Madagascar Hissing Roaches For Sale - Free Shipping
Table of Contents
How do we ship Madagascar Hissing Roaches?
Our Madagascar hissing roaches are packaged in breathable mesh bags. These bags are packaged in perforated cardboard boxes. These boxes are then delivered with the post office. If you're concerned about cold temps in the winter, we recommend having the package held at the post office for pick up. However, the Madagascar hissing roaches will handle cold temps better than crickets.
How do we package them?
We package them to handle a 3-4 day transit. This means that they are packaged in breathable mesh bags, which is then placed in perforated cardboard boxes.
Inside the mesh bag is an egg crate. Male Madagascar Hissing Roaches can be territorial, so it's important that this egg crate be provided to help separate the aggressive male Madagascar roaches.
When do we ship Madagascar Hissing Roaches?
Madagascar hissing roaches are shipped Monday - Wednesday. You can read more about our shipping schedule here.
What are Madagascar Hissing Roaches used for?
Pets?
That's right. Madagascar hissing roaches are a popular pet for exotic pet owners. They are easy to care for, and popular for pet owners who enjoy similar exotic pets like tarantulas and scorpions.
Madagascar hissing roaches originate from Madagascar. Their natural preference is decaying wood and forest foliage. A roach pet parent will want to keep their madagascar hissers in a 5 or 10 gallon container, with peat moss as the bedding material. They will eat vegetation like lettuce or carrots, which is where they also obtain their moisture. And just like the weather in Madagascar, they will do best in 75 - 85 degrees F.
Pet food - Nutrtional Value
Madagascar hissing roaches can add some unique variety for your insectivorous diets. Because of their larger size, they are ideal for larger pets like tegus, frilled dragons, monitor lizards, and large frogs like pixies and pacmans.
Some important knowledge regarding these hissers is that they have poor calcium-to-phosphorus ratio. As we learned previously, most insectivorous pets need 2 parts calcium to 1 part phosphorus ratio. Naturally, Madagascar hissers have a 1 part calcium to part phosphorus ratio. This is not ideal for any reptile. So be sure to dust your Madagascar hissers with calcium powder before offering them as a snack.
Madagascar hissers do have an optimal amount of protein for reptiles. But they are also light on their fat content. So be sure to supplement their diets with superworms or BSFL.
Here is the protein, fat, calcium-to-phosphorus count:
- Protein: 64%
- Fat: 20%
- Calcium: 2.5 g/kg
- Phosphorus: 9.3 g/kg
- Ratio: roughly 1:4
Why do they Hiss?
Madagascar hissing roaches will hiss when they feel threatened. If you're handling them, it's common that they will hiss when being removed from their habitat. They will also hiss as a defense mechanism. These roaches are not fast moving, and can be easy prey. Their ability to hiss is their only defense mechanism in the wild.
The males will also hiss to attract females. Whatever floats your boat!
Nutritional value
Madagascar hissing roaches are like a prototypical roach with an abundant amount of protein for your pet. However, their exoskeleton is loaded with more fiber, which makes them more difficult to digest. And their calcium-to-phosphorus ratio is also not ideal. So it's important to dust your hissers with calcium powder before offering them as food.
How to care for Madagascar Hissing Roaches?
Whether you're keeping them for food or as pets, you'll want to keep them at about 75 degrees Fahrenheit. This temperature will help them adapt to their new environment and consume more food.
Madagascar hissers do not have wings. But instead, they've evolved into excellent climbers and can climb glass walls. If you are keeping them in a 5 or 10 gallon glass habitat, you'll want to apply petroleum jelly to the upper part of the container. They will not be able to cross the petroleum jelly barrier, which will prohibit them from leaving the habitat.
They are like every other roach species and will want hiding spots. Egg cartons or any other type of plastic container will act as good shelter.
Food
Whether you are using them as food, or pets, you'll want to feed them the same. They enjoy fresh fruits and vegetables, and will get their hydration from their food source. Check the food every day to see if it grows mold. Mold will wipe out a colony, so its important to clean out the moldy food from bins.
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Conditional Live Delivery Guarantee
The Conditions
- Customer must be home to receive delivery. Or package must be held at Post Office.
- Destination temps must be 45 degrees F or above. No exceptions.
- Customer must provide correct shipping address.
- Applies to paying customers only. Winners from the CritterFam contest are excluded from the guarantee.
