Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Finding orange spotted roach caresheets. If I type in a search "spotted roach caresheet" or something similiar, I come up with sites like "I spotted a roach in my motel!" If I use the species/latin name I get a buncha dutch or german sites (which I can't read, I'm not bi-langual).

So if anyone has a site or two that can answer a noob's stupid questions, please list the web pages. Doing searches isn't working for me... Thanks in advance.
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-Kris

Typing fast!! No spell check!! Grammer sucks!!! Be nice!!!

I know, I wish I could read those German and Chinese sites. Roaches are really in their beginning infancy as feeder bugs here in the US. Anyway this is what I do.

1. Cage set-up
Rubbermaid tub 10-20 gallons. I drill holes in the lid to prevent moisture build-up, since these guys can't climb you really have no need to worry. Some people don't even use lids, but my clumsy self is bound to knock one of there containers over someday.
a. Option #1. If you think spraying is a must or don't want to feed many fruits and veggies go with sphagnum moss on the bottom. Spray them ever other day, but be careful to not get to wet and watch for mold.
b. I prefer to use red bran(get a a feed store) with a few layers of egg crates(another hint:fast food places dumb these everyday). You do not want to spray this with water, because it will mold. I feed oranges, apples and carrots for a good water source. You can also have a swallow water dish.
c. Some people use no beding, just eggs crates. I have not tried this yet, so I have no comments.

I also like the bran, because it is very fine. This allowa me to sift out the babies when I clean every few months. Although my new mothod that is working well is to get hundreds of babies, move the adults and let the babies grow. By the time the are old enough for breeding or feeding you move them with the adults and have another clean cage to start again.

HEAT
This is one of the most important things when breeding roaches. I have one colony sitting on top of a reptile cage that's light is on 24/7. This colony by far out breeds and grows the ones that are on top of cages which lights are only on 12-14 hours a day. 90-100F is very good breeding temps, and they really like the heat coming from the bottom. If the dip into the 70-80 the will slow down and almost not breed at all.

FOOD
This is also very important, because what you feed your roaches gets passed on to your pets. A good mixture of chicken mash,dry dog, cat, or lab chow, bran, oatmeal,etc... is good.(another hint: coffee bean grinders are good for blending food into small pieces). I really like to feed a varity of fruits and veggies. Oranges, apples, carrot, romaine, and many others work well. The key is finding out how much the will eat in a day or two so it all gets eaton and does not mold. A swallow water dish can also be helpful(some people use sponges in a container), but you just want to make sure it not going to drown babies or spill. Depending on the beeding you may also spray with water.

Most of the non-climbing species start out about 1/8 inch and get to between 2-21/2 inches. Almost all these species have wings and that is how you know they have turned to adults. This is why I like the Blaptica dubia (orange spotted) so much. When the females morph to adults it is easy to tell and unlike the males they do not have wings. Typically with all these non-climbers the females will be larger, and have a wider rear(no pun intended). I have only had my colonies for about a year and am still learning through trial and error. The only thing I know for certain is my lizards go absolutely crazy over roaches. Even ones that where poor feeder jumped all over them. Good luck!!!!!
James

Thanks dude,

I'm saving that in my reptile files.

Next thing I need to find: Best price for the orange spotted. My trusty local reptile store only sells hissers. I'll make a new post for that tho.
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-Kris