Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok well ive decided i just need to get more crickets and sttart my beardie up on crickets again.i was thinking of ordering 500 online, is that ok, i have one ackie and 1 beardie. When ever itry keeping crickets alive they seem to die i na week. i have a 10 gallon tank with hiding places, and i feed them romane, carots and have a shallow water, real shallow. should i get rid of the crushed walnut suptrate? basically i dont want 500 dead crickets

For mine I use oatmeal as a substrate. Dont put water in, it doesnt matter how shallow it is. They get all the moisture they need from potato slices, carrots, etc. Make sure they have plenty of places to hide or they eat each other.
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
2 male RES, born 1999
1 ribbon snake, age unknown
3 FBT, ages unknown
1 female bearded dragon, born 5/2002
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04

how many do you feed a day ,and how often do u clean the crickets cage, they poop alot.
i dont really get it my beardy dosnt eat as many veggies as he used to and just wants crickets.

Well, I used to buy 1000 at a time and they lasted about a month before they were all eaten, but I have a whole room full of reptiles, not just my one beardie. My fire-bellied toads, chinese water dragon and turtles also helped with those crickets. The best cricket house is a garbage pail, 30 gallons or so. I got one tall enough that they couldn't climb out and never put a lid on it. When I put lids on my cricket cages they would get too humid and everything would get moldy and the crickets would die. So you want either a screen top or no top. I guess my beardie ate 15-30 a day, but I didnt really count them, and she never left any alive. Now that she is older she only gets crickets once a week or so. I often fed my crickets the same greens that I was feeding the dragon, it is amazing how fast a leaf of romaine can be eaten by hungry crickets.
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
2 male RES, born 1999
1 ribbon snake, age unknown
3 FBT, ages unknown
1 female bearded dragon, born 5/2002
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04

Oh, and every month when the crickets were gone I would dump the whole bucket, pour a new canister of oatmeal in and add the new crickets, so that was my cleaning.
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
2 male RES, born 1999
1 ribbon snake, age unknown
3 FBT, ages unknown
1 female bearded dragon, born 5/2002
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04

ok thx alot

A big reason crix die is a lack of surface area which results in overcrowding. Overcrowding stresses them I think and they may be more cannibalistic in tight quarters. That makes me think a 10G aquarium may be cutting it a little close. You can add the egg cartons or toilet paper rolls to increase the surface area as many will climb, hide, etc. You may also wanna check your temps if the room is cold. I don't use extra heat, but the room stays between 72-78 usually.

My dad built me a custom crix box with a screen lid, 1.5 feet square and about 2 feet tall. He lined the top 5 inches of the inside with varnish, which makes it too slipery for the crix to climb it, but they CAN climb the wood. I can keep between 1-2 thousand crix in there comfortably with some egg crates and paper towel rolls. I just do like the one guy does and empty everything out when the crix are done. And of course make sure they eat well and have access to dry and moist food (dry cereal, dry cat or dog food, fruits, veggies).
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-Bill

1.0.0 Albino California Kingsnake
0.1.0 Colombian Red Tail Boa
1.0.0 Jackson's Chameleon
1.0.0 Bearded Dragon
0.0.1 Argentine Black and White Tegu

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