# Turkistan roaches



## heatherjhenshaw (Jan 30, 2010)

Im after a bit of info about Turkistan roaches from personal experience :2thumb: , I'm thinking of getting some for my crestie, Leo and rankins, maybe even starting a colony, they love their Dubais, but I want to make sure they aren't escape artists first :lol2:

I have a Dubai colony which is safely confined, I've also been breeding silkwormsand mealies successfully but when I had crickets they got everywhere and my elderly dad was not impressed :bash:, all the sites selling them say they don't escape but they would say that wouldn't they :whistling2:


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## joemorgz (Oct 29, 2009)

if u keep them the same as dubias then u will be fine, as they lay eggs then all u have to do is about once a week kleen them out colect up all the eggs and put them on top of a warm viv with a bit of damp tissue then about a month later u will have lots and lots of lil babys runing about


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## philipniceguy (Mar 31, 2008)

joemorgz said:


> if u keep them the same as dubias then u will be fine, as they lay eggs then all u have to do is about once a week kleen them out colect up all the eggs and put them on top of a warm viv with a bit of damp tissue then about a month later u will have lots and lots of lil babys runing about


if you keep them same as dubia your get loads of babies without any need of removing them and placing on a damp tissue so on. they are very good feeder roach, they breed quicker than dubia, they don't climb glass, they don't borrow so are out in the open making them easyer prey. only down side for me is they dont get as big as dubia.


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## heatherjhenshaw (Jan 30, 2010)

Well not being as big as Dubais would actually be a plus for me :lol2: as my lizards are all diminutive breeds, I haven't a clue what to do with my adult Dubais 

When you say 'they can't climb glass' is that specifically glass, or does the same go for a RUB as that's what I'd be keeping them in, with a ventilated lid (what I used to keep crickets in)


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## imginy (Jun 14, 2009)

These are definetely better at escaping than crickets plus they are much harder to catch and they live for longer.

If you found crickets a problem I would defo stay clear of these : victory:


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## philipniceguy (Mar 31, 2008)

heatherjhenshaw said:


> Well not being as big as Dubais would actually be a plus for me :lol2: as my lizards are all diminutive breeds, I haven't a clue what to do with my adult Dubais
> 
> When you say 'they can't climb glass' is that specifically glass, or does the same go for a RUB as that's what I'd be keeping them in, with a ventilated lid (what I used to keep crickets in)


they cant climb smooth plastic so 95% of rubs are perfect, but I made a mistake years ago got a new rub and the corners had ruff ish edges they climbed up it :lol2:, just make sure its smooth all the way round. most my animals need bigger food but I like the turkistan (red runners) as they just red things running around and around until they get eaten :no1:. you willn't regret using them if you do, just be careful when you clean them out you loose all the egg sacks so, don't clean unless it really is needed


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## mrhoyo (Mar 29, 2007)

If you use Turkistan roaches I would suggest watching your lizards eat to ensure every single one gets eaten. I've bred thousands of them; lizards love them and they're very quick to breed. 

The only downside with Turkistan roaches is that they can escape from vivariums by climbing the melamine / sealant. Once they're free in your house you'll be finding them everywhere. They shouldn't be able to breed but they can live for about a year. It took us a good 6 months after selling them off to stop finding them around the house. I think us treating the carpets with a pesticide helped.

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## heatherjhenshaw (Jan 30, 2010)

Ok thanks, I think I'll give them a miss if that's the case lol

My guys have Dubais, locusts, mealies & silkworms & I buy in waxworms (treat only) & butter worms. That'll have to be enough variety 

I bought in some calci worms too but they all turns their snouts up at those


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## mrhoyo (Mar 29, 2007)

The dubia roaches work much better for me, you can just feed the nymphs to your little lizards and the big ones can do the breeding. You could always try discoid roach nymphs or even banana roaches if your lizards are that small.

Calci worms are ignored by all mine too, they're rubbish.

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## heatherjhenshaw (Jan 30, 2010)

I looked at the banana roaches but they fly !! That was enough to put me off straight away lol


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## mrhoyo (Mar 29, 2007)

They do but they're also dead little and tropical 

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## imginy (Jun 14, 2009)

If your looking for a another roach to add variety try discoids because they are pretty much the same as dubia : victory:


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## mrhoyo (Mar 29, 2007)

imginy said:


> If your looking for a another roach to add variety try discoids because they are pretty much the same as dubia : victory:


How do you find them to breed? I'm after another colony but can't decide whether to get more dubia or discoids.

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## imginy (Jun 14, 2009)

mrhoyo said:


> How do you find them to breed? I'm after another colony but can't decide whether to get more dubia or discoids.
> 
> Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk


They can breed really well if you keep them on wood chippings but then they are a pain to clean out.

I personnally keep mine in with my dubia and they breed a bit slow but they do breed and help varry the diet for my bearded dragons.


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## philipniceguy (Mar 31, 2008)

imginy said:


> These are definetely better at escaping than crickets plus they are much harder to catch and they live for longer.
> 
> If you found crickets a problem I would defo stay clear of these : victory:


I disagree crickets are a real nightmare, always jumping out when your trying to catch them the smaller are not so bad but the adults make one hell of a noice if they out:bash:. the red runners are not good at escaping as long as you use the right tub (only smooth sides) keep the edges free from dirt aswell. If fed the correct amount to your reptiles they will eat them up very quickly as they dont hide away (or borrow) but if wanting to leave them inthe viv any small insect will get out (the gap between the glass) I always had crickets out that way, but cant say I found a single roach anywere in my house other than lobster roachs :bash::bash: f:censor:ing things :bash: never using them again the are amazing at breeding and amazing at getting out of anything :lol2:


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## mrhoyo (Mar 29, 2007)

imginy said:


> They can breed really well if you keep them on wood chippings but then they are a pain to clean out.
> 
> I personnally keep mine in with my dubia and they breed a bit slow but they do breed and help varry the diet for my bearded dragons.


I might give them a go if I can find any, haven't seen them for a while.

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## heatherjhenshaw (Jan 30, 2010)

Ricks live food has some :2thumb: 

Discoid Roaches | Roaches, Roach Food, Roach Substrate & Roach House Kit Large Dubia roaches sale now on!! | Ricks Livefood

I've ordered some to see if my fussies like them, if they'll live with the Dubais that'd be perfect


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## imginy (Jun 14, 2009)

Yes I keep dubia, turkistan, discoids and buffalo worms all together in 2 large 150litre plastic tubs. 

They all get on great together and all I have to do is throw in a handfull of food everyday and I have 4 different live foods to choose from couldn't be easier. 

Here is a couple of pics.


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## heatherjhenshaw (Jan 30, 2010)

:hmm: most interesting, mind you I'll be giving the calci worms a miss, my lot hate them :lol2:

Don't the Turks require a substrate ?


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## imginy (Jun 14, 2009)

heatherjhenshaw said:


> :hmm: most interesting, mind you I'll be giving the calci worms a miss, my lot hate them :lol2:
> 
> Don't the Turks require a substrate ?


There buffalo worms not calciworms and they help keep the roaches colonies clean plus they are great food for really small lizards but you have to avoid these at all costs if you keep crickets or locusts because they will eat there eggs and also I think they eat mealworm eggs as well but not 100% sure on that. 

As for the turks the only difference between dubs and turks is that turks will breed like crazy with high humidity but they will still breed well when kept at the relatively low humidity in with the dubia. 

There is guide I done a couple of years ago and I have changed things quite a bit since then and I have lots more of them now but the basic info is the same.... Might do a 2012 version at some point....
http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/feeder/552178-guineas-guide-roaches-lots-pics.html


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