Freezing and Thawing Crickets?

[Miss Roddam]

Hey, So Shandy my WTF is pretty greedy, but I do limit his food
The problem is; I suck at breeding crickets, even when they have their own big container after a week it smells horrid and every cricket is dead, I was wondering if I could buy two boxes of crickets for Shandy and freeze one box but keep the others in their tub? Would I just put the crickets in a tub and freeze them? How long can they stay frozen for (Wondering if they ever go off from being frozen for weeks?) Also would I be able to take them out and put them in a cup of warm water to defrost then feed them? Thanks in advance

[JeffreH]

Its typically not recommended to feed freeze-dried or F/T insects to herps for a few reasons. In addition to the decay of some vitamins and nutrients, the actual thawing process can leave insects pretty unpalatable to some herps. In addition, it eliminates the natural movement of insects that many insectivorous herps need for stimulation in order to feed and get some exercise... something I think is less importantly stressed than should be. There is something about an herp's natural reaction to a live insect that just seems "right."

I would recommend looking into another feeder to culture if possible. Feeder roaches are excellent staple insects and are effortless to breed. Soldier grubs (phoenix worms/calci-worms), earthworms, and silkworms all make fine staple items as well. We'll be happy to assist you in any breeding efforts or caring for your insects if you have any questions. Crickets are a pain in the butt = )

[Miss Roddam]

Thanks Shandy normally eats from tongs (Shop fed them from tongs) I have compost worms, are they healthier than earth worms? Thanks

[JeffreH]

Are you familiar with the species you are culturing for composting?

The term earthworm is used pretty loosely to describe a wide variety of species; but most commonly sold 'nightcrawler' and 'redworm/ red wiggler' species from pet and bait supply shops are safe to food... though the latter are known to excrete an unpleasant substance that some herps find unappealing.

[flybyferns]

Hi Claudia,
Jeff is right ! "Crickets are a pain in the butt" !!! And we are happy to help
I though I might try . Lets face it , we need live feeders for our tree frogs; we have no choice.

I'm sure you know that preparing for breeding them is very different then keeping them for feeders.
Keeping the cricket bin(s) -clean- IS a lot of work. The breeder bin, on the other hand, should be quite simple, easy to keep and never smelly.. until the little minis hatch.. That's when the work starts! Keep in mind ,a bin should not be over crowded.

The cricket/feeder bin should never "smell horrid". If it does, it simply means there are too many in the bin and the bin is not changed out often enough. It gets yuckie very quickly !

Here's a tip:
I feed 9 tree frogs. ( every night ). I have 4 cricket bins. I rotate them. 2 active w/crickets in them and 2 ( empty) for a 'cleaning' / exchange. Cleaning/exchange meaning .......once a week I set up the 2 clean bins and transfer the crickets. I may at the same time be adding a recent purchase of crickets.

I am actually doing a cricket bin cleaning today.
My dirty cricket bin is about a week old. It does not smell ( note: I do not feed my crickets fruit or vegetables, I purchase ready-made and make my own cricket food) If you keep egg crates and paper towel rolls in the bottom-- they will poop on that instead of on the bottom of the bin.

here are 2 dirty bins :
close up of a dirty bin

and 2 cleans bin waiting for the transfer:


I hopes this helps ?
Lynn

[Miss Roddam]

Thanks Lynn I never thought of that seperate bin idea I'm going to try it today Thanks everyone!

[JMDaniels]

Hey, So Shandy my Whites Tree Frog is pretty greedy, but I do limit his food
The problem is; I suck at breeding crickets, even when they have their own big container after a week it smells horrid and every cricket is dead, I was wondering if I could buy two boxes of crickets for Shandy and freeze one box but keep the others in their tub? Would I just put the crickets in a tub and freeze them? How long can they stay frozen for (Wondering if they ever go off from being frozen for weeks?) Also would I be able to take them out and put them in a cup of warm water to defrost then feed them? Thanks in advance

Hi Miss Roddam,

Although healthy crickets have a unique odor, it should not be putrid. If the crickets are dying within a week, that means that something is very wrong with the set up you are currently using. If you are new to breeding crickets, don't feel bad. Most of us had to learn through trial and error! I hope the following info helps you.

Crickets need a very well ventilated container in order to thrive...typically a secured screen / mesh top is essential. Also, there should be no more than 250 crickets per a 10-gallon space. Crickets are naturally territorial creatures and do not live together in large colonies in the wild. If you must house hundreds of crickets together, place several egg crates inside the container so that the crickets are not right on top of one another.

It is also very important to remove fresh food older than 24 hours, and any dead crickets or cricket moltings on a daily basis.