Dubia Roach Colony Problems

Adriana0918 · Jul 10, 2016

So I've had my colony for almost a month and started with 10 females and 4 males. They've had some babies, maybe 20-30 of them and I've made sure to not feed them off as I have about 200 medium roaches that should last me a month. My problem is one of my females died and one of my males looks like he's getting there. I have some oranges in there for moisture and some ground up cat food mixed with calcium powder for food. They're sitting on a heat mat 24/7. Am I doing something wrong?

CooperDragon · Jul 10, 2016

What are the temps in the tank? Do you see any signs of mold or mildew? I would add scraps from fresh veges. They like squash a lot and will eat green beans and stems from greens. I just toss the leftover salad from my dragon in every day and put in the scraps from prepping salads and they go to town. It's possible the adults were just older and died of old age. I would just be on the lookout for signs of mold or other similar issues that may cause a widespread problem.

Adriana0918 · Jul 10, 2016

I didn't think i needed to record the temps, I'll stick a thermometer in there tomorrow morning and let you know. The heat mat they are on claims to raise the temp 20 degrees higher than the rooms temp which is normally around 72 so I'm thinking somewhere in the 90s. I also mist the bin occasionally so it isn't too dry but I don't wet it enough to form puddles so they don't drown. I'm not sure if it was old age or not since I got them not too long ago and don't know how old they are. Coincidentally I saw the dead female the same night i found babies and they're was residue all over the egg flats in there. Do you think that had anything to do with it? I really need this colony to work out, my 6 month old dragon is a vacuum when it comes to his food haha

CooperDragon · Jul 11, 2016

I don't record the temps regularly but it's good to check it if there is a problem. I also don't mist the tank. I let them get their hydration from veges. I don't know that misting would cause a problem though. If your tank is in the 70s-90s range that should be fine too. Are any of the others showing signs of problems?

Adriana0918 · Jul 11, 2016

So i recorded the temp and it read 89 degrees. No mold, I only leave the fruits in there for a few days, its usually all eaten up when i take it out. None of the other are showing problems that I notice besides the one male who was on his back and wasn't flipping and when i flipped him he just kind of slowly walked away.

CooperDragon · Jul 11, 2016

That's good. There may not be an issue and the roach may have died from natural causes. It's not uncommon to see a dieoff here or there with the adults. It's good to just remove them from the enclosure when you see them. Keep an eye on the behavior of the rest but it sounds like everything should be OK.

Adriana0918 · Jul 13, 2016

So as I suspected, the male roach died as well. Today when I looked in from the outside, I saw some small puddles on the bottom of the bin. Not sure what this is. Any ideas? I don't mist it enough for the amount of liquid that was in there so I'm almost certain thats not what it is from.

quyllur · Jul 13, 2016

Maybe the combination of misting and the fruit/veggies, along with ambient humidity is causing some condensation. I would forego the misting and see where you are. I had a few adults die off when I got my colony started and they did the same thing, turning over and not trying to get back on their feet, slow moving when manually turned over and I'd come back and they'd be back upside down. I wouldn't worry overly, unless more start dropping dead.

SirCal · Aug 22, 2016

What type of dry food are you feeding them? I use an organic blend that has been working great for my colony
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01J0FP5PU

Dubia Roach Colony Problems

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Slight smell odd color and in smaller quantities (poop)

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