Dubia Roaches and geckos

Are Dubia Roaches good for geckos.. I have been told they are better then crickets, Is this true??

Are they good for them? I'm sure they are depending on what you are feeding the roaches.
Better than crickets? You mean do I not want to pour lighter fluid on them and set them on fire due to their chirping, escaping, and smell? Yes they are better :D!

I guess it would depend on what gecko and how you are feeding. Roaches tend to burrow, so if you are feeding in tank with substrate, you need a feeding station such as a small bowl the roaches can not climb out of and the geckos can climb in and out of.

We use this method with B. discoidalis (virtually same as dubia) with our Tokays and Cresteds. The geckos love them!

I have two tokay's and two leopard geckos.

Well, it turns out that Dubia Roaches are not legal in Canada... boooo.. So I can not get them from a pet supply store.. Ill have to go to the Lizard underground lol. Viva La Revolution :P

I had wondered about this as well. My gf just got two cresties and I have been thinking about getting leos. From everything I have read, dubias are much more nutritious and less unpleasant to breed. Thanks for the info.

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Originally Posted by Chris633

I had wondered about this as well. My gf just got two cresties and I have been thinking about getting leos. From everything I have read, dubias are much more nutritious and less unpleasant to breed. Thanks for the info.

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I would actually call dubias and discoidalis pleasant to breed. Virtually 0 work and free feeders!

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Originally Posted by aldebono

I would actually call dubias and discoidalis pleasant to breed. Virtually 0 work and free feeders!

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I'll second this. I got some breeders and nymphs from suzuki4life about a year ago, huge colony now, and I've never once cleaned their cage (40 gal breeder tank). My leo's love them, cham, beardie and my cats.

I'll never buy crickets again.....ever.

Would you guys say they're easier to breed than mealworms?

Sent from my crappy cell using tapatalk.

I have never bred mealworms but do breed super worms. On my scale of not having insect feeders (0) to buying a box of crickets and keeping them alive and contained for a month (10) I would say supers are a 4 and roaches are a 1.

I keep my roaches in a solid 20 or so gallon bin with holes drilled in the top, eggcrate and paper towel rolls, sitting over my beardies heat lamp, dump in veggies and leftovers every so often.

Roaches may seem difficult at first, but once you get use to how much your colony can eat in a day, two days, week, you can plan on how much of what type food to give them. Fresh vs. dry with water crystals.

Do they need dry food? or is that just to save money?

I don't use dry food (crumbles in the bottom of the rat block bag) unless I am going away and don't want their food to mold or I having a lot of mold and humidity issues in the bin. I would pair dry food with water crystals so they have a food and moisture source.

That said, I do not ever feed dry because then I would have to buy (spend money) on water crystals.

I mix the crumbles at the bottom of the rat block bag with water until it is a little thicker than applesauce. Food and water source in one. Fruits and vegetables are a food and water source in one. You can use dog food... you can use pretty much anything. Oranges! They love oranges. Varied diet will be best for the roaches and best for your geckos.

They can definitely live without food for a few weeks if I had to guess. Water, maybe a week? I may have to do trials on this, BUT, if you forget to feed or water, they will be fine if you are away on a week vacation.

Keep them dark, keep them warm, keep them fed, keep them mold free and you will have a colony before you know it.

All vegetable and fruit scraps go to the roaches. I've found they are not a fan of granny smith apples. as aldebono said, they do love oranges, it will also add a subtle orange scent to their enclosure. They also really like bananas. I don't like using potatoes. They will dig holes in the potatoes and the nyphs will make a home in those holes, makes cleaning a pain.

For dry food, I give them Professional Reptiles Pro Gutload, never had a problem with it molding and lasts a long time. I also give them bee pollen, they love that stuff.

I use to use water crystals, but I found they would drag them out of the container I had them in I leave them in areas of the cage which would create little damp areas which could breed bacteria, so I switched to the veggies and fruits.

And speaking of containers, I like to use the styrofoam containers that you buy mushrooms in at the grocery store. The little nymphs can climb up those, and it helps contain the food.

I use dog food and chicken mash plus my insects always have some sort of fruit (apples, oranges or bananas).

I stopped using water gel, it just seemed to drive humidity up