How to Set Up a Dubia Roach Colony | self cleaning dubia roach colony 3 ways!

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

Hey everyone! I hope you enjoyed this video, and it helps you start your own dubia colony! I want to be clear, I *do NOT recommend* the type of bin I used in this video. I highly suggest you buy a normal, sterilite storage container and stay away from whatever heavy duty style this one is. It works for my colony, but the bin itself made every step harder than it needed to be! I've linked a bin I recommend in the description bar, so go out and find something similar!

[@pascal590]

I don’t see a link. And u didn’t talk abt diet at all :-(

[@ababner317]

No link.

[@geoffreybunger]

We just moved our starter colony into one of the same bins you used. I do get what you are saying about thickness and such, but the size is good and it is sturdy. My wife had mentioned finding some way to sift the frass off, so we might try the option with the mesh bottom. If we do I'll let you know how that goes. I wouldn't have thought of nesting two of these bins, I really was planning on having one to transfer to when cleaning time comes, but the mesh bottom might be easier...

[@TylerLarbes]

Mealworms/beetles have been our go-to clean up crew for a while now. Although.... I switched our beetle colonies, dermestid colony, cricket colony, several isopod colonies, and one of our leapord geckos(all are either full-bio or part-bio enclosures)over to baby superworms. As a clean up crew, 10-15 baby-juvenile superworms can clean the same area as 150-200 Mealworms/Darkling Beetles. They also grow very slowly. They take about 8x-10x longer than Mealworms to reach full size. So you don't have to worry about population control, breeding, out-competing tank mates... plus if you have 10+ superworms together and don't give them a good hiding place to pupate, they will happily live as superworms for up to a year.... just some thoughts and experiences I have had that I thought may be helpful!

[@3flyte_3flyte]

Your how-to video for these animals is the best. It is so complete. Thank you.

[@shr00mski]

NEW SWEATER ALERT!!! 🍊 Loved the video, having a successful dubia roach colony is amazing!

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

Winter Vibes: Frizzy hair and New Sweaters 🍊🍊🍊

[@daveman5150]

A few questions: 1 - Do you have a ballpark ratio for the mix you use for the substrate? I.E. 10 parts eco root, 2 parts top soil, etc. . . 2 - Do you have a recommendation about how many mealworms and beetles (what type also please) you would put into a tank for cleaning? At the end, you mentioned 5-10 beetles and a couple of mealworms, but you also said that there were others in the substrate. Thanks! 3 - What do you do about humidity control? 4 - For beginning a dubia roach colony, you mentioned 25 roaches. Is this the large kind? Medium size? 5 - Finally - even in the aquarium, are you using the heating pad as your heat source? Thanks so much for this video. Very well done!

[@Mermic13]

Hi, I'm still pretty new to keeping dubia roaches, but I can answer a couple of questions that you have. Normally, for humidity, if you just give your roaches greens and stuff like that, it will work just fine. Some people use the water gel stuff, but it's not needed at all. As far as the size of dubias, it's best to start off with adults or dubias that are close to becoming adults. But is what I did is you can get a mixed size of dubias and place a different order for some bigger ones so that way you will get a steady flow of du bia roaches because if you just start off with only adults then there will be a big size gap and if you need a steady flow of feeders then it will be a bit of an issue waiting for the babies to grow up. idk if that made sense. But if you have any more questions. I can try to answer them. I'm not sure about how many mealworms/beetles you will want to use, tho because I have not tried that yet.

[@m1964c]

Love your videos.

[@Handydandee]

Perfect video to help me start breeding dubia and meals! Very good job! I can’t believe there is not way more likes!

[@DD-sq9rx]

Another great video we always enjoy watching them keep up the great work.

[@additudeobx]

Tatiana, use a 1/2" to 1" vermiculite substrate. It will help absorb the smell as well. Using a container that has rounded very smooth walls/sides with stop any climbing by the Dubias. Darkness, egg carton pieces are good enough for blocking the light. They love baby carrot slices and potato slices and those provide the moisture they need.

