Stay away from climbers. There are several non-climbing/flying species that are good. Orange head, orange spot, 4-spot, discoids, and death heads. I breed them all and like the orange spots the best. For one it is very easy to tell males from females. They are good breeders and very meaty. Roaches are the best bug you could feed your pet. I feed my roaches lab chow,high grade dog food, and a mixture of fruits and veggies. It does take some time to get a breeding colony going, and they arn't cheap, but in the long run you will save a bundle not buying crickets. I keep mine in a 20 gallon rubbermaid with either red bran or peat moss. Red bran is good because they will eat it, but you can not get it wet. Peat moss is good because you can spray it. So pick one and that will determine your set-up. If you go with the bran add a shallow water dish, and they will also get water from the oranges, apples, etc.. If you use the moss you may or may not have a water dish and you could spray them every other day. The only bad thing about this is you need to watch out for mold. Remove fruits and veggies within 48 hours. Once you get your colony going you will soon figure out how much they eat and only give them that amount. Heat from the bottom works besat and 85-100F. The closer to 90-100F the faster they will breed. Most people do not sell adults because it takes 3-4 months to get them there. Once your adults are going you should let there first few hundred babies grow, then you will have a good colony producing hundreds or even thousands of babies every month. I separate out all the adults and large babies every couple months, then when the remaining babies are large enough either feed them off, or add them to the colony. This way the are also getting a clean cage every few months. Roaches are easy and not as bad as everyone thinks. These are not pest, and without the proper care will not breed or live long.

James

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