Where can I buy water crystals and as far as food what would I recamend for them to eat

 

[stumpy]

Where can I buy water crystals and as far as food what would I recamend for them to eat

eBay or pet stores for the water crytles. They like fruit and veggies. And u can get roach chow off eBay too but I think it's just ground dog food. Mine like the beardie food pellets and veggies.
My beardie will not eat her veggies no matter what I try so. I try to make sure the roaches have pretty of it. So when she eats then she will get some of the vitamins

 

[stumpy]

Starting a colony is really fun. I have only had mine for a week and its like havering another pet. There fun to watch and I even pick them up. I found out today though that's y they haven't started breeding is because I mess with them to much lol.

 

[Jason P & lexx]

Lol Ty for the info

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Where can I buy water crystals and as far as food what would I recamend for them to eat

Amazon is usually where I get my water crystals. As far as feeding them your breeding colony you can feed a crushed good quality dog food along with veggie scraps and I usually slice up a an orange a couple of times a week for them. Be aware that they are voracious eaters
For the ones that you plan on feeding to your dragon they need to be properly gut loaded for 24- 48 hours before offering them as feeders.
You can buy commercially available cricket gut load at the pet shops but its expensive and you can find folks that sell it online as well.
Gut load is totally different from the staple diet you will feed your colony. The aim is too " beef up" the nutritional value of the feeders so that when you give them to your dragon you are giving him the highest nutrition you can.
The best way and what I do is make your own gut load. Their are many recipes out on the Net for this so just Google Cricket Gut Load Recipe or Roach Gut Load Recipe.
By making your own you will save some bucks. It only requires a few readily avaible ingredients, a blender and a storage container for the finished stuff.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Starting a colony is really fun. I have only had mine for a week and its like havering another pet. There fun to watch and I even pick them up. I found out today though that's y they haven't started breeding is because I mess with them to much lol.

Don't worry once the colony starts breeding and reproducing they aren't bashful and won't care if you watch or not...Lol..they just need proper heat and darkness

 

[Augie]

Where can I buy water crystals and as far as food what would I recamend for them to eat

If you want water crystals ASAP go to Lowes and buy SoilMoist granules. Get the kind without pesticides or fertilizer in them. Only cost me twelve bucks; I bought the bag seven months ago and haven't even used 25% of the bag! Don't buy from pet stores, you'll get robbed by most places that just relabel it as water crystals and put a smaller amount in a little baggie!

As far as asking what they eat the answer is simple: EVERYTHING. They are little monster composters. I used to feed mine a roach chow mix of Cheerios, dog food, coconut flakes, and soy flour. They really tear it up, but now I limit their food to fruits and veggie scraps, and use dog treats as... well... treats. Their main diet is now carrots, apples, pears, oranges, mangos, and various greens like collards. Why did I make the change? After a few months of offering that roach chow diet, they really started to stink! Now that I've gone greener with them it's a different, but not offensive, smell.

Best thing to do is try different things and have fun with it!

 

[Jason P & lexx]

ok ty augie i'll keep that in mind im placing a order tomarrow for my started package of 200 small roaches 20 females and 5 mails and what she calls alot of neymphs it should be mailed monday i hope that gets stared and going good also got eggcrates building up my family eats alot of eggs being from the sound fried eggs and tatters are a every weekend mean for us but anyways any an all tips are welcome lexx is my first reptile and this will be my first colony so im open to all sugestions

 

[Augie]

One piece of advice: If you want your colony to be ready to harvest from ASAP you may want to get more males and females. Judging by the males/females you are getting it will be likely at least six months before you will have a sustainable colony.

If that's your plan then no biggie. That's what I did (but I had about 40 females). It's been seven months and my colony is huge!