Reptile & Amphibian Forums

well, about a month ago i bought my first lobster roaches, seeing as im getting quite tired of dealing with crickets all the time. ive decided to start a pretty small breeding colony of lobster roaches if i can. i started with about 20 roaches, and ill probably buy some more the next reptile show i go to, but this is just what im starting with. since it's so few of them right now, im just keeping them in a small critter keeper. im also keeping them pretty much at room temp, not really trying to go out of my way or anything to give them extra heat, since it's already kinda warm here. i havent been feeding them much, just some random scraps ive been throwing in, veggies, food pellets, cricket chow, etc. my question is this: on such a small scale, whats the most economic and least time-consuming way to feed them? i hear a lot about people doing dog food, but is that enough on its own? as i get more and more ill move them up to something bigger, such as a rubbermaid, where i guess ill start considering doing things on a larger scale.

ive also just recently got my first batch of nymphs. i would guess theres about 10-20 of em, but im not gonna go out of my way to count. should they be cared for in the same way as the adults? at what temperatures do things start going bad for the nymphs?

thanks for any help.
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-Mike Martin
North Carolina

Hi Mike,

Firstly, the nymphs can be cared for the same as the adults. The average hatch is between 26-30 nymphs.

To propogate these roaches at optimum levels, they need temperatures a bit higher than you described. The best is around 90F. Keep crumpled paper or egg crates or other cardboard in the container for them to hide in.

As to food, we make our own gutload (so they are able to be fed off anytime) and we offer such produce as: apples, carrots; squash; pumpkin. We use the water crystals for watering (that way even the nymphs won't drown). If you aren't going to feed yours off for some time, you could offer dry dog food or even koi pellets. Just stay away from most poultry mash, as the majority of mashes have additives that may have ill affects the reptiles or amphibians that eat the roaches. Some roach growers feed a monkey chow too, but we don't know what the costs for that are. We always recommend to stay away from lettuce - it usually leads to fruit flies, mold or mites.

If you can, mix up some dry grains for your roaches (making your own food). You could use some dry dog food (crushed); some oatmeal; some baby dry rice cereal; brans; wheat; and the like. Stay away from corn products and soy. Think nutrition - and you will do okay. The love nuts too!

Don't forget - lobster roaches can get out of almost anything! To keep them contained - you will need to use either a paint-on teflon product or a vaseline-type grease around the top of whatever container you use.

Hope that helps some,

thanks for the info. as for the top, i was sure to put a screen fine enough to keep the nymphs in over their container. once i get a chance ill go get some vaseline or something of the sort.
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-Mike Martin
North Carolina