How to Care for Feeder Crickets: A Complete Guide
Crickets — they're loud, a little smelly, and one of the most popular feeder insects for reptiles, amphibians, and other insectivorous pets. At Thrive Ecosystems, we've kept and sold feeder crickets for years, and through a lot of trial and error, we've dialed in a system that keeps our colonies healthy, nutritious, and ready to feed. In this guide, we'll walk you through exactly how to care for feeder crickets — from housing and temperature to gut-loading and hydration.
Whether you're a first-time reptile owner or a seasoned keeper looking to optimize your feeder insect setup, this guide covers everything you need to know.
What Are Feeder Crickets?
The most commonly used feeder cricket is the brown house cricket (Acheta domesticus). These light brown insects have a 9-week life cycle and are a staple feeder insect for good reason — they're inexpensive, widely available, and offer a solid nutritional profile for reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates. They're high in protein and, when properly gut-loaded, can deliver a well-rounded meal to your animals.
Housing Your Feeder Crickets
Proper housing is the foundation of a healthy cricket colony. At Thrive Ecosystems, we purchase approximately 200 large crickets and 150 small crickets each week, and we house them in 66QT Sterilite bins (for large crickets) and 27QT Sterilite bins (for small crickets). These smooth-sided plastic bins are ideal because crickets can't climb smooth surfaces, reducing escape risk.
Substrate: We use dry vermiculite as our substrate. It's excellent at absorbing moisture and odor — two of the biggest challenges with cricket keeping. We replace the substrate monthly to keep things fresh and reduce ammonia buildup.
Egg Crates: Egg crates are essential for giving crickets vertical space and hiding spots, which reduces stress and cannibalism. We replace ours monthly as well, since they can harbor bacteria and mold over time.
Cleaning: We recommend cleaning the enclosure at least once a week, or between cricket shipments. A kitty litter scoop works perfectly for scooping out frass (cricket waste) and dead crickets without disturbing the live ones too much.
Pro tip: Remove dead crickets promptly. Decomposing crickets can release gases and bacteria that stress or kill the rest of your colony.
Temperature: Keeping Crickets in the Sweet Spot
Temperature plays a huge role in cricket health, metabolism, and lifespan. The ideal temperature range for feeder crickets is 70°F to 75°F (21°C to 24°C), maintained consistently day and night.
At temperatures below 65°F, crickets become sluggish, stop eating, and their immune systems weaken — making them more susceptible to disease. At temperatures above 85°F, they can overheat and die off quickly. Keeping them in that 70–75°F sweet spot ensures they stay active, eat well, and remain nutritious for your animals.
If your home runs cool in winter, consider placing your cricket bins in a warmer room or using a low-wattage heat mat on the side of the enclosure (never the bottom, as this can trap heat and cook the crickets).
Ventilation: Don't Skip This Step
Ventilation is one of the most overlooked aspects of cricket care — and one of the most critical. When crickets die inside an enclosed space, they begin to decompose and release gases that can quickly kill the rest of the colony in a cascade effect.
To prevent this, we install round insect vents into the lids of our enclosures. These allow for consistent airflow while keeping crickets contained. Mesh screen lids are another popular option. The goal is to ensure fresh air is constantly circulating without creating drafts or dropping the temperature too much.
Avoid using solid lids with no ventilation — even for short periods. A well-ventilated enclosure is a healthy enclosure.
Gut-Loading: Making Your Crickets More Nutritious
Gut-loading is the process of feeding your feeder crickets a highly nutritious diet 24–48 hours before offering them to your animals. The idea is simple: a well-fed cricket is a nutritious cricket. Whatever the cricket eats, your pet eats.
At Thrive Ecosystems, we make our own feeder insect food in-house, formulated to maximize the nutritional value of our crickets. You can purchase it directly through our website. For gut-loading, we recommend feeding crickets a mix of high-quality dry food (like our Feeder Chow) along with fresh vegetables like leafy greens, carrots, and squash.
Avoid feeding crickets citrus fruits, salty foods, or anything with high water content right before feeding, as this can cause digestive issues and increase moisture in the enclosure.
Hydration: Water Without the Drowning Risk
Crickets need hydration, but open water dishes are a death trap — crickets will walk right in and drown. The safest and most effective way to hydrate your crickets is with water crystals (also called hydration gel). These polymer crystals absorb water and release it slowly, giving crickets a safe surface to drink from without any drowning risk.
We use water crystals exclusively in our cricket enclosures and highly recommend them for any keeper. They're inexpensive, easy to use, and dramatically reduce moisture-related issues in the enclosure.
Quick-Reference Care Summary
- Species: Brown house cricket (Acheta domesticus)
- Enclosure: 27QT or 66QT Sterilite bins
- Substrate: Dry vermiculite, replaced monthly
- Temperature: 70–75°F
- Ventilation: Insect vents or mesh lids
- Gut-load: 24–48 hours before feeding with high-quality feeder food
- Hydration: Water crystals only — no open water dishes
- Cleaning: Weekly, or between shipments
Final Thoughts
Learning how to care for feeder crickets properly makes a real difference in the health of your animals. A well-maintained cricket colony means healthier, more nutritious feeders — and that translates directly to better outcomes for your reptiles, amphibians, and other insectivorous pets. At Thrive Ecosystems, we're passionate about making feeder insect care as simple and effective as possible.
Have questions about our feeder insects or supplies? Browse our store or reach out — we're always happy to help fellow keepers.
**Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. We may receive commissions for purchases made through links in this post, but these are all products we personally use and highly recommend.**