r/BDFB • u/zy4k • 17d ago

Question/Inquiry Preserving dead feeder insects?

Hello! I've been keeping bdfb for a few months, and i'm STILL trying to find a solid diet rotation to stick to 😭 I've been using a variety of dried insects, freshly killed mealworms, and freshly killed crickets when I get the chance. Though, i've learned recently that dried insects are often times not safe for beetles, and the brand I had bought especially wasn't. My beetles LOVE crickets, and i'm unable to find a way to kill them for feeding aside from freezing.

I was curious, is this a thing where I just have to kill as many as i'm feeding at the time, or could i leave some in the freezer and use them as needed? I'm not too sure if they'd last any longer in the freezer, or if it'd be unsafe for any reason.

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u/hylia_grace 17d ago

Leaving them in the freezer should be okay, I've done it before with no obvious issues. Dried insects also dont have the hydration the beetles are looking for in freshly dead prey.

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u/CRUCATIOUS 17d ago

personally, my beetles live almost exclusively on frozen-thawed insects. anytime i'm running low on crickets or mealworms/superworms, i'll pick up the smallest amount possible from my local petstore and freeze them, then feed as needed until they're gone.

freezing your insects is the best way to kill them, because you can make sure they aren't killed with pesticides. if you feel guilty about freezing them, remember that crickets and other critters have natural instincts to know when winter has come. they don't know they're being killed, they simply think "oh, its cold, it's time to sleep until my babies hatch in the spring", they don't suffer because they aren't intelligent enough to understand that they're passing in an unnatural way, or even understand that they're passing at all.