# Keeping Crickets ..... How Things Have Changed!



## el Snappo (Mar 4, 2017)

:2thumb: Lawd! Back in the day ~ as, obviously, a great many of you recall with a certain level of anguish ~ keeping crickets went very much like this:

Buy plastic boxes of the things. Bring them home. Open one. _And They're Off!!!_ Just seemed like, no matter what ye did, these sods would take a massive leap and one or two would be in ye room. From there to spread. And bring the joy of their nerve grating chirruping.

No matter what ye housed them in either; Feeding time was Another remake of The Great Escape. And, that once novel and pleasing sound was now a bloody nightmare ye were never quite clear of.

Anyone who's come to the hobby in the last decade won't know how lucky ye are! I just bought me a Pro Rep Live Food Kit ("Glorified and Bloody expensive 'Pet Pal'", as I supposed it to be) And a box of " Silent Crickets ". And, I've never been so delighted in my life!!!









Must have had it a week or two now? Not a peep out of the crickets, in their Brilliant little, escape proof, box. Ye get this science fiction stuff that ye put in their tiny little bowl. Like tappioca. And it's _Water!_ They drink all they want, without drowning in it!

I haven't lost a single cricket either! Not to just dying, for a pass time. _Or_ from jumpers. Because these things don't even do That! They're perfectly active. Fit and happy. They just don't seem to take flying leaps anywhere.

Feeding my toads is now an absolute pleasure. Withdraw a tube. Hold it into my toad tank. Gently tap it and be amazed how many crickets are huddled in there!

Honestly; The crickets are almost pets in themselves now! They're so clean, quiet and fuss free.

Best of all? I've just picked up a fantastic tip, about this 'water gel' stuff, from Panthraz, Here. I'll be up for a tub of Gardsman then! :thumb:


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## CuriousCreatures (Jan 7, 2015)

I love reading your posts, Snappo. :2thumb: Yes I have one of these keepers, but a word of warning - I bought some 3rds recently and a ton of them escaped through the hinge gap on the hatch on the lid. But for larger crickets it's brilliant, I agree.


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## el Snappo (Mar 4, 2017)

CuriousCreatures said:


> I love reading your posts, Snappo. :2thumb:



:blush: *Thankyou!* How incredibly kind to say something like that! (Haters teeth gonna be grindin'!







)


But, never mind all that! Does el Snappo _sound like_ one to let the grass grow under his feet? _Au contraire! _Today, even as we speak, I brought This Bad Boy home .....!









​ 




Five Hundred Crickets, next order? We think so! 


























​


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## Snowydinosaur (Aug 31, 2017)

Haha! I too have had a few leaping escapees despite my best efforts. Talk about stress trying to catch them before my husband found out! Lol.
I've also just bought one of those boxes but unfortunately the pet store is useless and I've not had a chance to put live food in it.


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## el Snappo (Mar 4, 2017)

SnowyD, ye have my heartfelt sympathies! God almighty! I'm trying to just keep two B. bufo fed. And what a drama! Order stuff and it doesn't get sent for a fortnight. It arrives in crushed containers and is too big, or two small. 

I've given up. Trying another place now. Up in Belfast. They ship on Mondays. And I couldn't order at the weekend because I've lost my cards security # :banghead:

I'm going with these Morio mealworms next. They reckon to keep them in the fridge? Try that.


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## Snowydinosaur (Aug 31, 2017)

In the fridge, yikes. That seems a bit out there but Im not sure at all, hopefully someone else can divulge. I would have thought that the cold would destroy the morios though?


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## el Snappo (Mar 4, 2017)

They sell them, so, they must know? My guess is that it sends them into torpor. Strops them pupating on ye.

I have So Many mealworm beetles here! Never do anything. Just be beetles. I'm assuming ye can't use the worthless, black things as food? Never heard of it.


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## Snowydinosaur (Aug 31, 2017)

Well I had a google and it appears it's not such a far fetched thing to eep them in the fridge. I wouldnt personally feed my girl the beetles because well Im too scared of doing anything wrong lol but I was reading online that people do in fact feed them to their adult beardies, usually as a treat, but theyre SUPER crunchy.


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## el Snappo (Mar 4, 2017)

Lo and behold! My great mate, Tom, turned up at my gate, this evening. Having moaned to him, yesterday, that I can't buy my toads any grub ~ my new puppy ate the security codes of Both my cards! ~ He somehow managed to get a tub each of crickets and mealworms airlifted in from the next county! Heroic! :notworthy:

Crickets went straight in with the toads. Worms are now in my kitchen. I want them to feed a bit, before I offer them. It's 63.5F, out there. 68.2F in here. Just looked and they're a seething mass.

I'll let them feed up, over night. Then fridge them. See what happens. These are Regular worms, by the way. Quite small ones at that.


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## el Snappo (Mar 4, 2017)

Good grief! :gasp: It's 64.0F as I type (Bloody parky, to be honest. Especially as ~ for health reasons ~ I'm sitting here with bare feet in open sandals!)

The worms though! I considered the kitchen cold enough, as was. I'm amazed! The worms are _still_ a seething mass. Not a pupae in sight. They've eaten a good top up of bran and, last night, I put a carrot in there. _It's almost gone!!!

_Message, to me, is loud and clear then; If ye want to mess about, trying to breed these things? Go ahead. 70+ degrees and ye'll have a shed load of beetles in no time :roll:

Me? Sod all that. From here on in, I'll buy a tub and keep them nice and cool. I haven't lost a worm. They're thriving like hell. And None lost to useless pupation! We live and learn, even at my age! :2thumb:


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## Snowydinosaur (Aug 31, 2017)

el Snappo said:


> Good grief! :gasp: It's 64.0F as I type (Bloody parky, to be honest. Especially as ~ for health reasons ~ I'm sitting here with bare feet in open sandals!)
> 
> The worms though! I considered the kitchen cold enough, as was. I'm amazed! The worms are _still_ a seething mass. Not a pupae in sight. They've eaten a good top up of bran and, last night, I put a carrot in there. _It's almost gone!!!
> 
> ...


:notworthy: You crack me up!!! I'll need to look into possibly getting a mini style fridge as there is NO WAY my husband would go for it otherwise lol.


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