To breed Dubia Roaches, or not to breed Dubia Roaches

[BeardieNewbie326]

Hello Everyone!

This is my first time posting on the boards and I could use some reassurance. I am going to be picking up my first reptile soon (A beardie!) and have done a whole lot of research regarding care, food, lighting, etc. I am very interested in breeding a colony of Dubia Roaches for the little guy since I would be able to regulate the quality of the roaches, as well as not have a ridiculous monthly bill for food.

My thing is... They're Roaches! I have read alot regarding how easily contained they are, and how simple it is to do but I'm still nervous.

I'm located in SE Michigan and am worried that if a couple do manage to escape their prison, they will cause more problems then they are worth. I have a friend who is very knowledgeable when it comes to reptiles and he does not recommend it by any means. He has heard of people who started breeding them and all of a sudden several months later they're everywhere!

This worries me as I do not have the time or patience to deal with a roach infestation. I will only be feeding 1 beardie, but I know it takes 200-300 roaches a month for him to be satisfied.

Any info or reassurance you could give me would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Taterbug]

I've been breeding dubia for a year and a half or more now. I have a huge excess of roaches, but that is the only way they have gotten out of control. It's also something I could easily manage if I cared to be a better entrepreneur than I am.

One or two get away from me when I clean the bin, but they turn up dead, not infesting my house. I do keep the bin in the basement so it's less hospitable, but even in the living room we only find dead ones, and they are super emaciated at that. The crickets did a better job infesting the house when we bought in bulk, they were all over the walls for weeks. I'm in central Ohio btw, it's a little warmer usually here than SE Michigan.

A breeding colony may not be as worth the investment if you don't get it set up in time to be self sufficient before you get your baby. They can be slow to establish. My one dragon has no hope of keeping up with my colony whatsoever but it's great to get him feeders by the cup full whenever I need.

They are more like big rolly poly bugs to me, that gross cockroaches. Well except the adult males.

 

[unkempt1]

Just do it! I'm shocked your friend, a reptile expert, advises against breeding dubia roaches. Infesting a house in Michigan? Maybe in Florida, but doubtful there. That's the craziest thing I've ever heard!

 

[BeardieNewbie326]

Thanks for the reply guys!

Unkempt1, That's why I am so weary against getting started with it! He knows a hell of a lot more than I do.

From my understanding I know it takes 3-4 months to actually be able to fully sustain my future little guy in regards to protein so the first couple months I'll be buying stuff. I'm just thinking long term it would be great to be able to regulate his eating and know that I'm feeding him nice nutritious meals

Taterbug, in the enclosure that you have your colony in, did you have to use any precautions like Vaseline or tape? I know they are not climbers but I have still read that it is possible for them to get out of the big totes.

Thanks again for the reply's and anybody else's good/bad stories on this would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Taterbug]

Thanks for the reply guys!

Unkempt1, That's why I am so weary against getting started with it! He knows a hell of a lot more than I do.

From my understanding I know it takes 3-4 months to actually be able to fully sustain my future little guy in regards to protein so the first couple months I'll be buying stuff. I'm just thinking long term it would be great to be able to regulate his eating and know that I'm feeding him nice nutritious meals

Taterbug, in the enclosure that you have your colony in, did you have to use any precautions like Vaseline or tape? I know they are not climbers but I have still read that it is possible for them to get out of the big totes.

Thanks again for the reply's and anybody else's good/bad stories on this would be greatly appreciated!

I did use tape, but probably don't need it. My fiancé was a harder sell on cockroaches so I went the extra mile. I keep them in a 20g long tank with a lift off (loose) screen lid. My egg crates come close but the only time i have ever seen any craw out is when I leave the crates too close the screen or edge when I am cleaning.

This is my setup:

 

[icelore]

I'm located in SE Michigan and am worried that if a couple do manage to escape their prison, they will cause more problems then they are worth. I have a friend who is very knowledgeable when it comes to reptiles and he does not recommend it by any means. He has heard of people who started breeding them and all of a sudden several months later they're everywhere!

This worries me as I do not have the time or patience to deal with a roach infestation. I will only be feeding 1 beardie, but I know it takes 200-300 roaches a month for him to be satisfied.

Here's your reassurance - they're a tropical roach. They can't live in the cold, so they physically cannot infest your home, apartment, whatever. If your friend was knowledgeable about dubias, he would know this. Even if they did get out, it was a sizable amount of adult females, it happened to be in the dead of summer and you had no a/c, AND they found enough moisture and food to breed (that's a lot of if, if, ifs! right there) - even if ALL that happened - they would die in the winter. Hell, in MI, they'd be dead in the fall. Also, from birth to adult breeding is 6 months - think about that. That fact alone is a huge determining factor on why they can't infest anything - they take too long to establish before the weather changes.

Loose crickets will live longer in your house then dubias.

I keep mine in a big plastic bin, open topped. Even if one did get out (of I drop them when moving them or feeding or whatever), it turns up all skinny, or dehydrated and dead. On the other hand I had a cricket behind and inside my refrigerator for three weeks that would. not. shut. up. It drove me up the wall.

