Dubia Roaches

[Jay_Bunny]

I'm also wondering how they'd fair if they got loose. My husband isn't too happy about the roaches in the house, but he figures if they stay in the tub and NEVER get out, he's okay.

A few of my females are nice and fat. More babies on the way.

[Don]

I have one or two colonies of dubias for several years. If they get loose in the house, they will not breed and eventually die off. They need the warm temps to survive. I hate crickets and after a big escape in my home, will never have them again. I have developed an allergy to the dubias, which I have heard is not unusual. So, my wife handles them. Regardless, I'd rather have dubias in the house than crickets any day. Good luck with your colony.

[Jay_Bunny]

I have tons of babies. I wouldn't be surprised if I had well over 200. One problem I'm having is the food molding too fast. It seems to be molding within a day so I'm having to replace it very often. I think this house just has higher levels of mold in general. I can actually see different groups of babies. One group is just a bit longer and bigger than the other group, so I think they've molted at least once. I haven't lost any more adults so far. Other than the food molding, these things are incredibly easy. There isn't a large accumulation of poo either. The babies seem to be taking care of that. I only see small amounts along the edges of the tub.

[Don]

I have tons of babies. I wouldn't be surprised if I had well over 200. One problem I'm having is the food molding too fast. It seems to be molding within a day so I'm having to replace it very often. I think this house just has higher levels of mold in general. I can actually see different groups of babies. One group is just a bit longer and bigger than the other group, so I think they've molted at least once. I haven't lost any more adults so far. Other than the food molding, these things are incredibly easy. There isn't a large accumulation of poo either. The babies seem to be taking care of that. I only see small amounts along the edges of the tub.

Too moist = mold. Stop what you are feeding. Get the cheapest cat food you can find and grind it up in a coffee grinder. Throw it in there with a little bit of cricket gell and you will have no mold and they will eat it up. Supplement every once in a while with an apple or other piece of fruit.

[Jay_Bunny]

Here is a picture of a newly molted roach. I found two of these in the bin when I put some food in there today. I'm sure there are more, I just didn't look very hard. I believe this is one of the first batches of babies. This would be the 2nd molt I think. How many molts do they go through before becoming adults? I know it takes 3-4 months to become adults. This is a little more than a month old.

[Don]

If you are seeing molts, that is good - your humidity is spot on. I never counted or tried to count the molts. My colony is thousands and thousands strong and keeping up with molts would be impossible.

They sold so well at the last show, we're branching out our colony to another bin. All I do is what I've put above - cat food, some occasional fruit and cricket gel. Leave them alone, they breed better when warm, dark and left alone. After a while, you will have so many you will be shocked.

[cinderbird]

If you are seeing molts, that is good - your humidity is spot on. I never counted or tried to count the molts. My colony is thousands and thousands strong and keeping up with molts would be impossible.

They sold so well at the last show, we're branching out our colony to another bin. All I do is what I've put above - cat food, some occasional fruit and cricket gel. Leave them alone, they breed better when warm, dark and left alone. After a while, you will have so many you will be shocked.

This exactly. I feed from the bin maybe 3x a week, other than that they are left with their heat pad, in the dark, in the laundry room which is the least used room in the house.

If you're experiencing mold issues, you have too much humidity. Get more ventilation or less moisture. I have NEVER misted the tub, i just change the size of the water bowl/crystals available depending on the season (bigger bowl in winter, smaller bowl in summer).

[Highline Reptiles South]

To answer a few questions - I keep mine in a tub in my snake rack. Perfect temp. The tub is a 31 quart which has no air holes in it to retain humidity. Rodent chow is perfect to feed them - high in protein which should increase your reproduction. Supplement this with greens, veggies and fruits. Don't put it on your egg crate! It will soak up the water and get funky.

My Beardies love them. They have a very high meat to chitin ratio.