Blaptica dubia roaches

[leogirl16]

I've been thinking about replacing feeder crickets with these roaches, but I want to know a few things before I actually decide.
Are they like house roaches, do they carry diseases?
Could they be like crickets and be a primary feeder?
Would I have to worry about my geckos getting sick from them?
Are the nutritionally better than crickets?
Could they be stored in a big plastic been that I usually keep my crickets?
Would there be a risk of them bitting my geckos?
How many would I feed each gecko?
Where could I find them for cheap in dulk? (50-100+)

 

[Ozymandias]

I've been thinking about replacing feeder crickets with these roaches, but I want to know a few things before I actually decide.
Are they like house roaches, do they carry diseases?
as far as i know thay don't really carry diseases any more than crickets do.
Could they be like crickets and be a primary feeder?
yes thay could replace crickets totally.
Would I have to worry about my geckos getting sick from them?
no most geckos take right to them and if thay do get sick it's probably something else.
Are the nutritionally better than crickets?
yes thay have more meat on them as it were so are better for geckos.
Could they be stored in a big plastic been that I usually keep my crickets?
yes thay can be stored like that i keep mine in a big sterilite container but i know people who also use ten gallon fish tank just remember to keep them warm say in the mid 90's or so.
Would there be a risk of them bitting my geckos?
there is actually less chance of this than with crickets so no worries there.
How many would I feed each gecko?
I 8 month old leo about 5 to 6 every other day.
Where could I find them for cheap in dulk? (50-100+)
ok i got mine from some one i know but you can get them from quite a few places i know "theroachguy" is supposed to be good. also these arnt cheap because the whole point of them is to start a colony so you don't have to buy any more food for a varry long time

answers in red hope it helps

 

[MauricesExoticPets]

Dubia get fairly big, quite a bit larger than crickets.

You might find that you are allergic to them, it is not very common but a real possibility to be aware of.

I keep 6 types of roaches, 12 bins of each type, and can say for sure that they are a fine replacement for crickets.

100 dubia might seem like a lot, but it will take quite a while to get that size colony up and running well. It all depends on what your feeder needs are.

16 adult pairs would get you going pretty well, their first batch of offspring would net around 500 nymphs, once those nymphs reach maturity and breed your looking at 6250 nymphs each birthing. It might seem like too many at first but in reality most people tend to feed from an under established colony and run short of feeders.

Dubia are a good choice as far as roaches go, you can often sell excess without much issue because they are quite popular.

If keeping the temps in the mid 90s is an issue, discoids like it a bit cooler and breed just as well. They are more roachy looking though and are a bit larger. I tend to like the discoids for feeding slighly larger herps than leos.

Maurice Pudlo

 

[leogirl16]

Thank you! both of your posts answered my questions