A colony here starts at around 800 females and 300 males, and a single tote can run 15,000 to 25,000 babies. Here is how the rest of it works.

How does a dubia roach colony start?

Ours start at around 800 females and 300 males. Females do the producing, and males kill each other, so the ratio starts lopsided on purpose.

From there it takes time. A colony has to reach adulthood before it gives you anything to sell.

How long does a dubia colony produce for?

Ours produce for roughly six to nine months once they reach adulthood, then taper.

That number shapes everything else we do. It means a farm is always running colonies at different ages, and it means you cannot answer a big order by starting a new colony. The bugs you order today were planned for months ago.

How often are feeder roaches sorted by size?

We sort whole totes every 30 to 45 days, by width.

Sorting is the real work of a feeder farm. Roaches grow continuously, so a tote left alone becomes a mix of every size at once. Sorting on a cycle is what makes it possible to send a keeper the size they actually ordered. The sorters do the deciding: a bug drops through the first hole it fits.

Why are feeder roaches sorted by width rather than length?

Because width is what a reptile has to swallow. A roach goes down sideways.

We sell by length because that is how buyers think about it, and we sort by width because that is what matters to the animal. Six sizes means smaller steps between them.

Why would a feeder farm hold bugs back instead of selling them?

Because a colony you sell down stops producing. We keep back a portion of every size rather than shipping all of it.

This has a cost, and it is worth being plain about it. It means we sometimes have less to sell than someone asked for. We would rather come up short in a month than sell a colony down.

What happens to orders when the weather turns hot?

We hold orders when it hits 85 degrees. Heat is the fastest way to lose a box of feeders, so we wait for a better day.

On warm days that are still workable, we add extra bugs at no charge, and we tell you before the box goes out. We also check the rules for your state before we take your order, because rules on live insects change from state to state.

How can I tell a feeder farm from a reseller?

Ask about the colonies. A farm can tell you how one starts, how long it runs and how often it gets sorted. Somebody reselling what arrived that morning cannot.

Ask us any of it. None of it is secret. Send a request through the site and put the question in the notes.