If the conditions for the Live Delivery Guarantee are met, Customer must do the following:
- Send us pics of the deceased. Pics can be sent to contact@thecritterdepot.com
- We must be notified within 24 hours from the moment customer receives package.
If conditions are met, we will ship a replacement package free of charge.
Shipping In Winter - Full Disclosure
- We will not ship when Destination Temps are below 25 Degrees F
- Live Delivery is Not Guaranteed when Destination Temps are below 45 Degrees F
If you are ordering crickets, superworms, or any other live product during the winter, you need to be realistic: we’re trying to ship a live product through sub 30 degree temperatures affordably.
We take extra measures during the winter to try and increase their chances of survival. However, history has proven that customers are 4x more likely to receive perished crickets when shipped in the winter. This is fact.
Shipping in the winter has always been our biggest challenge. And every other crickets vendor has the same problem. No one wants to send you dead crickets. We want to provide you with excellent service, because we know you care about your pet. But the reality is we can’t control the weather. And there’s only so much packaging we can do before we have to increase our costs.
We still have success shipping in the winter.
If you decide to order for a winter delivery, here's what you can do on your end to ensure you receive happy, healthy live products:
- You MUST be home to accept the delivery. The live product cannot be left outside in the freezing temperatures, or it's certain they won't survive.
- If we ship with the Post Office, we highly highly highly recommend that you communicate with your post office. And that you ask them to hold the package for pick up.
- If there is a problem, we must be notified within 24 hours of receiving the live product.
We only ship Live Products on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays
Before YOU and every other customer collectively sends us disgruntled emails on Monday asking where your order is, please know that we only ship live products on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays. And this isn't because we're lazy. It's because we need to be proactive, and make sure the live products don't get stuck in transit over the weekend. If they get stuck over the weekend, there is an increased probability that they will not survive the transit. And perished animals in your mail box don't do either of us any good.
When Will My Order Ship?
Great question. In fact, it's too great of a question. This question makes up 80% of our incoming emails! And all we can think of in the office is what better things we could do with that time. So here's the nitty gritty breakdown for when your order will ship:
- If order was placed on a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, or Saturday then your order will be shipped on the following Monday.
- If order was placed on Sunday, or Monday then your order will be shipped on Tuesday.
- If order was placed on a Tuesday then your order will be shipped on Wednesday.
And please know that these shipping schedules can change depending on Post Office holidays. But if you still have questions about your shipment, please do not hesitate to email us as contact@thecritterdepot.com.
Ok Bug-Boy. But What about The Tracking?
Great question. We will upload tracking information within 36 hours after the order has shipped. So if your order ships on Monday, the latest we would update tracking information for your order is by Wednesday morning.
And What About DOA's?
DOA's (dead on arrival) are a part of the business. It's not profitable for us to send out deceased animals. So please know that we take every possible precaution before shipping.
But we care about our customers, because you're the ones putting us in business. And we guarantee live delivery as long as specific conditions are met. So if your order does not arrive alive, please let us know. As long as conditions are met, we will have another order reshipped free of charge on the next shipment date (this excludes winter reshipments, which will be reshipped at our discretion).
We Ship with The Post Office and with FedEx
We ship with the post office for a few reasons.
- They keep their packages inside their climate controlled buildings. This is a game changer. Instead of leaving the packages out on a dock, they are brought inside the building. Which can drastically increase the survival rate for the crickets and superworms.
- They Deliver on Saturdays. Since they deliver on Saturdays, we're able to ship on Wednesdays. Most packages are delivered within 2-3 business days. So if we ship on Wednesday, that 2-3 day window falls in the same week, which avoids any Sunday transit delays.
- Cost Effective. And one reason why we're able to keep our prices so low is because we use the post office. USPS Priority mail is a great, and reasonable priced service. And any savings we gain, we pass right back to the customer.
The post office is our preferred shipper. But depending on your proximity & time of year, we may upgrade your shipping service to FedEx for these reasons:
- The Post Office is unreliably slow during holidays. The drawback with the post office they don't guarantee delivery dates. They will advertise 2-3 days for their Priority Mail shipments. However, the don't guarantee you package will arrive in 2-3 days. And this becomes painfully obvious during the holidays, specifically between Black Friday and New Years. Which puts us in a tough spot because our preferred shipper with climate controlled facilities is no longer dependable. So we'll ship with FedEx for this reason.
