How to care for succesfully breed and gutload dubia roaches and mealworms??

reptilesunleashed

reptilesunleashed

New member
Ok, I may be having trouble breeding mealworms and dubia roaches. I have a about 5 adult females, and a ton of male and female nymphs. About 200 mealworms, 20 pupae, and 0 beetles( the pupae is going to pupate soon) . The mealworms are stored in two drawers. The top drawer has a screened bottom with oats on top, that is where the beetles mate and lay eggs so the eggs drop through the screen and land in the mealworm drawer. There are oats on the bottom drawer with the mealworms , and I will change to ProGutload ASAP. For the dubia roaches, I have some cardboard in there, an apples and thats it. Of course I need more things. Please tell me any advice and what I need( or if I'm good) . How often do you replace the mealworm bedding / egg flats? What are the best foods to gutload them? Just any advice would be very much appreciated. Photos maybe?
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
:idea:: Please print this chart so you can refer to it from time to time. I'm pretty sure I recently shared it on one of your threads.

This chart gives you excellent ideas of good veggies to feed the mealworms and dubia for moisture. Place a dampened paper towel in the lid of a plastic soap dish or some other shallow plastic container. If you place the damp paper towel directly on the substrate, the substrate could mold. Since you plan on using apples, remove the seeds before you place them with your breeding bugs and worms.

A commercial gutloading food like ProGutload by Professional Reptiles is going to make your life easier AND provide a nutritious diet to your crickets, dubia, and mealworms at the same time. Avoid Fluker's gutloads, as they are extremely poor.

"If you opt for making your own gutload at home, here is a list of great ingredients to use:
Best: mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion flowers & leaves, collard greens, escarole lettuce, papaya, watercress, and alfalfa.
Good: sweet potato, carrots, oranges, mango, butternut squash, kale, apples, beet greens, blackberries, bok choy, and green beans.
Dry food: bee pollen, organic non-salted sunflower seeds, spirulina, dried seaweed, flax seed, and organic non-salted almonds.
Avoid as much as possible: potatoes, cabbage, iceberg lettuce, romaine lettuce, spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, corn, grains, beans, oats, bread, cereal, meat, eggs, dog food, cat food, fish food, canned or dead insects, vertebrates."
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
reptilesunleashed

reptilesunleashed

New member
Elizabeth Freer said:
I have a link that might help regarding breeding mealworms and breeding dubia roaches.

Are you checking in via phone or computer?

What happens when you click right here?

\/ \/

http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...ica-dubia-hornworms-silkworms.html#post417745
Click to expand...

via computer. Also, I was wondering if I could put tape around the edges of the screen because I used to have some beetles but then they died but before, they kept getting stuck under the screen. Can the tape be harmful or something?
 
Last edited:
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
reptilesunleashed said:
via computer. Also, I was wondering if I could put tape around the edges of the screen because I used to have some beetles but then they died but before, they kept getting stuck under the screen. Can the tape be harmful or something?
Click to expand...

Try tape. It won't be harmful. If tape doesn't work, try Aquarium silicon "glue".
 
reptilesunleashed

reptilesunleashed

New member
Doesn't apples and other juicy fruits and veggies already have the moisture that they need ? I heard mealworms get moisture from their food but not sure about the dubia roaches. Will I need anymore dubia roaches because there are some male and female nymphs. How long does it take for a dubia roach nymph to reach adulthood? Is it too late for my mealworms since they are kept on oats right now? Sorry for too many questions.
 
Last edited:
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
reptilesunleashed said:
Doesn't apples and other juicy fruits and veggies already have the moisture that they need ? I heard mealworms get moisture from their food but not sure about the dubia roaches. Will I need anymore dubia roaches because there are some male and female nymphs. How long does it take for a dubia roach nymph to reach adulthood? Is it too late for my mealworms since they are kept on oats right now? Sorry for too many questions.
Click to expand...

  • Yes, dubia and mealworms can get all the moisture they need from veggies.
  • How fast dubia grow depends upon the heat they get. My dubia do alright with a 15 watt incandescent bulb in an 8.5 inch dome fixture on 24/7 that sits right on top of the 10 gallon tank.
  • Can you buy ~3 mature male dubia and ~7 mature females online? That will speed things up.
  • When you breed dubia, soon you'll find you have way too many dubia for 1 leo. If may be more cost effective to buy them online.
  • It's NOT too late for your mealworms! I hope you can order 1 pound of Cody's ProGutload dry diet soon. He says shipping is $6.50 to California.

Place a last minute order to Santa for some ProGutload diet. I've heard his elves are shipping till midnight Pacific time tonight. There are only 30 minutes left! At least he could send a gift card.
 
