We ship Monday-Thursday with UPS from Georgia depending on your location.
Live Crickets tend to die in a warehouse over the weekend. All guaranteed
shipments will be released to shipping only if the package can avoid
the weekend wait.
|
Shipping chart to determine if your order will ship
if placed before 2:00 EST |
| Shipping Method |
Mon. |
Tue. |
Wed. |
Thu. |
Friday |
| Ground |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes* |
No |
| 2nd Day Air |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
No |
| Next Day Air |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
Cut-off time for same day shipping is 2:00 Easter Standard Time.
* Only for Ground orders shipped to Georgia, Alabama, and South Carolina
What does shipping cost? Add
item to the shopping cart and click on 
Winter Time
If your or our (See Forecast Below) night time temperatures fall below 50 degrees and is above 30, the winter packing option is required for the products that have the Live Delivery guarantee.
If your or our (See Forecast Below) night time transit temperatures fall below 30 degrees and you want the guarantee - do not place an order for Crickets. We will ship your order, but not guarantee the order.
If your shipment arrives DOA, we now charge a small $4.95 Order Reprocessing Fee for your reshipment.
Our only intention is to deliver a live product to you. We appreciate your understanding and working within our policies.
Summer Time
When the transit temperatures go above 95 degrees, we may elect to hold your order until the temperatures are cooler.
Our Weather Forecast
Cricket Care Sheet
Now that you bought your crickets from Premium Crickets, how do you keep them alive? You should plan to keep your crickets for around 1 month to get the maximum benefit from your purchase. Here are a few tips, questions, and answers that will make feeding your reptile with Premium Crickets a breeze.
Where should I keep my crickets?Crickets have some characteristics of people – their like their own space. That means you can’t keep them in the shipping box that we provide as their permanent house.
I recommend to people to go to Wal-Mart, Target, or Home Depot and purchase a plastic storage tote (see pictured):
You can poke holes in the top for ventilation. The top really is not necessary until the crickets start growing wings – which is just after they reach ¾”. If you get a container that is at least 2 feet high then no top is necessary. Deeper the better
Choose a clear plastic container – clearer the better. We found the clear containers are slipperier and the crickets cannot climb out.
Open your box of crickets INSIDE the plastic tote. If you do not then you will surly have a house full of crickets. You have no idea how many first time buyers of bulk crickets make that mistake.
Pull out the egg crates that are inside the cricket-shipping box and place the crickets and the egg crates together in the plastic tote.
Throw a hand full of cricket feed on the bottom of the plastic tote and a small plate full of cricket water – and you are in business.
How do I remove the crickets from the storage container to feed to my reptile?A good trick that I found is to place a toilet paper roll in the container. Crickets like extra space and a good hiding place so they will happily go inside the roll. Just pick the roll up and transport your crickets to your reptile cage. This is a good trick for those of you who don’t like to touch crickets. The pros don’t really care – they just scoop up a hand full and toss them in the reptile cage.
How long do crickets live?It takes 42 days to produce a full grown cricket. Once they are full grown, they generally have two to three weeks before they pass on.
When do crickets begin to chirp?Some people get annoyed with the sound of chirping crickets. The chirping begins when they grow beyond ¾” in size and start developing wings. So if you do not want to hear the chirping, order smaller crickets.
Why do my crickets smell bad?The crickets do not smell bad - it is the bacteria that cause the odor. What causes bacteria to flourish? Rotting food and dead crickets.
What rots? – All the food that you throw in the cricket cage – like potatoes, carrots, etc.
What should I feed my crickets?Try our cricket food. It does not rot and has all the vitamins and most minerals needed to produce a fully ‘gut loaded’ cricket. We have our cricket food specially blended and grounded to achieve an ideal growth rate and gut load for our crickets.
Other food sources work, but not as well. If you do not want our food, go with oatmeal, corn meal, and/or dog food. You can use a potato, however it's full of starch and not a good food supplement.
You also need to provide a water source for your crickets. The cheap way is a wet sponge or paper towel. However, keeping the sponge clean can be a challenge over time. Paper towels dry out quickly.
What is the ‘Cricket Water’ that you sell? We sell our cricket water in a dehydrated form. When you get your bag of cricket water, add the contents to 1 gallon of water. Stir for about 15 minutes and you will see it turn into a ‘jello’ form. It is the same stuff you buy at the Pet Store – just no fancy label. Scoop a small amount on a small plate (or jar cap) and change out every 3 days. It makes watering your crickets a snap.
Do I need to refrigerate the cricket water?No, you do not. I carry around the same cricket water to reptile shows for people to see for over two years. The cricket water should be stored in a cool location. If it goes dry, simply add some more water to rehydrate.
Why do I need to ‘dust’ my crickets with Calcium? (Rather than feeding them with Calcium)Many people make the mistake of trying to ‘gut load’ their cricket with calcium-supplemented products (like cricket water, etc.). Here is the problem – a cricket has an exoskeleton. That means their skeleton is on the outside of their body. Too much calcium makes their skeleton brittle and they cannot molt it off as they grow to their next stage of development. Premature death is the result.
We sell a high-grade calcium product that you can use to coat your crickets prior to feeding to your reptile. We recommend that you dust your crickets with calcium every other feeding.
What else do I need to consider?- Crickets should be kept at 70 degrees or better (find somewhere inside your house)
- Crickets and fly strips do not do well together – the fly strip wins.
- Crickets are very sensitive to chemicals. They are hearty, but weak to chemicals like paint, new carpet out-gassing, and of course – bug spray.
- Clean your cricket cage out every week.
- Have fun!