Question: Cockroaches: Good staple?

[ZephAmp]

I thought this would be a good way to tackle my delayed introduction and ask an odd question.
I've been raising multiple species of cockroaches both as pets and as feeders for my animals. They contain 33% more protein than crickets, are easier to digest, and easily bred.
I've used them countlessly for my other amphibians (clawed frogs nowadays, barking tree frogs, fire-bellied toads, american toads, and wood frogs in the past.)
I was wondering if they would be okay as a staple diet for my axies. I've been feeding them on a mix of earthworms, fish fillets, and roaches and I've already got 8 inch long adults after 7 months of having 2 recently metamorphosed larvae. I've heard that earthworms are the ideal food; These can be hard to find and expensive around here, and my axolotl's tend to get the runs when I feed them with these. Calcium and nutrients aren't a problem; I have a special gutload feed that contains all of these that I feed my roaches with before I use them as feeders.
Just wondering.

 

[Darkmaverick]

I guess since you breed your own roaches and ensure their health/ nutritional composition, they should be ok as a snack for your axie. However, im terrified of roaches and have absolutely no desire to handle them in any way that doesn't involve squishing them.

 

[John]

Captive cultured cockroaches are considered second to none as far as nutrition goes.

 

[Otterwoman]

Really? Regular cockroaches, or those madagascar ones? I have a friend that keeps offering me madagascar babies to feed my newts, and I keep declining...because they're roaches.

 

[ZephAmp]

Well, that answers my question.

 

[SludgeMunkey]

I am a recent convert to Lobster Roaches, thanks to the folks on here. I find them to be easy to raise and superior to crickets. However, my cultures are so new, I have not began feeding them on a regular basis to my critters yet.

 

[ZephAmp]

Really? Regular cockroaches, or those madagascar ones? I have a friend that keeps offering me madagascar babies to feed my newts, and I keep declining...because they're roaches.

There are roughly 8 species used as feeders.
The young of hissers can be used as feeders, but they don't have the same nutrient content as other species.

 

[blueberlin]

Ok, as the stupid child of this family I will wager the question: Don't y'all worry about the roaches escaping and infesting your house/building?

-Eva, child of the swamps and sworn enemy of roaches

 

[Nathan]

The roaches used as feeders are tropical species, and must have supplemental heat to survive and reproduce. They soon die if they escape into the home (unless you live in the tropics, of course).

 

[ZephAmp]

The roaches used as feeders are tropical species, and must have supplemental heat to survive and reproduce. They soon die if they escape into the home (unless you live in the tropics, of course).

Coincidentally, it's more of a one-two punch. Both the lack of high temperatures and the dryness of homes will do in most species of roaches.