cindy Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 I was surprised to see that my male Rhino Roach had gone through a molt not to long ago! I was digging them out to check on them, and he was all orange/yellow and it sort of worried me... But I am sure it is just that he molted. I got this pair from Dexter and Debbie of Double D's almost 2 months ago. I think they are just awesome! In the last picture, I like how the female looks like she is smiling! I wonder if she knows something I don't... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbrush Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 Great pics and nice roaches! They look big, and maybe not too far away from adulthood? Can you tell me more about how you keep them, please? I've got some 1" nymphs and am keeping them in a 2" - 3" depth of moist sand as recommended by AIF. But I have read so much contradicting information on the net, and really cannot be 100% sure. Some say they'll be fine, while others recommend very thin substrate so that there is no tunnels to collapse while the molt, which may result in death or deformity. How about food, temp, and humidity? My guess is that they'll be fine with a wide variety of substrates and environment, but I like to hear more about current keepers. Cheers Kenneth I was surprised to see that my male Rhino Roach had gone through a molt not to long ago! I was digging them out to check on them, and he was all orange/yellow and it sort of worried me... But I am sure it is just that he molted. I got this pair from Dexter and Debbie of Double D's almost 2 months ago. I think they are just awesome! In the last picture, I like how the female looks like she is smiling! I wonder if she knows something I don't... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roachboy Posted August 10, 2011 Share Posted August 10, 2011 I am jealous I've never seen one in person Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
makoygaara Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 Beautiful rhinos you got there Cindy. Yes she looks happy on the last picture. Smile for the camera! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindy Posted August 11, 2011 Author Share Posted August 11, 2011 Beautiful rhinos you got there Cindy. Yes she looks happy on the last picture. Smile for the camera! Thank you! I got a little worried about the male today, as he was sitting on top of the sub-straight all day, but talked to Zephyr, and we both think he was just drying out. He flipped over once, but now he is dug in again. I will check him in the morning to be sure he is ok. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbrush Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 Did you try a little spraying while he's on the surface see if he would drink at the water droplets? Mine do if they want water, and retreat to their burrows when they're satisfied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindy Posted August 11, 2011 Author Share Posted August 11, 2011 Did you try a little spraying while he's on the surface see if he would drink at the water droplets? Mine do if they want water, and retreat to their burrows when they're satisfied. I did spray him a little, but thinking he was trying to dry from his molt, I didn't want to do that so much. Thank you for your input! I have been thinking about your questions before, about keeping them. Since I am new at this, I am going by what a friend told me that had successfully bred a pair awhile ago. She told me to put them in a mix of about 60% sand, 30% pine bark mulch. Keep it wet enough for the tunnels to hold up. I test this by sticking my finger in the sand mix, and if it looks ok, I try and keep it at that wetness. I have about 2-3 inches of it, deeper at one end than the other where I put the food and water crystals. I spray twice a day, still making sure the hole my finger makes holds up. I don't know about babies... I guess if it were me, I would not give them that much depth. I worry they don't eat good, but they must be if he molted, and the female looks fine. She is big, so I am thinking she is adult. I bought a bag of eucalyptus leaves from Dexter and Debbie at Double D's. 15.00 for a bag, and it will last a long long time. They feed theirs that. I see they eat a little of it. I give mine romaine, carrots, and try other things, but it seems those 2 things I can see they nibble on. I also give them my hisser mix, that I make with fish pellets. I use a little strawberry protein whey and crested gecko food dry. I need more fish food sticks, as these seem to be a favorite for everyone. I have not tried it with the Rhinos. I wish you luck with yours, are there any photos of them??? I try never to disturb them, just about every 4 or 5 days I dig them out to see if everything is ok. They are simply awesome. I love how they try and dig a hole in your hand when you hold them! Their little spiky odd legs! I will post more, if I discover they ate anything other than the romaine and carrots. OH.. and of course, they get the oak leaves! Those I do see they munch on. Almost forgot that! They also seem to like rotted wood. I keep mine at room temp. No added heat. I hear they like it cooler. My place I keep them varies from 70-80 sometime 85! I plan to put them in the basement when we get that finished, just can't seem to bring myself to banish them to it just yet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