[@marios3163]

Good tips! I will look into the vermiculite substrate.

[@nightingaleseraph]

I read this advice in Charles Bronson’s voice.

[@donteague614]

Nice 2 for one! Thanx had no idea these could live together

[@LottieBaity]

A very nice setup for the dubia roaches thank you.🙏

[@DragonUdo]

2:22 I use and love that same bin, especially because it's Black and Solid (only complaint it's not super smooth on inside)!!!

[@tylerwinslow4890]

Love the new video, I like getting to see the different angles of the reptile room to see which different faces can be seen! Got to see Eponine peaking out for a portion! Are there other feeder cockroaches that you could do that would not become an infestation? If so, did you choose Dubias for a specific nutritional reason or just availability?

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

I know that Madagascar Hissing cockroaches and Discoid roaches are both popular feeder insects as well, but I don't have any experience with feeding either of them. Red runners are another common roach that is fed to tarantulas and other inverts. Most roach species sold as feeders are high in protein and low in fat, making them one of the healthiest feeder insect!

[@themantisgarden]

I keep every species of my roaches in bio-active set ups except for red runners as most roaches are tropical and prefer it damp and warm rather than dry... I also keep isopods with them to eat their fras, uneaten food stuffs and corpses so I never need to clean them out.

[@TheAlaskawes]

How many roaches will that size enclosure produce per month? Great videos, Thanks

[@Bear_Cannons]

Great step by step video! Will leave an F here for those fallen roaches lol

[@sharonfloyd3101]

That video hepled me to start up a colany with dubias

[@toddwynn1968]

I've started about 9months ago and about 2 months ago I put about 2 inches of steamed oats and and about a hundred mealworms and frass from the mealworms and the buffalo Beatles.they have been keeping the been clean. I've been using cereal boxes with holes cut many spots tip up the boxes up easy clean also added isopods from the yard.every body is happy including me

[@izchildress]

AMAZING video. Thank you Tatiana!!!

[@francesdumaliang6132]

Thank you for sharing!☺️❤️🙏

[@chapintaylor9659]

Would a setup like this be adequate for 3 red eyed tree frogs daily consumption? As adults they're supposed to eat 2-3 crickets every other day.

[@d.l.sstudio8922]

First of all, Great Video thank you for the insight! I’m starting a small colony for my bearded dragon. If you don’t mind I’d like to offer some insight as well. I would suggest to us Kn95 masks. A surgical mask does not provide well protection against small dust particles or dust in general. The dust just goes around the mask when you breathe in. It may seem insignificant but if you’re doing this weekly or monthly over the term of your life it can cause issues.

[@hedgechef4701]

Absolutely brilliant video, thank you so much!

[@KatieDe_G]

I LOVE your sweater 😍

[@clancywoodbine5343]

I'm really liking all these insect farming videos, thank you! I was wondering which insects are best to farm if you want to avoid buying feed for them - I'm interested in trying to farm bugs that I can feed kitchen scraps and/or plant material from the garden, and moving towards closed systems rather than wasting food to grow food

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

I don't buy any food for my insects. They always get scraps from food I'm already eating! I also give them dogfood sometimes. The only thing I get for them occasionally is an insect specific diet so I can make sure they are getting all the nutrients they need, but I only buy this about once a year.

[@caseyridgeway3134]

Thanks for this awesome informative video. I was wondering will super worms work like the meal worms? And could you give a list for the materials you used for the substrate? Thanks again

[@codyschwoch5451]

And for those that want to do the method that she does not do use a better screening product than that plastic screening stuff they use because in order for Dula roach eggs to fall through the screening it’s got to be bigger holes than those tiny little pricks so if you are going to try this, I would recommendsome medium size screening and it works great for Dula roach, breeding, cricket breeding, surprisingly enough not a good way to do it for horned, caterpillars, or mealworms

[@trinamiggypudd1274]

Hey, i raised mill and super worms, got into discoid roaches. These were for my grand daughters leapard gecko, she has moved. Is there a market to continue the effort of raising these bugs ?