Also, as a bonus to your location, if you do start a colony, when you need to cull your adult males, you can just stick them outside in a large metal bowl - if it's below 40, they'll be dead in an hour.

 

[BeardieNewbie326]

I think I'm pretty much set on starting one up now. Thanks for the reassurances. Icelore the facts do sure as hell help.

I'm probably going to end up using one of those big plastic totes with a mesh screen fabricated into the top of it. I've seen that heating tape works pretty well in keeping them happy and breeding.

Now the hard part... Getting my Fiance to agree! haha

I do want to stay away from crickets since they seam like such a hassle.

Thanks guys! Other inputs welcome

 

[icelore]

I do want to stay away from crickets since they seam like such a hassle.

Haha, that was the main reason I switched. I was spending ~$40 a month on 2000 crickets. Opening a tiiiiny box full of crickets that wanted out was like the cricket apocalypse. XD Seriously scared me. That, and whenever I dropped one, it was only like 50/50 that I could catch it before it was gone. I swear I don't know how dubias survive in the wild. If I drop one of those, they sit there, or turn in a circle and start to walk away before I pick them back up. Every once in a while I get a sprinter, but that's about it!

Don't get my wrong, I'm not a fan of bugs in general, and my finance isn't at all, but we both agree these are better. lol

 

[BeardieNewbie326]

That's reassuring.

I'm planning to get my beardie in about a month and a half. Should I get my colony set up now to prepare for him? Or wait until I actually have him. Is there any benefits either way?

 

[icelore]

That's reassuring.

I'm planning to get my beardie in about a month and a half. Should I get my colony set up now to prepare for him? Or wait until I actually have him. Is there any benefits either way?

My personal vote would be to set it up now. That way your bogs will be settled and you will be assured that there's no issues with them and that they are producing well. It will depend on your dragon's appetite and the size of your initial colony if you can feed fully from your dubia. Might as well get them started as early as possible to help figure that out. The worst thing that can happen is that you end up with too many - and then you can just sell them off.

 

[BeardieNewbie326]

Sounds good!

Any suggestions on where to get my started Colony? Is it better to get locally or is buying online and getting them shipped just as good? If so, any suggestions on reputable sellers that wont shaft me on pricing?

 

[icelore]

I'd say your best bet is to just shop around for someone selling in bulk and pick up a whole colony that way. Your local craigslist maybe, of even reptile groups on facebook has good deals. I think ordering peace-meal from a place that dedicatedly sells them would be more expensive. Either way, it will cost a bit to start, so definitely shop around!

 

[Soulwind]

If you want to go the least expensive route you can, and you have the extra time to wait, then the best thing is to look around on local craigslist and such for someone selling off extras from their own colonies.

Buy several hundred large or extra large nymphs, which can usually be gotten for a cheaper amount than just a few adult females [adult females usually go for about $1.00 each, while you can get several hundred nymphs for $20-$30 from local sellers].

It will take an extra month or so to get fully established as you have to let those nymphs finish growing up, but if you've got the extra time, it's way cheaper.

 

[Sauzo]

Do Craigslist. It would be the cheapest way. I liquidated off 2000-3000 nymphs of all sizes as well as 200 adult females for $10 per 100 mixed nymphs and $0.80 each for the adult females and I just threw adult males in free on orders. If you just wait, you will find someone like me who just needs to get rid of a bunch and just wants some xtra pocket change. Of course the catch is most will be local pickup only.

And I would say definitely breed them. Pretty much free food and you can make some pocket change every 6 months or so or do what I also do and trade with your local reptile shop for hornworms, butterworms and silkworms. It's a win/win all around and I've had plenty of escapees since when I clean em, half the time I got people bothering me so a few get loose here and there. I keep them in my reptile room which is 75 degrees and I will say the larger nymphs do survive. I've caught 3 or 4 of em usually behind a box or something and even had an adult male fly from one end of the room to the other but small ones usually drop dead in a couple days since they don't seem to handle under 80 degrees very well. But as for them breeding and growing in winter, I don't see it happening. Like I said, the small ones don't seem to handle temps under 80 very well so even if you had a female give birth outside the bin, the babies would all die anyways.

 

[icelore]

Do Craigslist. It would be the cheapest way.

But as for them breeding and growing in winter, I don't see it happening. Like I said, the small ones don't seem to handle temps under 80 very well so even if you had a female give birth outside the bin, the babies would all die anyways.

I still have people calling me that bought from me previously on Craigslist (I only sell off extras 2-3 times a year). If you're patient, I definitely agree about Craigslist!

Off topic, but I'm definitely curious as to how other people keep large amounts of roaches. I have my adult breeders in one bin, and my nymphs divided up into other bins by size. Only the adults have a heating source, and the rest are unheated. My house is pretty cold, and I have noticed that the roaches in the bins closest to the floor (coldest @ 60-65)) grow slower, but I've never had an issue with them surviving. They just seem more dormant? The ones at room temp (65-72) grow and shed just fine.

Anyone else keep unheated roaches of some size want to tell us how they do?