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- Sep 17, 2004
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- 3,783
I've had trouble in the past (and I've seen several posts about) keeping crickets alive for very long. It seemed that almost all the crickets I bought would die within a week at the most and I'd end up wasting money and have to go back to buy more.
I think I've finally figured out a way for someone with a smaller collection (like myself) to keep them long enough to get your money's worth. I'm only buying crickets every few weeks now and when I buy smaller crickets they live for around 3 weeks or so.
The best thing, though, is that the smell seems to be all but gone. Even when I open the lid to get a cricket out, I don't smell the usual "cricket smell."
Here's what I've been doing. If anyone has any suggestions or advice that could help me out even more, I'd appreciate it.
I use two different containers, one for my small crickets and one for my large. I just used two containers I had around the house (one is a margarine tub) and made holes in them.
In the containers, I put several pieces of egg carton, an OJ lid for water bites, and a yogurt lid for dry food.
For water, I've tried just using water and I've also tried using potatoes and/or apples. The potatoes and apples go bad quickly and my crickets still kept dying. The water dries up quickly and I'm usually too busy to keep checking on it (I'd rather focus on my Ts). My solution was to buy "Fluker's Calcium Fortified Cricket Quencher." It lasts for at least week in the lid and doesn't cause too much moisture in the tub. I've been using the same container of it for about 6 months now, so it does last a good while.
For dry food, I've been using grits (http://www.grits.com/discript.htm) which are cheap and we usually keep them in house anyways. I sometimes use plain oatmeal. I put them in the yogurt lid, but as the crickets move around they usually get out of the lid and only the floor. Works just fine, though.
One thing I've found that makes them live longer is making sure to change the egg cartons and clean the container each time you get new crickets. Everytime we buy eggs I save the carton and cut it up so I can use it later. I've tried leaving the same egg carton in the container, but my crickets didn't last as long and began to smell after a week or so.
I hope this can help someone who is having the same problems that I've had. I know this probably doesn't work well for someone with a large number of spiders, but for a small collector (I have 18 and it works well) it seems to work. This has saved me money and has been very inexpensive to maintain.
I buy 50 or 60 crickets at a time this way
Does anyone else have any ideas that have worked well for them?
I think I've finally figured out a way for someone with a smaller collection (like myself) to keep them long enough to get your money's worth. I'm only buying crickets every few weeks now and when I buy smaller crickets they live for around 3 weeks or so.
The best thing, though, is that the smell seems to be all but gone. Even when I open the lid to get a cricket out, I don't smell the usual "cricket smell."
Here's what I've been doing. If anyone has any suggestions or advice that could help me out even more, I'd appreciate it.
I use two different containers, one for my small crickets and one for my large. I just used two containers I had around the house (one is a margarine tub) and made holes in them.
In the containers, I put several pieces of egg carton, an OJ lid for water bites, and a yogurt lid for dry food.
For water, I've tried just using water and I've also tried using potatoes and/or apples. The potatoes and apples go bad quickly and my crickets still kept dying. The water dries up quickly and I'm usually too busy to keep checking on it (I'd rather focus on my Ts). My solution was to buy "Fluker's Calcium Fortified Cricket Quencher." It lasts for at least week in the lid and doesn't cause too much moisture in the tub. I've been using the same container of it for about 6 months now, so it does last a good while.
For dry food, I've been using grits (http://www.grits.com/discript.htm) which are cheap and we usually keep them in house anyways. I sometimes use plain oatmeal. I put them in the yogurt lid, but as the crickets move around they usually get out of the lid and only the floor. Works just fine, though.
One thing I've found that makes them live longer is making sure to change the egg cartons and clean the container each time you get new crickets. Everytime we buy eggs I save the carton and cut it up so I can use it later. I've tried leaving the same egg carton in the container, but my crickets didn't last as long and began to smell after a week or so.
I hope this can help someone who is having the same problems that I've had. I know this probably doesn't work well for someone with a large number of spiders, but for a small collector (I have 18 and it works well) it seems to work. This has saved me money and has been very inexpensive to maintain.
I buy 50 or 60 crickets at a time this way
Does anyone else have any ideas that have worked well for them?