Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I haven't posted on here in a while because I had to leave the herping hobby behind for a few years and I am now at a point that I can restart. Previously I owned a few veiled chameleons and spent a fortune on getting crickets shipped to me. The question I have for you guys is what would your preference be on raising my own feeder insects. I live in an apartment and have a decent amount of space. Obviously the cleaner the better. I have read quite a bit and at this point I would choose roaches. Just thought I would get some experts advice. Thanks a lot!!

I'm an not an expert by any means, but it would seem as though roaches are the way to go. I recently recieved mine and they're neat little guys(and girls!). I've started with a small amount so I'm still buying crickets until they start reproducing, but these are so much nicer than crickets. Absolutely no smell. Zero. I didn't believe anyone at first, but there's not a scent coming from their tank. All you really need to know is the type of roaches you want. Non-glass climbers are definately a plus, so I've been keeping mine(false death-heads) in a ten gallon tank with chicken feed as substrate. To give them someplace to hide, I loosely crumbled up some pieces of thick paper and that seems to be working fine. I don't know about anyone else, but after a little while with these guys I feel like they're pets of mine and not just feeders. Except these pets have been given a death sentence. At the end of the day though, if you don't feel like roaches, my understanding is silkworms are amazing, though I haven't worked with those. But enough of my rambling, hopefully someone else with more(and better!) information than I. Enjoy!

>> I don't know about anyone else, but after a little while with these guys I feel like they're pets of mine and not just feeders...

That's EXACTLY how my own fascination with bugs started. You start to keep roackes as feeders, then come to find out that they are fascinating in themselves! LOL
Seriously, they're very social, interacting amongst themselves. I've also kept various phasmids and mantids, silkworms, mealworms and zoophobos, even houseflies. All in my own quest to provide as varied a diet as possible for my chameleons. All very fascinating, and not all were ever fed off as feeders (esp the phasmids and mantids, they're so AWESOME as pets).
I highly encourage everyone to try their own hands at raising your own feeder insects. And I honestly don't see any harm in thinking of your feeders sort of as pets. I think you're more apt to take GREAT care of them if you at least enjoy them. Just keep an objective mind when it comes time to feed!

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Victor Gomez
gomezvi@yahoo.com

I cannot describe to you how much I dislike crickets. My 'reptile room' per say, is my bed room. They give off these wonderfull aromas and sing sweet songs into the wee hours of the morning. I'd like to kill them all!

Time to get out the Vapona... Muahah haha ha.

I would love to use roaches. However, they are illegal in Canada. I don't care enough to break the law to do it either.

That being said, I would (and may) personaly start tyring to breed or hatch Silkworms. I'm not sure how that works, since I think they lay eggs after becoming silk moths. Some concerns would be buying enough mulberry feed, contamination, and the whole moth thing.

I'll be buying a few thousand eggs at the upcoming Expo. My reptiles actually canno't eat too many silks.
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
1.2 Maroantsetra Panther Chameleons
2.0 Long Tailed Grass Lizards
0.0.1 Giant Mellers Chameleon
0.0.2 Kenyan Pigmy Chameleons
500 Escaped Crickets

Hi,

Roaches can be very beneficial to chameleons. I personally do not prefer them, but many do. Crickets are my preference, cause they are readily available, and can be gut-loaded easily. Silkworms are great, and are reletivily easy to breed. Hornworms are also good, and great for fatening up a cham. I do not reccommend wax worms. Superworms and buterworms are also god occasionally. If you do chose to use roaches, I strongly advise you to use non-climbers. The climbers are just waiting to infest your house in my opinion, LOL. Mantids and plasmids are good, but are not easy to get, and are very expensive and can be expensive to keep.

Ank-Inc.
Adam.

Dear Adam.

Here is your ultimatum. Either stop posting photos... or send me some adult male panthers! They are too cute! Making me jealous!

Signed,
Baby chameleons grow slowly.

I don't have any adult reptiles actually. Just the long tailed lizard. Although the mellers is so sick he probably won't keep growing if he survives.

Take some new photos for us!

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1.1 Bearded Dragons
1.2 Maroantsetra Panther Chameleons
2.0 Long Tailed Grass Lizards
0.0.1 Giant Mellers Chameleon
0.0.2 Kenyan Pigmy Chameleons
500 Escaped Crickets

i am going to get a cham soon and i was wnadering about this same thing. will you feed the roaches as the main diet or will you continue to feed the crickets as the main diet? i think that tha way you do it sounds like alot less money and time invloved. do you have to do anything to them like clean the tank? what do you feed them? what are the temperatures and do they require a certain humidity?