For The Feeder Roaches: A Diet Without Any Greens / Fruits At All Year-Round Keeping Them Prolific Enough ??

[TiercelR]

Hi, for the feeder roaches: a diet without any greens / fruits at all year-round do keep them prolific enough ??

This but with water-crystals as their lonely water source ?? and never again no more carrots nor romain lettuces nor apples, etc ??

This schedule may reduce a lot the time employed in the management of the enclosures because the risk of molded nutriments could be reduced as near as zero.

The greens and fruits are natural nutrients, but if the roaches do eats lonely on a homemade "WHOLE-DRY´s roach-chow-diet" (placed on trays) combined with water-crystals during all their life, and without any misting of water nor none substrate (made of food or soil).

This may do still keeping your feeder-roaches colonies being prolific enough year-round ??

Thanks in advance for your comments, regards.

 

[vfox]

Dry roach food with water crystals will keep them alive and breeding just fine. The thing is you need to make sure your dry food has enough vitamins so they still can act as good feeders. If you give them a bad diet they will make bad feeders. As long as the dry food is nutrient rich everything should be fine.

 

[macbrush]

For me, fruits as water source is much cleaner than water crystal, and management is a whole lot easier as well.

 

[TiercelR]

Dry roach food with water crystals will keep them alive and breeding just fine. The thing is you need to make sure your dry food has enough vitamins so they still can act as good feeders. If you give them a bad diet they will make bad feeders. As long as the dry food is nutrient rich everything should be fine.

Hi vfox, thanks for your reply. What affordable dry food may you suggest for to be added that can have enough vitamins ?? thanks, regards.

For me, fruits as water source is much cleaner than water crystal, and management is a whole lot easier as well.

Hi macbrush, thanks for your reply. In your experience, what could go wrong with the use of water crystals in the management ?? and, in your experience the water crystals could get more dirty in less time than the fruits ?? thanks, regards.

 

[vfox]

You can use dog food but it's a bit lacking. Fish food pellets or other similar types have had good reviews but the best is home made food. It's easy to make and recipes can be found online, I'm fairly certain anyway.

 

[TiercelR]

You can use dog food but it's a bit lacking. Fish food pellets or other similar types have had good reviews but the best is home made food. It's easy to make and recipes can be found online, I'm fairly certain anyway.

Hi vfox, thanks for your reply. Good point about the fish pellets, this week i will purchase fish food pellets for to add it on the mix.

Actually i am useing a homemade mix of vegetal dog food pellets, chicken mash for egg layers, and rabbit pellets, plus fruit and vegetables as water source.

But the addition of the fish food pellets will be very positive in the mix, and maybe cat food pellets too.

I had haved troubles with the fruits and vegetables as water source due to the mold problems that these brings inside of the enclosures, and now i am considereing the lonely use of cristal water instead.

Hope that this change will work well, but nothing better than to hear before the opinions of as much roach keepers as possible on this diets. I had readed that this diets works well on feeder crickets but on feeder roaches could be needed more information available. Thanks, regards.

 

[macbrush]

In my roaches' environment, sometimes I use water crystals if I don't have time to look after them for a couple of days, since they stay hydrated longer and don't spill over. But after a couple of days, the dish would be just as dirty as anywhere in the cage, the crystals get contaminated by absorbing whatever around them, they changed into brown-ish dirty looking colour, and if there is mites in the bin, crystal dish is usually their party ground as well.

I still get mite problem with fruits if i give them too much, but its much easier to give my roaches just the right amount of fruits so that they finish the fruits within reasonable time to avoid the mite infestation. And if i do give my roaches too much, I just have to scoop the leftover out, instead of taking a dish out, clean it, and refill with fresh water crystals.

 

[vfox]

Because 90% of my bins are sealed they hold moisture very very well. I stopped using water crystals several months ago and only mist a few times a week. I haven't misted my Panchlora nivea tank for a few weeks because it is always soaking wet. As long as the substrate is wet they seem to do just fine. Water crystal works just fine but they, as said, pull in a lot of nasty stuff over time.

 

[makoygaara]

I have noticed that my Dubias breed and multiply fast when I give them a varied diet of chicken pellets and fruits.

 

[TiercelR]

In my roaches' environment, sometimes I use water crystals if I don't have time to look after them for a couple of days, since they stay hydrated longer and don't spill over. But after a couple of days, the dish would be just as dirty as anywhere in the cage, the crystals get contaminated by absorbing whatever around them, they changed into brown-ish dirty looking colour, and if there is mites in the bin, crystal dish is usually their party ground as well.

I still get mite problem with fruits if i give them too much, but its much easier to give my roaches just the right amount of fruits so that they finish the fruits within reasonable time to avoid the mite infestation. And if i do give my roaches too much, I just have to scoop the leftover out, instead of taking a dish out, clean it, and refill with fresh water crystals.

Hi macbrush, thanks for your reply. Good points ! thanks fo share a some cons of the use of water crystals within the roach bins, and how you deal with the fruits when they turns infested by mites. Regards.

Because 90% of my bins are sealed they hold moisture very very well. I stopped using water crystals several months ago and only mist a few times a week. I haven't misted my Panchlora nivea tank for a few weeks because it is always soaking wet. As long as the substrate is wet they seem to do just fine. Water crystal works just fine but they, as said, pull in a lot of nasty stuff over time.

Hi vfox, thanks for your reply. The egg cartoons itselves don´t get molded within your bins doe to the high humidity ?? i had haved this trouble each time i had doed misting within the roach bins. For this reason i has stopped the misting at all.

But i had readed that with the colonies of Panchlora nivea the high humidity levels is a priority (someday i hope to own this beautiful species). Thanks, regards.

I have noticed that my Dubias breed and multiply fast when I give them a varied diet of chicken pellets and fruits.

Hi makoygaara, thanks for your reply. Recently i has added rabbit pellets and the roaches (particullarly the lobsters) likes it so much ! thanks, regards.

 

[vfox]

I have problems with the egg cartons molding, it's very difficult to avoid so I changed how mine are housed. In most of my tanks I use cork bark or cork sheets as a hide. Most of my high humidity bins have either the cork or plastic hides used for small reptiles. I rarely have mold issues anymore which is great because I have very bad allergies towards mold.

 

[TiercelR]

I have problems with the egg cartons molding, it's very difficult to avoid so I changed how mine are housed. In most of my tanks I use cork bark or cork sheets as a hide. Most of my high humidity bins have either the cork or plastic hides used for small reptiles. I rarely have mold issues anymore which is great because I have very bad allergies towards mold.

Hi vfox, thanks for your reply. If the cork sheets don´t get molded by cause of the humidity, so i must try them, maybe seting them fixed within of small wood frames and then seting them veticallyment within the roach bins, by means that the framed cork sheets do not crush the roaches theyselves. Thanks, regards.

 

[vfox]

That should work pretty well and I know it would cut down on your mold issues. Cork can still mold but it takes a long time, I have cork sheets in my lobster roach tank that have been there for about two years without molding. Cork bark pieces last even longer than the pressed sheets, they are very resistant to mold growth.

 

[TiercelR]

That should work pretty well and I know it would cut down on your mold issues. Cork can still mold but it takes a long time, I have cork sheets in my lobster roach tank that have been there for about two years without molding. Cork bark pieces last even longer than the pressed sheets, they are very resistant to mold growth.

Hi vfox, thanks for your reply. I will try with the cork sheets and/or with the cork bark, i can´t wait for try it ! thanks, regards.