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anyone else ever try using roaches as a food source?

This is what our member has to say: Anyone who's ever kept live crickets in bulk knows they smell terrible. Finally a friend of mine started exploring other bug options for his ...


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anyone else ever try using roaches as a food source?



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  #1  
12-16-2004, 10:44 PM
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anyone else ever try using roaches as a food source?

Anyone who's ever kept live crickets in bulk knows they smell terrible. Finally a friend of mine started exploring other bug options for his geckoes and euro, and gave lobster roaches a try. When his lizards quickly took to them, he offered me a bunch, and my Bearded Dragon and Leopard Geckos loved them too. Having such a hardy (and odorless) insect as a food source is great.

Anyone else ever tried lobster roaches as a food source, or have any reasons I should not continue using them? Thanks!
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12-16-2004, 11:46 PM
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I wanted to try roaches but my mom cant except have roaches of any kind in her house
im pretty sure lobster roaches are fine feeders and they reproduce like crazy. im not sure but I think they can climb glass and fly. If I ever get to try roaches I think im going to start with something that cant escape so easily.
with Euro did you mean Uromastyx? im not sure if you know already but just in case you dont, uromastyx should be fed insects only as ocasional treats mine get them less than once a month

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 I helped move the meter!   12-17-2004, 10:47 PM
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Roaches make great additions to a herp's diet, but they're not as nutritionally balanced as crix. I don't remember what it is exactly, but they're higher and/or lower in some "ingredients" than would be preferred. I think they're hight in fat for one, but I don't remember the exact figures. Unlike mealies though, they're not terribly high in chitin, and unlike waxies, they're not packed to the brim with fat, so they're probably the 3rd best choice out there, behind crix and silkworms. I'd still keep a lot of crickets in the diet, and make sure you're using supplements, but I don't think it would hurt to make roaches a larger part of the diet. I personally wouldn't skimp out on the crickets too much though. Maybe half and half?
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12-18-2004, 07:55 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jade
I wanted to try roaches but my mom cant except have roaches of any kind in her house
im pretty sure lobster roaches are fine feeders and they reproduce like crazy. im not sure but I think they can climb glass and fly. If I ever get to try roaches I think im going to start with something that cant escape so easily.
with Euro did you mean Uromastyx? im not sure if you know already but just in case you dont, uromastyx should be fed insects only as ocasional treats mine get them less than once a month
Petrolium jelly on the sides make it so no roach can climb it, just make sure you know what roaches can fly and cannot.

Though my mother let me store roaches in the garage, your mother may not like the idea and the roach requirements may not be met.
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 I helped move the meter!   12-19-2004, 01:31 AM
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I believe lobster roaches are one of the species incapable of climbing glass. I think they can fly though. Kind of a tradeoff I guess. Madagascar hissers can't fly, but they can climb glass.
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12-19-2004, 09:21 AM
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Quote:
I wanted to try roaches but my mom cant except have roaches of any kind in her house
Having once lived in a place that was infested with ****roaches I can understand her point of view!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yuck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Moldy I would be hesitant to use the petroleum jelly inside the feeder enclosure. When they try to scale the glass they are goingto get the jelly on them and then you are feeding your animal petroleum jelly.
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01-11-2005, 07:37 PM
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iv fed my Leopard Geckos oriental roaches sevral times .......make sure ur Leopard Geckos have few obstacles in the terrarium becuase roaches are very fast and tend to get away from ur geckos......orientals are the big jet black ones...........they cant fly or climb glass.....but u cant by em for some reason.......iv always caught them in my dads shop or my garage.............fast little buggers though and hard to catch

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01-12-2005, 09:14 PM
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Palmetto bugs can fly and climb glass. Whenever one of these make it into my house, it quickly becomes my Leo's dinner. This way, I don't feel like a murderer, and the roach still ends up dead. I don't think I would bring them into my house purposefully though. I prefer keeping larva-like food sources in my house such as mealworms. They don't stink, they don't chase you, and they are easy to contain.

 


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