Shannon's  Chow  Recipe

This simple, moderate protein feeder chow can be fed to feeder roaches, superworms, mealworms and crickets.  This is not meant as a daily chow for roaches, and should be fed along with a rotational diet of veggies, and the occasional oranges.  You will need a standard household blender, a one cup measuring cup and a spoon.  In order to blend this chow into  powder, blend it in small one cup batches, stirring down to the bottom frequently.  The chow is a blend of the following ingredients:
  •     FRM brand fish food pellets
  •     Layena layer crumbles
  •     Mazuri Guinea pig food
  •     Alfalfa powder
  •     Orange juice powder
  •     Probiotic powder
  •     Banana nut cheerios
Blend ingredients together until they are blended into a fine powder:
  •     1 cup floating fish food - 32% protein
  •     3 cups layer crumbles - 16% protein
  •     5 cups guinea pig food - 18% protein
The remaining ingredients comprise 10% (or one total cup) of the total ingredients. 

The Merck Veterinary Manual states the protein intake for carnivore reptiles should average 18-20%.  Keep this in mind when you make your own chow, and also do some independent research on roaches' ability to store large amounts of uric acid.  Realize that gout is recently being associated with a feeder diet high in roaches who are fed a high protein diet, and more information is probably going to be published in the future, as this is concerning. 


Kim  and  Amanda's  Chow  Recipe

We never make it the same way twice, just put it together some of this, some of that,  no measurements. The main base is the calcium fortified cracked corn mash. Use a blender or food processor and grind to fine powder.  We  grind ingredients then mix well in a 5 gallon bucket, we make about 1/2 of a bucket of chow at a time.

  * About 3 cups Cracked Corn Mash fortified with calcium for laying hens.

 * About 1 cup 100% alfalfa rabbit pellets which are fortified with  vits, minerals and many trace elements.

    *About 4 cups any store brand of cereal. We use the store brand Honey Nut Cherrios but have used Frosted Flakes. All are fortified with vits and calcium.

    *....and the secret ingredient,  any stale dry food in the pantry or cupboard we have at the time we're making  chow such as crackers, cookies, croutons, mashed potato flakes, pretzels...whatever is dry and not greasy. No measurements available. Just add your stale dry food.

Occasionally we will add some protein in the form of fish flakes or dog food or cat food to a batch but not often as we feed a mainly grain diet to our roaches.

Of course we want nutritious roaches for our dragons. With almost every ingredient  being fortified with vits and/or minerals we don't add any to the chow. In relation to their body size the roaches get more than enough vits, minerals and extra calcium supplements from the ingredients.
Repashy research article about roach metabolism and storing uric acid and how this affects your reptiles.
Rio Reptiles roach chow recipe.