Thousands of species of Cockroaches exist, many of which get a bad reputation as household pests. So maybe to some folks just the thought of a Cockroach cohabiting in your home is enough to turn you off. But for those dedicated herpers who would like to add a little more variety into the diets of omnivorous and insectivorous Lizards, then this page may be of interest to you.
Blaberus discoidalisThe Above Photo will give you an idea of the various sizes of Roaches that can be offered to your Reptiles. From an adult breeder to a 1 week old nymph. Choosing the correct size of Roach is important.
The general rule is that the width of the Roach should be no more than 1/3 the width of the lizard's head.
The length of the roach should be under 1 1/4 times the length of the lizards head.
Feeding small prey will move through the digestive system quicker, therefore allowing more meals, which is healthier to feed than larger prey. Large prey that is not thoroughly chewed can take up so much room in the stomach of a lizard that it may impair breathing, and in the case of Bearded Dragons may cause hind leg Paralysis.
Once you have a Colony of roaches established, you will be able to choose from many sizes of Roaches, and often will often find freshly molted ones. A delectable food item for even the picky eaters.

HABITAT

A plastic tub, 15" long x 10" wide x 8" high, with a tight fitting lid will house 100 adult Roaches. Ventilation is achieved by cutting a 6" x 6" square hole in the middle of the lid and glueing aluminum window screen over the hole. To help prevent escapes, a thin smear of vaseline around the inside top of the tub can be applyed. This tends to be messy. I also find it unnecessary, if your using a deep enough container, and a tight fitting lid.
3"- 4" layer of fine landscape bark chips, Repti-Bark chips, or peatmoss may be used as a substrate so the roaches can burrow. Temperature should be maintained around 78F-85F.

The above method is what I have used to house the Blaberus discoidalis, Blaberus giganteus & Gromphadorhina portentosa it will also house the Blaberus craniifer

I'm currently trying a substrate of Pure alfalfa pellets, so far this seems to be working well, but spraying the pellets with water isn't advised.

Periodic cleaning of the entire substrate can be done by taking out all the roaches and transferring them to a clean tub with new substrate.  I  freeze the used substrate to kill off any roaches that I may have missed transferring and dispose of it.

Other housing methods such as aquariums may be used. Cardboard egg cartons can be placed in the container to increase surface and hiding areas. The most important aspect in housing Roaches is an escape proof enclosure. The thought of these things running loose in my house isn't appealing, but kept in their containers, they are actually quite an interesting pest.

FEEDING

Feed the Roaches chopped raw foods such as mustard greens, collard greens, turnip greens,endive, escarole, dandelion greens,  carrots sticks, squashes, apples, canteloupe, and semi moist dog food.
Roaches can consume alot of food, feed enough for one day, but don't overfeed.
Every 2 days you can lightly mist the bark chips with water for humidity, this also provides drinking water for the roaches. Don't over water, you will have rotten bark chips that need to be cleaned out more often. Not a fun job to do!

BREEDING

The Blaberus roaches will breed once they have their wings. It appears that the female will push an egg case out of her body and then pull it back in to reposition it. It also appears that they give live birth. Within approximately 1 month of observing egg cases, you will find baby roaches in the substrate. Babies can be housed with the adults or transferred to their own holding container.

Before you decide to house roaches be sure to check with your state or province Agricultural Dept. to see if they allow you to keep them, or if a permit is neccesary to keep them.
In Alberta, Canada you will need to get a transport permit from Agriculture, Canada to get the roaches, and follow the rules to prevent dissemination.

This page was originally designed by Laura Stinson in Alberta but dissappeared from the 'web so I am reproducing it here as she originally wrote it. She can be contacted at herps@home.com