Lobster Roaches - need help!

[thedragonkeeper]

Hello there, after nearly going broke on crickets for Spike and Ruby, I decided to start a roach colony.

I recently started up a lobster roach colony with about 250 of assorted sizes. Yeah, I did my research, put vaseline around the rim, etc, but I have a few questions. What temperature should I keep them at? Some online sources say 80 degrees F, some say closer to 95. Currently, it’s about 80 degrees during the day and 70 at night in the garage (Colorado). So far, I’ve been feeding them cat food (high protein), fresh organic vegetables (such as apples), and fluker’s water crystals.

However, some keep curling up and dying?!?! Also, they don't seem to even touch the cat food. They have a 10 gallon glass aquarium, with a small UTH, no lights, and some eggcartons. So far haven’t gotten around to feeding any to my dragons. BTW the tank is in the garage next to the fridge. I am planning to get another heater soon because it will be very cold in the winter. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks, Peter

 

[WoolyMarmot]

Are the water crystals calcium fortified? Too much calcium cause them to trap themselves into their own shell due to hardening of their exo skeleton. Do the curled up dead roaches feel mushy?

 

[thedragonkeeper]

Thank you so much - the water crystals were calcium fortified. No, I didn't notice if the dead ones were squishy or not, probably not so much. And, I also purchased a new zoo-med UTH for the side. For some reason, they don't seem quite interested in the cat food, even if it's crushed up. So, should I offer them water in a dish?

*I looked for some human heat pads, but now it seems all of them have an auto-shutoff feature. Could've save myself $10!

 

[WoolyMarmot]

A quick search on Google will have results of lobster roaches being intolerant to calcium gut loads.unfortunately these particular species will die from too much calcium.

And for the cat food, I'm gonna guess they wouldn't eat because they were ill and dying. Plus, you only have 250 in your colony so they shouldn't eat too much even though they're known to eat well.

Lastly, check sunbeam brand heat pads or CVS heat pads. I don't use neither but I've only heard good about them.

Here's what I use to my 18 gals http://beanfarm.com/product_info.php?cPath=1204&products_id=5578

If you have issues raising heat then don't get these because they don't get too hot. My temps dont go over 95 even during a hot day. The reason I picked this is because they're like high end flex watt tapes.