- Faster Shipping/Shorter Transits. Faster shipping and shorter transits have obvious benefits. The live product will get delivered faster, and in a preferred habitat. And FedEx does guarantee their delivery dates, which is beneficial for the customer.
Unfavorable Shipping Conditions
Temperatures are a big consideration when packaging and shipping live products. And at any time, we may decide to postpone deliveries if we feel the live product will not survive the transit. If that is the case, we will make our best effort to contact the customer so that can make other arrangements if desired.
But if the temperatures are too cold, we can package the crickets with heat packs. And if they are too hot, we can package them with cold gel packs. But these alone doesn't guarantee live delivery.
But either way, we need to keep a close eye on the weather when we get into the extremes. So please keep that in mind when expecting deliveries.
Winter Shipping Policy
- We will not ship when Destination Temps are below 25 Degrees F
- Live Delivery is Not Guaranteed when Destination Temps are below 45 Degrees F
If you are ordering crickets, superworms, or any other live product during the winter, you need to be realistic: we’re trying to ship a live product through sub 30 degree temperatures affordably.
We take extra measures during the winter to try and increase their chances of survival. However, history has proven that customers are 4x more likely to receive perished crickets when shipped in the winter. This is fact.
Shipping in the winter has always been our biggest challenge. And every other crickets vendor has the same problem. No one wants to send you dead crickets. We want to provide you with excellent service, because we know you care about your pet. But the reality is we can’t control the weather. And there’s only so much packaging we can do before we have to increase our costs.
We still have success shipping in the winter.
If you decide to order for a winter delivery, here's what you can do on your end to ensure you receive happy, healthy live products:
- You MUST be home to accept the delivery. The live product cannot be left outside in the freezing temperatures, or it's certain they won't survive.
- If we ship with the Post Office, we highly highly highly recommend that you communicate with your post office. And that you ask them to hold the package for pick up.
- If there is a problem, we must be notified within 24 hours of receiving the live product.
Remember...
Dead crickets or superworms don't do you (the customer), or us (the cricket grower) any good. So let's work together to ensure your live product survives the transit.
We can only ship Live Products on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays
We want to get your products delivered quickly just as badly as you do. But the reality is that shipping live products isn't the easiest task. And that means we have to be disciplined and strategic when we ship. Otherwise, there's an increased probability that perished crickets will show up on your doorstep. And that doesn't do any good for the customer or shipper.
We Ship with The Post Office and with FedEx
We ship with the post office for a few reasons.
- They keep their packages inside their climate controlled buildings. This is a game changer. Instead of leaving the packages out on a dock, they are brought inside the building. Which can drastically increase the survival rate for the crickets and superworms.
- They Deliver on Saturdays. Since they deliver on Saturdays, we're able to ship on Wednesdays. Most packages are delivered within 2-3 business days. So if we ship on Wednesday, that 2-3 day window falls in the same week, which avoids any Sunday transit delays.
- Cost Effective. And one reason why we're able to keep our prices so low is because we use the post office. USPS Priority mail is a great, and reasonable priced service. And any savings we gain, we pass right back to the customer.
The post office is our preferred shipper. But depending on your proximity & time of year, we may upgrade your shipping service to FedEx for these reasons:
- The Post Office is unreliably slow during holidays. The drawback with the post office they don't guarantee delivery dates. They will advertise 2-3 days for their Priority Mail shipments. However, the don't guarantee you package will arrive in 2-3 days. And this becomes painfully obvious during the holidays, specifically between Black Friday and New Years. Which puts us in a tough spot because our preferred shipper with climate controlled facilities is no longer dependable. So we'll ship with FedEx for this reason.
- Faster Shipping/Shorter Transits. Faster shipping and shorter transits have obvious benefits. The live product will get delivered faster, and in a preferred habitat. And FedEx does guarantee their delivery dates, which is beneficial for the customer.
Unfavorable Climates
Temperatures are a big consideration when packaging and shipping live products. And at any time, we may decide to postpone deliveries if we feel the live product will not survive the transit.
Often, the live product will only survive extreme temps if they are held in an air conditioned post office for pick up. At any time, we may have the package marked "Hold for Pick Up." In these situations, the package will be held for pick up and the customer will need to make arrangements to pick up the live product.
But if the temperatures are too cold, we can package the crickets with heat packs. And if they are too hot, we can package them with cold gel packs.
But either way, we need to keep a close eye on the weather when we get into the extremes. So please keep that in mind when expecting deliveries.