Last edited:
reptilesunleashed

reptilesunleashed

New member
Thanks, since I have 1 leo, I think it is more reasonable to not give them a heat source because they still can breed under 80- 90 degrees but not as much so I don't think I will use a heat source. Is 20 female dubia and 10 male a good ratio? There is a starter colony on ebay. How often should you completely change the substrate and how long will this ProGutload last you ? The beetles can be kept on steel cut too right? So since they can get moisture from their juicy fruits and veggies, do they need the moisture from the paper towels?
 
Last edited:
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
reptilesunleashed said:
Thanks, since I have 1 leo, I think it is more reasonable to not give them a heat source because they still can breed under 80- 90 degrees but not as much so I don't think I will use a heat source. Is 20 female dubia and 10 male a good ratio? There is a starter colony on ebay. How often should you completely change the substrate and how long will this ProGutload last you ? The beetles can be kept on steel cut too right? So since they can get moisture from their juicy fruits and veggies, do they need the moisture from the paper towels?
Click to expand...

Please check my post 36 on this thread first. I just left a very important message!
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
reptilesunleashed said:
Thanks, since I have 1 leo, I think it is more reasonable to not give them a heat source because they still can breed under 80- 90 degrees but not as much so I don't think I will use a heat source. Is 20 female dubia and 10 male a good ratio? There is a starter colony on ebay. How often should you completely change the substrate and how long will this ProGutload last you ? The beetles can be kept on steel cut too right? So since they can get moisture from their juicy fruits and veggies, do they need the moisture from the paper towels?
Click to expand...
You're welcome.
  • That EBay starter colony will work.
  • Completely change the mealworm substrate every 3-6 months. Take the culture outside to blow off the frass more frequently.
  • I have no idea how long 1 pound of ProGutload will last. :idea:: It's better to run out of the food, than to feed a diet that's past it's expiration date.
  • The beetles can be kept on steel cut oats.
  • You'll also be leaving a lid of ProGutload in the dubia container.
  • I find providing moisture via paper towels the easiest.
 
Last edited:
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
reptilesunleashed said:
I get it now, so pro gutload on one side, and some moisturized paper towels on the other for dubia roaches.
Click to expand...

Not quite. On the link below scroll to the part on dubia.

Did you read this link -- at least the first part? Is there something I'm missing? There are specific suggestions right there on what to do with the egg cartons, paper towels, dry diet (in a dish) covered by a section of egg carton. There is too much info to copy and paste on a post. That's what links are for.
Restaurants that serve lots of breakfasts might save empty egg flats for you.
 
Last edited:
reptilesunleashed

reptilesunleashed

New member
Oh, so some ProGutload on one side, fruit and veggies on the other, and moisturized but fully sqeezed out paper towels on top of the egg flats? I heard Walmart’s deli/ bakery section will happily give out free egg flats and as many as you want. Can you send me some pics of what the setup should look like?
 
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
reptilesunleashed said:
Oh, so some ProGutload on one side, fruit and veggies on the other, and moisturized but fully sqeezed out paper towels on top of the egg flats? I heard Walmart’s deli/ bakery section will happily give out free egg flats and as many as you want. Can you send me some pics of what the setup should look like?
Click to expand...
That's good news!

I keep the roach dry diet in a large plastic lid in one corner of their 10 gallon.

Sorry, I don't have a cell phone or a digital camera.

The details are extremely clear. There are no extra words,
 
Last edited:
reptilesunleashed

reptilesunleashed

New member
I find that apples dry out pretty quick. Is there a way to make them more moisturized( like wash them or something?)? Or should I just use oranges or something more juicy? How often should I replace the egg flats and clean the cage ? Can I clean the egg flats somehow ?
 
Last edited:
Elizabeth Freer

Elizabeth Freer

Well-known member
reptilesunleashed said:
I find that apples dry out pretty quick. Is there a way to make them more moisturized( like wash them or something?)? Or should I just use oranges or something more juicy? How often should I replace the egg flats and clean the cage ? Can I clean the egg flats somehow ?
Click to expand...

Oranges are on the list I shared on this thread. Please scroll back to post 3. They are in the "Good" category along with apples. :)

Egg flats can last for several months. Clean the roach cage every several months. Egg flats cannot be cleaned! Get free egg flats from WalMart like you mentioned.
 
Last edited:
GeckoLeen

GeckoLeen

New member
You can use cardboard egg cartons as well, if your family or friends buy those instead of styrofoam cartons.

Roaches like shredded carrots too, so if you ever buy those baby carrots, shred one or two of them, and your roaches will eat those. I also put a couple of baby carrots in my mealworm container for moisture, and replace every couple of days.
 
reptilesunleashed

reptilesunleashed

New member
I feel like the mealworms and dubia are not eating the food because I don't see them eating it. How many slices of fruit should I put in their container. The mealworm container is aro,und 13ish qts, and the dubia roach tub is 20 gallons. When I put the fruit in they don't go to it or anything, especially the mealworms. How do I get them to eat so they are nice and gutloaded? Or am I just not seeing them eat?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top