How to Stop Crickets Escaping from a Reptile Enclosure?

Crickets are great jumpers and often avoid being eaten when released into the reptile enclosure. This can be a problem for your reptile as they can nibble on limbs whilst your animals sleep at night. If they establish in the reptile enclosure, their poo can make the enclosure unhygienic.

Preventing crickets from escaping into the enclosure is the first instance is the best defense. Below are some tips to prevent escapees into your enclosure:

• Feed crickets one at a time using reptile tweezers.
• Remove the reptile from their enclosure and place it into a plastic container with high sides. Add the crickets to the container so the reptile can eat all the crickets in one sitting. Then place the reptile back into their enclosure.
• Use commercial feeder insect dispensers. Place a hand full of crickets into the dispenser and they escape through a hole on the side. Most lizards quickly learn to sit at the hole and pick them off one at a time.

Crickets that have escaped into your reptile enclosure, can also escape into your home. The most common pathways for this are:

• Electrical and cord holes.

• Gaps at the corners of reptile enclosure

• The ventilation holes in many commercial reptile enclosures are designed to allow air flow for the reptile, however they are often large enough to allow small crickets or pinheads through.

Preventing crickets from establishing in the first place is preferable, however if they are well established you may need to clean the whole reptile enclosure to remove all crickets, and then block up or screen all holes/ventilation ports. Ventilation holes can be blocked using silicon or tape. Some reptile stores sell insulated tape which also has the benefit of reducing heat loss.

Click here to learn more about how our methods can help you breed crickets with less effort.