Hey guys! I'm planning on starting a roach colony for my beardie and had some questions: -I've heard that they pretty much eat any dry food. Does that include rabbit food (Because I already own two rabbits and using their feed would save money)? -What is the best way to provide heat to the roaches? -What is the best starting number of roaches when starting a colony? Thanks in advance guys!
Read this: http://reptileboards.com/threads/how-to-keep-and-breed-roaches-extensive.64560/ ; ) Short answer: 1) Rabbit food can work - they fare best on a grain based gutload. Ideally, you want to offer a small variety of quality salad items as a moisture source and additional nutrient booster. I typically offer chick feed, dog or cat kibble, baby cereals, fish food, etc as a base feed. 2) I prefer heat tape; or perhaps an Undertank Heater (UTH). Lights can work, but they often dry things out in the bin and light is unnecessary and stressful to roaches. In addition, you use extra wattage running a bulb; a square foot of flexwatt runs on ~11watts. 3) Depends on how many insects you feed on a daily basis. Expect to allow the colony to grow for a few months before feeding heavily out of it unless you invest in a very large starter culture.
I use heat tape purely because I can obtain it very inexpensively, and this is useful for me because I have a rack system for my collector and feeder insects heated entirely by heat tape. I can set it up for about $5 per square foot of heat tape, and only a few bucks extra for each additional foot. UTH's work just fine, but tend to be more expensive for the same amount of coverage. Just be sure if you do use heat tape to properly assemble it and insulate it - there is more room for error on your end since it rarely comes "ready-to-go" and needs to be either soldered or clipped and insulated to an extension cord.
Will a ceramic heat emitter work for heating a whole dubia room?? Like say a small closet full of breeder bins?
You can try it out - I have a friend who heats an entire cockroach rack system using a dome fixture and bulb aimed at the rack so it is certainly a feasible method. Aim for pretty high wattage bulb and make sure your fixture supports that wattage.
Gonna give it a shot, ill let you know how it goes. I just ordered a 50watt, if that doesnt cut it ill bump another 25 watts.
