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 #2021839


BeardiePal
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 How I care for Dubias

The Dubia cockroach (Blaptica dubia), also known as "Orange Spotted Roach" or "Guyana spotted cockroach", is a medium/large species of cockroach, measuring about 4.5 cm long. They are sexually dimorphic; the males have wings while the females have only tiny wing stubs. Adults are dark brown to black with somewhat lighter orange spot/stripe patterning sometimes visible only in bright light. Although the males have wings, they do not fly, they can hover 1-2 inches in the air. Neither adults or juveniles climb smooth surfaces, juveniles have been known to climb the silicon seals in aquariums. Dubias are prolific and give birth to anywhere between 20 to 40 live young in a month. ( Wikepedia)

I started with 25 roaches of each dubia and discoids 1.5 years ago and I am guessing and I have now 10 dragons but have up to 16 dragons in the last year, and I never buy crickets again. I feed supers, roaches, and silkworms, to my 10.

This is what u need:

A bin the size of a 40 gallon breeder

A human heating pad

Egg crates...no substrate...

Cat food, not dog food as previously mentioned, and real, dry Quaker oatmeal which is not expensive, to mix with crumbed , from blender catfood. I also add Parazap and herptivite to the catfood/ dry oatmeal mixture. Perhaps 2 cups of dry blenderized cat food, 1 cup of Oatmeal, 3 teaspoons of parazap, and 2 teaspoons of Herptivite. This is your roaches protein, and minerals.

Use lids from margarine, sour cream, dip, etc. with water sprayed on your fruit slices and coleslaw mix preparation, on the lids.

Coleslaw mix I get from Sam’s Wholesale for 3 pounds, 3 dollars 47 cents. Prepare into chopped small pieces,,, I use the food processor on the pulse action...I feed orange slices and apple slices as well..Always spray your lids with water.....bountiful, plenty of water...don’t peel either, the roaches will not eat the orange skins & sometimes, not the apple peel.

I disturb each bin everyday now that i have colonies started. I feed everyday. Starting out ,clean the bin once a week to 10 days. A wet/dry vac is the best way to go. Prop the egg crates against one side...wait 10 minutes and most roaches will seek cover. Vacuum, and then with water moist washrag, clean one end, then shake & prop and lean on other side, and repeat..

I use a blender to prepare dry catfood. grind to powder form...crumb form,

Also note that most any veggie, that has become a little less fresh than u would want to feed your dragons, food process them, place on the lids, spray with nwater...bountiful, plentiful water...for drinking only...

I never mist/spray my roaches or bins...too much mess....

Hope this helps, Beth
P. S. I use this care for both dubias & discoids...



06/13/09  10:41pm

 #2021847


Sns_dragons
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  Message To: BeardiePal   In reference to Message Id: 2021839


 How I care for Dubias

Great info... I’m still trying and waiting to get both those kinds. You guys that have colonies of them going are lucky! I have some very tiny baby turks..



06/13/09  10:55pm

 #2022046


Cphill58
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  Message To: Sns_dragons   In reference to Message Id: 2021847


 How I care for Dubias

Good info ...I will have to save this to fav’s
the masses will want to know ....lol

Roaches sure have gotten popular these past few weeks.

Cp



06/14/09  10:57am

 #2022120


DragonKeeper86
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  Message To: Cphill58   In reference to Message Id: 2022046


 How I care for Dubias

I know... pretty soon no one is gonna be messing with crickets. That is... once the stigma of keeping live roaches in your house dissipates a bit lol. I will NEVER go back to keeping crickets... I hate those smelly, noisy, messy little bugs. The only reason I would get them is to feed hungry baby dragons, but I would make sure to be able to feed the off within a week or so.



06/14/09  01:45pm

 #2022148


Newfgal
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  Message To: DragonKeeper86   In reference to Message Id: 2022120


 How I care for Dubias

Thanks Beth, this is wonderful info :)

Quote:

I will NEVER go back to keeping crickets... I hate those smelly, noisy, messy little bugs. The only reason I would get them is to feed hungry baby dragons, but I would make sure to be able to feed the off within a week or so.



Amen! lol...I have been breeding crickets like crazy again after giving it up altogether, for the sake of the baby beardies comming soon, and the WD babies as well...Once the babies are gone, so are those pesky crickets! lol...Oh, I have tons of Dubia babies to for the baby beardies...woot!

Nancy :)



06/14/09  03:24pm

 #2022220


Cphill58
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  Message To: Newfgal   In reference to Message Id: 2022148


 How I care for Dubias

I was going to say/ ask ...what is wrong with feeding the baby dragons small roaches ??
I guess they would need too many ....

I can’t wait to see the babies Nancy ... I want some too.

Cp



06/14/09  05:00pm

 #2022230


Newfgal
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  Message To: Cphill58   In reference to Message Id: 2022220


 How I care for Dubias

Yea for me I will be offering the hatchlings baby roaches and crickets, it’s just you get way more baby crickets than baby roaches...I will soon enough though once they start having more babies, lol...I see a coupple more female Dubias with an egg sack, I love it! lol...

Quote:

I can’t wait to see the babies Nancy ... I want some too.



Oh me to! I check them every day, I am so scared of not seeing the first one hatch, lol...

Nancy



06/14/09  05:12pm

 #2022313


DragonKeeper86
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  Message To: Newfgal   In reference to Message Id: 2022230


 How I care for Dubias

Yea, I would most likely feed them both roaches and crickets... I guess it just depends on how big the colony is at the time. From what Ive heard about how many crickets a clutch of hatchling dragons can go through, it sounds like they could deplete an entire colony of roaches in a matter of weeks lol. I guess I wont really know until I actually hatch some babies, but Im assuming they would just need too many to be able to solely feed them roaches.



06/14/09  07:44pm

 #2022457


Newfgal
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  Message To: DragonKeeper86   In reference to Message Id: 2022313


 How I care for Dubias

Yep, I know when Buttercup was a hatchling, she would eat 50-60 crickets 3 x a day, she was such a big eater, lol...I wouldn’t want to feed off all the roaches I have, especially since the small lizards I have here love the baby roaches to, lol...The cresties go crazy for them, they are night dwellers but if I throw roaches in there and it’s not dark for them yet, they are on them anyway, lol...I hate crickets but I will have to put up with it for a while, lol...

Nancy :)



06/15/09  05:37am


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