r/BDFB

Where should I get the beetles from?

There’s a local reptile store that said he can order them for me, doesn’t carry them regularly.

Our local Petco has them in store.

Online sellers? How do they ship and keep them alive? Seller recommendations that aren’t insanely expensive for shipping?

What do you feed your beetles, specific brands and or links appreciated.

I’m scared of feeding them the wrong thing because I see so many accidental pesticide exposures especially with washed fruits and veggies. Or the food source exposing them to parasites.

Hello I noticed today my beetle wasn’t moving and I haven’t seen him move in a week or so, I blew on him and nothing. No reaction, I then poked him and flipped him over. Once again nothing his bottom of his butt is kinda black but I’m hoping it’s just a fluke.

Bottom line is he dead? :(

I know they arent BDFBs but they are also desert beetles with similar care, right? I have four Smooth Pinacate (i think) and 1 Diabolical Ironclad. Any tips?

I had 11 black/smooth death feining beetles for 1year and 2 months-- ((((I had caught them from my yard))))
I just realized seven of my beetles escaped this past week through a crack in the plastic enclosure

… Today I decided I would release the remaining four... as I was cleaning the food out of the container I noticed something moving… A LARVAE

IT'S THE FIRST ONE I'VE SEEN IN THE CONTAINER THIS WHOLE TIME!!

I got sad and went and grabbed three of the four I just released. One of them is out there exploring somewhere.
Anyways, I feel a lot more encouraged to continue taking care of them now that I know they are still breeding normally

I've separated FIVE LARVAE into a separate container now-- wish us luck -- and I'm open to any advice on maintaining the babies in their separate container👽❤️✨

Hello! I currently have two female BDFBs, and i've had them for just under a month now. I've done research on their diet and believe I have everything necessary, but I was wondering just how often to feed them?

I've been putting a bit of their regular food mix in, a few fresh killed mealworms/shrimp/crickets (i swap occasionally), and when I have it, some veggies. I let it sit for a day or two before swapping it out, however sometimes they don't touch their food for up to two days (noticeably, at least).

I also live in an area where it's difficult and expensive to get vegetables from stores (I live about 30 minutes away from the nearest grocery store), and salad mixes and vegetables don't always last that long. They're also super picky with vegetables, and so far they only seem to be a fan of carrots. I'm gonna try out some beetle jelly and see if they like that, as i'm worried about their hydration levels.

So, how often should I feed them, and how often should they get vegetables? I assumed it was with every meal, but I don't want to over feed!

I have an old aquarium that got all set up but never actually got the fish in it (the fish died before we could put it in the tank) but we had put plants and there were some mystery snails that hitchhiked on the plants and lived in there for a couple months. Basically, I want to know if I can just wash off the gravel and let it dry really well and put it back in the tank to set it up for some BDFBs or if that would cause problems health wise for them?

Hello all! I have mostly everything down for them except for their substrate and lighting. Everyone here is recommending playsand as a substrate but I noticed two people say not to choose that because it wears the beetles out because it’s something they’re not used to. I’m thinking of doing a mix of clay burrowing substrate and topsoil? Someone here said that as long as it’s not plain topsoil I don’t have to worry about it, but my concern is what if I don’t add enough sand and they burrow into the soil? I’m going to get a 10 gallon tank that’ll be 12 inches tall.

For heating I’m thinking of getting basking light + infrared lighting kit as well as a heat mat due to the fact I live in Alaska and it gets cold in my room.

Hello! I plan on getting these guys but theyre currently unavailable in the UK, I want to make them a beautiful landscape and have plenty of driftwood and sandstone. My idea was to make a cave chamber with two entrances out of foam board, then build up the canyon out of driftwood and sandstone using super glue and foam clay to get everything into place. However my concern is they chew through the foam cave chamber and escape into the inside of the canyon.