Having problems keeping crickets.

[Lastb0isct]

Hi all,
I ordered 1000 crickets from LLLreptile and got them about a week ago. I got a rubbermaid and threw them in there fed them a bunch of lettuce and carrots and everything was great. I have been taking out 12 or so a day and today when i went out there to get some i couldn't find any live once . I fed them twice the whole week, should i be feeding them everyday? What type of environment do they need to be in, i kept them in my garage in the rubbermaid. Also what type of surfaces should i put in the rubbermaid? Please help, as i want to be able to buy in bulk and not pay the high prices of local pet stores. Thanks
-Derek

 

[AFH]

Where are you? Crickets die off faster at colder temps. They need to be in the 80's.

I had the same problem. I got a heating pad and put it underneath the tote and it seems to keep them alive longer.

 

[LaserGecko]

Check your temperatures, as AFH mentioned. Also, lettuce has virtually no nutrition at all.

Be sure the container is ventilated well, too. They don't like being in the stench of their own poo any more than we do.

I experienced a huge dieoff reduction when I added an additional water source via water gel crystals. Even though they had all the food they could eat in various forms, having the water gel in there almost eliminated day to day dead loss with no danger of drowning.

 

[Dave Legacy]

What's the age of the crickets? If they're adults 5-6 weeks they're just about at the end of their lives anyway. This is why I always buy 4 week.