palegothicangel Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 hi, i'm new so this is my first post. my names eva i'm from england. i just got myself some hissing cockroaches, i first looked online for info on keeping them, as you do before getting a pet, and thought i'd got it all down. i got my babies the otherday, they still have a lot of growing to do. i read that they are truely herbivores, only eating fruit and vedge and either cuttlefish or egg shell for calcium. but i've tried apple pinapple peach pear bannana sweet potato and cucumber over the last week and they seem to have only had a small nibble at the apple. on here there's people saying feed them dry dog food, but surely they wouldn't eat anything like this in the wild especialy if they are not meat eaters? it was suggested i get some of the insect feeder fruit jelly crystals. if anyone on here has found what they like best it'd be greatly apreciated. i don't want to kill them before they're full grown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
recluse Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 hi, i'm new so this is my first post. my names eva i'm from england. i just got myself some hissing cockroaches, i first looked online for info on keeping them, as you do before getting a pet, and thought i'd got it all down. i got my babies the otherday, they still have a lot of growing to do. i read that they are truely herbivores, only eating fruit and vedge and either cuttlefish or egg shell for calcium. but i've tried apple pinapple peach pear bannana sweet potato and cucumber over the last week and they seem to have only had a small nibble at the apple. on here there's people saying feed them dry dog food, but surely they wouldn't eat anything like this in the wild especialy if they are not meat eaters? it was suggested i get some of the insect feeder fruit jelly crystals. if anyone on here has found what they like best it'd be greatly apreciated. i don't want to kill them before they're full grown. I have sustained my colony for about four years now on almost nothing but carrot and unmedicated chick mash. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt K Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 I have large colonies of many types of hisser roaches, and they all get fed the same things: Apple, carrot, mixed green leafy vegetables, pellet fish food, and occasional other fruits or squash. If you only have a few they will not seem to eat very much at first. Make sure thier enclosure is not too large for the number of roaches you have as they like to be a little on the crowded side. There should be a water supply by either misting them periodically or from direct application. Temps should be (upper 70's to low 80's 'F) which is (26 or 28'C ??). Roaches also enjoy some ventilation.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palegothicangel Posted July 1, 2008 Author Share Posted July 1, 2008 thank you for your replies there's 6 of them (each is 1"- 1 1/2" ) in a 15" by 8" 10" clear plastic box with about 80 2.5mm holes drilled round the top edge filles with 1/2 cm of grit then 3" of a mix of composts and molched oak/bramble/birch/elder leaves and a few grass seeds in the corner for hiding in with a 4" by 10" rotted (not mouldy just soft with the bark comming off) apple branch and a 8" by 2" birch branch at the back and some cork bark in the corner. they also have a natural sponge in a small 2" dish that's damp and i've been spreying them once every 2 days to keep it moist because it's been so hot here. it stays fairy humid in there because of the soil. i've been leaving the food in for 3 days because it's so hot this summer it goes of after that. but i've been leaving it in the same place so they know where it is. like i said they have been eating it just doesn't seem like that much. carp pellets are mostly plancton and very small creatures dried and powdered aren't they? i'll try them with it and see if they like it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allpet Roaches Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 I have kept hissers successfully since 1980 and have used dog food as the primary diet. The guy I got them from used Monkey Chow. Nice to have you aboard! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arachyd Posted July 1, 2008 Share Posted July 1, 2008 I haven't raised any hissers yet but I do have quite a few dogs. If you read the ingredients on most of the less expensive brands of dry dog food you will find various grains listed as the primary ingredients it isn't unusual for roaches to do well eating dog food as a big part of their diet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palegothicangel Posted July 2, 2008 Author Share Posted July 2, 2008 abroad sound so odd... lol! ooo exotic england where you get mugged by passing hedgehogs england or at lest the bit of it where i live is bland.... this is my photography page.... me where i live: harlow harlow don't have any pics of my new pets yet but here's some of my other ones: stick insect: stick me and rats taken by a mate: ratties my rosy boa (hdr) : rosy boa me and my royal (ball) python taken by chiledcoder: royal python Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt K Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 My roaches live in a bin. On the bottom is about 5cm of bark bits. Then there are egg cartons for them to climb on or hide under. All that soil and branches seem to get messy over the long run, but it can be made to look nice and less utilitarian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
palegothicangel Posted July 3, 2008 Author Share Posted July 3, 2008 My roaches live in a bin. On the bottom is about 5cm of bark bits. Then there are egg cartons for them to climb on or hide under. All that soil and branches seem to get messy over the long run, but it can be made to look nice and less utilitarian. i had to make it look fairy nice because they are in out living room with all our other pets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brunoboy Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 i had to make it look fairy nice because they are in out living room with all our other pets. I keep my hissers in an aquarium in my living room, too. The are in the space of my 'entertainment center' precisely where the TV should be. ha HA I love them. Hissers are nocturnal and this can make it seem like they never eat--------especially if you have a small amount of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darla Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I'll tell you mine LOVE Cherrios. That's the first thing to get eaten. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 As a treat white bread moistened with water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hell-Spawn Posted March 19, 2009 Share Posted March 19, 2009 Do you cut up the carrots? What about the cheerios - do those get mashed up? My dwarf hissers don't seem to care for the carrot chunk I threw in there, but they did take nicely to romaine lettuce, dried leaves from the yard, and apple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrSnake Posted April 14, 2009 Share Posted April 14, 2009 Do you cut up the carrots? What about the cheerios - do those get mashed up? My dwarf hissers don't seem to care for the carrot chunk I threw in there, but they did take nicely to romaine lettuce, dried leaves from the yard, and apple. Wanna see them pig out? Put in some Honeycomb cereal! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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