# Firebrat care



## FrankWilliams (Apr 10, 2004)

Has anyone had any success culturing firebrats? If so what are you doing to keep them 90 degrees or so. I have the PBS Live Food book, but would like to see what people over here are doing to culture them. Thanks.


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## Heika (Oct 14, 2006)

I am not familiar with the PBS livefood book, can you provide a link?

I keep a few cultures of producing firebrats. I keep them at the 90+ degree range by using heat tape controlled with dimmer switches on the outside of gallon sized glass jars. A good thing about the glass jars is that they can't climb out if you don't fill the jar with substrate. I keep an inch or two of charcoal on the bottom of the jar with water.. more charcoal than water level. This keeps the humidity about right. I place a circle of screen over the charcoal and water, and then fill the jar up to about 3/4 of the way with shredded brown paper. The jars I use have plastic threaded lids, and I cut out the center on them and used a glue gun to cover the hole with screen for ventilation. I feed mine a tiny bit of oats or cream of wheat every few days.. I don't put in a whole lot at a time because I don't want it to mold. I supplement once a week or so with some fish food in the cultures that I don't plan on feeding out right away. To add water, I just push the paper to one side and put some more in without getting the paper wet. To feed, I push the paper to one side, shake the jar and the paper until some fall loose from the paper to the space that I have made, and then slide them out of the jar into a cup where I can dust them before feeding. Mine are fairly productive.. it goes in spurts. Not many people keep them, so it is all trial and error. I feed mine to leaf chameleons.. mine don't produce enough to be more than a supplemental feeder, but they love them. 

Heika


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## stchupa (Apr 25, 2006)

If you breed crickets, in a sense kill two birds w/ one stone (potato :wink: ) by keeping the brats w/ the egg breeding containers as they are incubating. The substrate w/ the eggs gives them plenty of moisture to thrive. They help keep it rather 'clean' as well. All you need is to throw a little dry food in an open space of the container. Some non-bleached paper towel or even nylon mesh for extra hides can be used if you like, but not neccessarily neccessary. They do need a completey dry space at all times, and never "wet".

You should be able to keep them all warm enough to breed by simply placing them on top of a light fixture. Might as well make use of any byproduct. Don't waste your money on heat tape if you can accomodate them w/ what you already have, but are not using.

They are very simple to care for, in fact I give them little to no attention. Though if you want to feed them regularly you will need a decent sized culture. I cubic ft. culture would be enough to treat your frogs (up to 20 or so) every couple weeks w/out dwindling an established culture. This is also why I don't bother to culture them seperate because it would be a waste of time/money/space to do so. But w/ crickets they're just an addition that I don't have to care for.


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## Peter Keane (Jun 11, 2005)

PBS = Professional Breeders Series... I think it's a Chimera (sp??) series book... Peter Keane


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## stchupa (Apr 25, 2006)

Chimera? A hybrid book, huh.


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## KeroKero (Jun 13, 2004)

The books are available thru a number of retailers, and I know Black Jungle keeps them in stock. 

Of the people I've talked to that keep them, its basically the same deal, hot, dry, and they can be somewhat slow. One thing I've noted from a European site is the generation time is up around 6 months... patience is a virtue.


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