Breeding Feeders

[Andrew Larson]

I am getting a small breeding group of 1.4 leopards. I am thinking about breeding feeders? Would it be worth it? Because I can buy 500 count mealworms for about 5 bucks with my employee discount. So would it be worthwhile to breed either mealies or dubias?

[cstruthers]

Well concidering that you plan on breeding all your geckos, the cost and food consumption will grow. I just started breeding dubias for my 5 leos because im doing the same thing that you are, starting with the five and then breeding.

Dubias take nearly no upkeep cost at all. You can house them in a plastic tub, get free eggcrate from a grocery store or walmart, and basically you feed them the extra stuff you have around the house. You dont need substrate at all and cleaning is simple.

Buying dubias is cheap if you know somebody already breeding them. I started with 1 male and 3 females that a friend gave me for free. They breed fairly fast and grow quickly. But you could probably pick up enough to start breeding for $5-$10.

Also they are healthier for your geckos than mealworms

[Andrew Larson]

So if I were to feed dubias I would feed each adult gecko like 3 nymphs every other day?

[cstruthers]

Yea around there, obviously some will eat more and some will eat less. You just gotta figure out how much each will eat. To a full grown gecko you can feed adult dubias also, they only get a little over an inch on average full grown so they are a great size for your bigger geckos. Feed only adult male dubias though when you do feed adults, you will want 1 male to about every 3 females for the best breeding. Just make sure you have a well established colony before you start feeding them off.

[boyyoyo]

I am heavily considering breeding Dubais myself. I've done more research than I'd like to admit over these little guys and have to say. They seem the most promissing of any feeder to breed. You can get 100 for around $15 which is what most recommend as starter amount. I'm considering getting more Leos, some tarantulas, and possibly a few cresties just to help crowd control them.