[@vickiignaszak5041]

Great video! I don't think I'll ever have a need for a colony, but I have kept dubias in a bin like that just cause I got 50 once and had to do something with them until I used them all. Pretty sure they did breed a little in that bin during the summer cause there were a couple tiny ones that showed up in the bin 🤔 Hack for free egg flats: find a friend who works in food service. Hey Tatiana, if you ever need a bunch more egg flats gimme a heads up. We get big boxes of eggs at work and the flats just get recycled so I can snag a bunch if you need some. I know that sometimes they get gross after awhile and need replacing.

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

That's awesome, I'll definitely keep it in mind! I typically grab some from the zoo, because we recycle a lot there as well, but it might be easier to ask you haha Thank you! ☺️

[@williamjoseph3973]

Tarantula owners: They do burrow into the substrate. The spood won't find it!

[@bodhialvasao8897]

Hi Tatiana, I would like to adopt your glass aquarium design it’s neat. Where you get that fish tank and its meshed lid?

[@ΦιλίαΒλησίδη]

ALL THAT FOR FUCKING ROACHES BLESS YOU GIRL YOU ARE GREAT KEEP DOING YOU !

[@crawlywebbythings]

how often do you need to start this process over?

[@AnthonysFishyFriends]

I am newer to reptiles. Starting my own colony now. Every time I see people handling roaches bare hand it grosses me out. I'm sure I'll get there soon...😂😂😂

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

Oh believe me, it still grosses me out when I have to touch them barehanded 🤢

[@LordPhoenix140]

How do you keep flies from nesting in your dubia colony?

[@codyschwoch5451]

And for those people that are watching this to try and duplicate this, please duplicate it what she does other than the plastic plants because roaches eat plants and other insects for their diets but as well as the mat, I have been seeing people on KZbin videos trying to tell you that it is better to putthe heat mat on the bottom of the outside for those that don’t know what they’re doing. Please do not put it on the bottom of the tote because otherwise the tote is going to start melting because it doesn’t have any cross ventilation

[@mikem2208]

"what is up?". Lol

[@alltaira5922]

The lid is better to keep heat from escaping than a dubia roach. They cant climb smooth surfaces.

[@RegenTonnenEnte]

Would cuban isopods work in a setup like that working as a cleanup-crew? Or would they ignore the roach poop?

[@linkinparkfanforever2728]

If you want to have isopods in there you would need substrate, otherwise they would dry out. My isopods eat the poop of the cockroaches

[@justinkrenselewski1506]

@@linkinparkfanforever2728 And what eats the poop of the isopods?

[@bethwhite310]

Can crickets be stored in this bin with the roaches and clean up crew or will they eat each other?

[@fin8205]

Do you have a specific brand of mesh I can use? I can’t find any with small enough holes.

[@preppyxxmaddy]

Can you feed the mealworms to your lizard ? Or do you have to breed mealworms separately?

[@caranguejeira]

The substrate is moist or dry?

[@marios3163]

I have tried the screen at the bottom, but it did not filter out enough. I used about a 3/32-1/8" mesh. I have moved to just using a normal set up like yours. ut I do recommend a container that has a sealing gasket so that the little babies don't get out. They seem to be able to scale the walls of the bins, especially if it has dust or fine detritus on it. I do want to add substrate as the adult enclosure can get quite smelly within a week. I am growing Discoids, btw. That eco earth is expensive. Any suggestions on a cheap substrate that breaks down to grains less than 3/16" in size? I was thinking sand. That charcoal idea is interesting for odor and moisture control. Where do you get yours?

[@ambertaylor5146]

I’m trying to decide if it’s worth it. I only have 2 jumping spiders and a T, and I’m spending about $30 a month to feed them. But- I don’t want hundreds of roaches because I won’t be able to use them. Can colony size be easily controlled?

[@yodanorgaard5695]

Sell extras or lower temps to slow them from growing eating and breeding

[@tarynrichardson5243]

What was the substrate you used?

