Isopod breeder caters to reptile feeders

Bryan Wachsman was a cannabis industry consultant focused on bioactive soil when he learned about isopods and their role in the decomposition of organic matter. He founded Rubber Ducky Isopods in 2020 to sell kits with live isopods to breed as food for reptilian pets, or just to keep their terrariums in order.

An order that includes woodlice (a.k.a. roly-poly bugs), isopods are crustacean invertebrates with segmented exoskeletons and seven pairs of jointed limbs. Wachsman named his Parker-based company after one of the more colorful species.

Rubber Ducky Isopods sold its first kits, about $200 worth, at a reptile show in Castle Rock in May 2021. But the company steadily gained traction with a coast-to-coast market, and it’s now a full-time job for both Wachsman and his wife (and the company’s CFO), Natassa. The market is 80 percent reptile feeders and about 20 percent isopod enthusiasts, a.k.a. “bug nerds.”

Some species of isopods can grow to about four inches in length over a two-year lifespan. Feeder isopods usually sell for just 5 cents, but Wachsman focuses on quality over quantity. His emperor bee isopods are the catalog’s most expensive: $50 each. “The pricing is usually based on how long it takes to breed,” says Wachsman. “In my little world, $250 is nothing when they just bought a $10,000 snake.”

In Wachsman’s basement, the breeding operation now includes “millions” of isopods from about 150 species, many of which are native to the jungles of Vietnam and Thailand. “I try to replicate that the best I can in a basement in Parker with a bunch of kids screaming,” he laughs. “Each different world has to be dialed in.” Wachsman feeds isopods dried shrimp shells and leaves, meticulously controls heat and humidity, and ships them with a guarantee in case of any mishaps en route.

Travis Thurow started buying isopods for his numerous pet reptiles from Rubber Ducky in early 2023. The Commerce City-based infection preventionist wanted to build healthy ecosystems in his enclosures. Now he has more than 1,000 isopods representing 20 species. The reptiles eat some, but others burrow into the soil. Thurow and his son are now breeding isopods himself, and says the little critters “are like pets as well.”

Thurow credits the Wachsmans for their customer service. “They’re honest people. They teach you what you need to know. They really have gotten a lot of people involved in this. They even help competitors.”

That collaborative philosophy is catalyzing Rubber Ducky Isopods. Wachsman’s motto? “The only business is repeat business.”

Online: www.rubberduckyisopods.com