breeding crickets

[Will]

They keep laying more than one clutch, but only live about 2-3 weeks at breeding age...

EDIT:
Click HERE for a site with details for breeding them. I used to use a scaled down version of this setup with decent success, except I used NO water - only veggies for moisture.

[Jeff_Favelle]

do the adult female crickets only lay one batch of eggs before they die?

Not here they don't. Mine lay bunches of eggs over a 2-3 week period and continue to live for like another week. By that time they are HUGE and then they get fed off. The monitors go BONKERS over the old breeder crickets. Its awesome!

[peterm15]

but the older crix the less nutritional value.. i read that somewhere on he in the chameleon forum

[Justcage]

all i can say is peeee uuuuu, I have bred them and they do stink.. What about roaches? They dont stink and produce well...

[peterm15]

ahh... mekes me cringe..... i cant stand roaches

[pythonmdk]

I'd have to agree on the roach aproach, they are great feeders, cuz some species breed great and are easily digested, I like lobsters for the breeding potential but discoids, death heads, giants, orange heads and six spots are are great too cuz they can't climb glass, but they don't breed as fast. But again the best is a vairied diet so get a buch of both if you can, and can handle that, they don't smell and don't make noice and to be honest don't escape very easily if you take the right precautions!! I'd stay away from hissers though, they make an ok supplement but don't breed fast and are harder to digest then many other roaches. I have had lobsters, hissers, discoids and six spots, I'd recomend to stay away from hissers, they are more pets then feeders.
~John

[Jeff_Favelle]

but the older crix the less nutritional value.. i read that somewhere on he in the chameleon forum

Perfect for monitors!

[peterm15]

Jeff_Favelle, why is that perfect.... i know monitors are large so they would eat alot... but why would less nutritional valve be perfect...

[Jeff_Favelle]

http://www.varanus.net/cgi-bin/eboar...&message=11080

[peterm15]

neat... very good site... thanks

[Jeff_Favelle]

No worries bro.

[JDouglas]

I ordered 500 crickets and bred them and after about a month and a half now I have about 20 thousand from pinhead to 1/4 inch size. I have them seperated by weeks so I have several tubs of different age sizes. I own one beardie and 3 geckos! LOL! I have given thousands of 1/4 inch crickets away and people think I'm nuts when I offer them up for free but when you have this kind of excess it is required. I even trade crickets for my dog food at the pet store. They appreciate it because shipping live can be difficult in the winter. I have found that crickets don't stink much until the crickets get bigger begin to die. I guess I just need more lizards huh?

Whats even worse is that I did the same with Super Worms and Meal Worms too. My Supers and mealies are all beetles now and I expect a bumper crop with these too! Its amazin what you can learn on the internet. I wanted to see how easy it was and I have to tell you it has been simple so far. The only problem is they they are prolific breeders and I have WAY too many. Now I am using a MUCH smaller breeding group of crickets.

Here are some links I found useful...

http://www.chameleonnews.com/year200.../crickets.html

http://www.skylab.org/~chugga/cricket/

[paulsreef]

You need at least 25 pairs to get started. Females have a long needle like tail and males just have a V tail. Place them in a rubbermaid tub with smooth sides ( can't climb out of). Place a 2''deep saucer with 2" of moist topsoil inside (keep moist). Feed the crickets chick mash which is available at feed shops; cheap compared to cricket food. Also feed pieces of squash, carrots, sweet potatoe. They prefer a warm (80 degrees) and humid enviroment. I wait about a month until I start seeing pinheads. I sometimes have approx. 100 bearded dragons to feed, if they each ate a dozen a day, that's 1200 per day, 36000 per month. $25/1000, it doesn't matter if they are pinheads or adults, it's still $25/1000. $25. x 36= $900/mth.. Breeding your own is better then paying $900/mth. Sounds like a good business.

Paul.

[Reptiteen]

I unintentionally breed crickets all of the time. They wind up mating in their container, and the minute I throw them in with my scorpions or tarantulas, they start laying in the soil.

I also purchased 2000 crickets a few months ago to attempt to breed intentionally. One of the biggest mistake I've ever made. Worse smell in the world, and with that many, the sound was bouncing off the walls 24/7.

[paulsreef]

The sound of only a few that have escaped drive me crazy. They get somewhere that's not accesible; I fantasize about getting them with bug spray, but with reptiles and feeder insects; spraying a poison isn't an option. All you need is 25 pairs; with 2000 you are going to have a lot of die off, that's what smells so bad.
Paul.