Finally broke down and got some Dubia

[MelissaB]

I hate crickets. Nasty, noisy and stinky. I do like that they move a lot and are easy to gut load. I never thought I'd start using Dubia, but after reading how they're easy to raise, good feeders, not noisy or smelly, I decided to take the plunge.
I ordered some full sized adults and mixed nymphs from DubiaRoaches.com. Excellent customer service and great roaches. I like how the roaches were packaged in a burlap sack. Made it easy to put them in the bin. They made it quickly and happy. Darien was kind enough not to label the box with the contents. My husband is adamant that I not bring roaches in the house, and I'm not exactly fond of them myself, so I'm calling them Giant Rollie Pollies.
So far my little guy likes them, if I can get them to move. I usually shake them up in the cup or flip them on their backs. Winston isn't feeling good, so he hasn't tried any, yet. I'm hoping he enjoys them as well.
One weird thing I saw the other day was a dubia nymph in Little Guy's worm feeder, running in circles with a small cricket on his back. The cricket was facing the opposite direction that the roach was running, and wasn't biting him. Just looked like he was going for a ride. Wish I had taken a video. Hopefully my dubais start breeding and I won't need as many crickets.

 

[kplatvoet]

Did you have to special request the unlabeled package? My husband has the same phobia -

 

[pigglett79]

Nice! Dubias are great. I dont worry about them at all. Much better than crickets. I have had a few get loose here and there but I always find them on their back somewhere because they get too cold I think. I love them though.

 

[MelissaB]

I did email him to request that the box not be labeled "Roaches" and he was great about it. If your husband looks closely at the packaging, you might want to ask that he doesn't use a return address label with DubiaRoaches on it. Maybe he can use a personal address label. I got lucky and my husband wasn't home when they got here, and he can't see small type without his glasses, lol. But, it didn't say roaches anywhere else on the box.

 

[MelissaB]

Pigglett, that makes me feel a lot better. I've been watching them in the feeder cup and looking at the bottom of the cage. I haven't found any loose, but one did fall onto the floor of the cage. I think I'll set one on a branch and see how quick Little Guy ( I need a better name for my Panther...) goes for it. I love that they don't make any noise, and that they breed so much easier than crickets. If they breed 1/2 as well as my green banana roaches, I'll be a happy camper.