recluse Posted August 11, 2011 Share Posted August 11, 2011 Rub it in why dont you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbrush Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 Thanks for the info, I will take some photos while I rearrange their enclosure to 1/2" depth substrate. I have a feeling that they are not going to like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbrush Posted August 12, 2011 Share Posted August 12, 2011 It was too hot outside for a canyon run on my motorbike, so I decided to stay home to redo the substrate for my rhino roaches. One thing for sure, 3" substrate works (apart from the molting issues due to possible tunnel collapsing) since all 18 of them still alive after 3 weeks, I have got 12 from AIF, and 6 larger males from a friend who didn't want them anymore. Although I have never seen most of them since I throw them in, in fact, I have only seen 3 or 4 individuals a couple of times and the rest never show up while I am there. After I dug them up, they seem very active and alerting, so I guess they've been feeding very well. While I was digging them up, a lot of plant materials were found buried deep under the sand, so they probably have been collecting litters hard while no one is around, or maybe the big ones did all the work, while small ones just took advantage of it. I also noticed that they seem to like to group up, 2 to 4 of them would share a burrow. Larger ones would only share with small ones though, it looks like those large males prefer to stay away from each other as far as possible. I have also noticed that they dehydrate very fast. I have only kept them in another box for no more than 10 mins while I was thinning out the substrate, I try to minimize stress on them. But as soon as I throw them back, and spray a bit, most of them were running for water droplets. Another weird thing, I put about 30 water crystals at the bottom of one end of the tub to keep the sand moist. Since the substrate is always quite damped, I didn't expect them to eat the water crystal, but the water crystals were all gone. Well... they're not very happy with the new thin substrate though, hopefully they'll get used to it soon, 1/2" is still enough for them to get burrowed completely, so I hope it isn't too stressful for them. Here is some pics that I promised. I took this pic awhile ago, they were fighting for hours, and when I picked up my camera, they stopped, and then shared a leaf... IMG_0600 by macbrush, on Flickr One of the bigger males nibbling on some turtle food IMG_0637 by macbrush, on Flickr In the holding box while I was thinning out the substrate IMG_0676 by macbrush, on Flickr IMG_0677 by macbrush, on Flickr IMG_0678 by macbrush, on Flickr The odd one I got from my friend. I loved him though since he never burrow. While I was experimenting different kind of food, his presence (and alive!) assure me everything is fine underneath. IMG_0679 by macbrush, on Flickr Babies line up IMG_0681 by macbrush, on Flickr Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindy Posted August 12, 2011 Author Share Posted August 12, 2011 WOW!! You have a ton of them! You are so lucky!! Great pics.. Looks like in the last photo, some of your babies are getting ready to molt! You could do a gradual depth also.. a bit more on one end for the bigger ones.. I thought you only had little ones! Well, see how they do. I am sure they are not going to be super happy with just a thin layer. Maybe add a bunch of leaf litter for them. That would give them depth, while not as heavy as the sand is. They are beautiful!! now I am jealous! lol.. Have fun, and let us know how that goes. They like turtle food huh?? I will have to get some of that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbrush Posted August 13, 2011 Share Posted August 13, 2011 I ordered 9 of them, to share between my family, but AIF was generous and sent me 12. And then my friend gave me 6 of his smaller males as a birthday gift, I didn't even know he had had them (for 2 years!). Now I have a lot more males than females, Still thinking what to do with them when they grow up though. Not sure about the gradual depth idea though, since I know all of them will go to deeper end for sure. That will defeat the purpose of having a thin substrate. When I first throw them into the new substrate, they all burrowed. But I found them squashing themselves into corners of the tub when I woke up just now. Anybody know whether this is normal behaviour when there don't have a deep substrate? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cindy Posted August 13, 2011 Author Share Posted August 13, 2011 What is AIF? I meant to ask you that earlier! Well you are super lucky to have that many.. they are so rare, and extremely expensive! So good for you!! If you want to sell any, let me know! I don't know about the smooshing in a corner.. You may want to add just a bit more depth for them to feel comfy, or like I said, add some lighter material, like leaf litter or a mulch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macbrush Posted August 13, 2011 Share Posted August 13, 2011 AIF is Australian Insect Farm, they have export license for insects. And we don't have any import restriction on non-endangering insects in Hong Kong, a recognized species certificate (such as AIF's australian export document) attached to the package is suffice. They're not cheap, but considering how long they live, for the cost of a fine dinner, I think its very worth it. I'll probably listen to you and throw more leaf litter and mulch for them to hide. They didn't need that much of plant materials on the surface when substrate was deep, maybe I should just cover the whole suface with a thin layer of plant matters to make them feel comfortable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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