[@nothingmanofgod.6288]

Awsome roches dubia🙉

[@m1964c]

I tried but the frass went thru but so did the baby roaches. Small enough wire the frass doesn’t go thru. 😢

[@danielsutter2152]

What about water and humidity?

[@PurpleDragonFlyWings]

Where do you buy your bran from?

[@Swearengen1980]

When you do have to change that substrate and you have all ages/sizes of dubia in there, that seems like the most difficult option to do.

[@Vetrivel.Shanmugam]

hello, I saw your other video about meal worms. I dont need to start a colony, my mom's kitchen already has one. I';m surprised you like insects, none of my family members like it.

[@michelleg1117]

I have a question about attaching the temp probe for the heat mat. I'm scared the roaches will climb the cord and escape. How do you setup the probe where they cant escape?

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

I would drill a hole in the lid or at the top of one of the sides that's just big enough to squeeze the probe through. I don't think they'd be able to get through but if you're still worried about escapees then you could fill the gaps with silicone.

[@michelleg1117]

@@TatianasTinyZoo thank you!

[@tee_pierce6]

They can't climb up bins

[@irish1759able]

Loving your vids, recently got a leopard gecko as a rescue and doing good on mealworms but looking for more variety in the diet. Can you make a mini colony just just like 2 females and a male( or possibly few more ) to feed just one gecko, as don't really need thousands of these . Have found anyone doing a small scale version for just one pet. 😉

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

I think the recommended ratio is 4 females for every 1 male roach, otherwise they won't reproduce like they should. However each female can lay hundreds of eggs so you'd have a pretty big colony after 1 or 2 generations....Do you have any friends with reptiles that you could share with if your colony gets too big?

[@leanefazzari7760]

Or friends with chicken! Great source of protein and they love it!

[@bonniemiller1819]

What size mesh

[@ivymankin3559]

What is the substrate?

[@beepboop9750]

I just started my little colony and keeping them in my garage since it’s pretty warm in there and doesn’t go below 20 Celsius at the moment. But I am kind of shitting myself over the fact that I’m putting a heating mat on plastic. Can you tell me what wattage you use ?

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

The one I use is only 20watts so not very high at all. If you're concerned about the plastic melting I'd highly recommend hooking it up to a thermostat!

[@beepboop9750]

@@TatianasTinyZoo thank you! I think I’ll invest in one right away. Even with an expensive thermostat it still doesn’t compare to the price I was paying for feeders monthly. (Really enjoy your videos btw! Just binge watched a ton! I have set up my Dubia enclosure quite like yours. But I have some springtails in there too.)

[@gambit3989]

Do the beetles and roaches get along?

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

I've never seen them bothering each other! Just gotta make sure I'm feeding them enough!

[@annewinslow7500]

Oh my gosh, did it die when it fell?

[@TatianasTinyZoo]

Nope! It actually tried to scurry away but I caught it.

[@jamespotts4848]

Dubia's don't climb so no escape possible.

[@jamespotts4848]

Dubias don't climb so don't worry about it so much.

[@JOJO-yd7qs]

they can’t climb smooth surfaces…..

[@MrQ5280]

they shouldn't be able to crawl up the containers wall...

[@codyschwoch5451]

And she says these roaches are not the kind that infest your house. She is kind of right for all those people that do not live in Florida. She’s correct for all those people that live in Florida. You know that you can’t have these and it is illegal to buy or sell them in Florida, and if you’re from Florida, you know exactly why so this is for the people that don’t live in Florida and don’t know why Florida is the only state in the United States that has the perfect living conditions for these to duplicate and infest Joe don’t get caught sending these across the border to Florida lol

[@PoseFreely]

😢😢😢 poor roaches

[@Holypikemanz]

Link me to that breathable mesh stuff on amazon?

[@MaximusVergil]

you really gotta plan out what youre going to say. youre rambling off point alot

[@typokytty8278]

So i think she stays on subject fine

[@justinkrenselewski1506]

A lot of bad info also. A lid isn't necessary for escape. She also doesn't address hydration.