# Powdered insects?



## Bugmankeith (Dec 9, 2021)

Is there such a thing sold as powdered insects?

Reason I ask, is injured or old mantids that can’t hunt properly I find love to eat chicken or Turkey baby food.

But if they made powdered insects you could just add water and make an instant insect paste to feed them instead.


----------



## The Wolven (Dec 9, 2021)

Bugmankeith said:


> Reason I ask, is injured or old mantids that can’t hunt properly I find love to eat chicken or Turkey baby food.


I find it a lot simpler just to cut up insects. I cut my dubia roaches in half for Mocha, hold them up to her mouth, and then just wait til she grabs them. If anything, just make sure to feed your feeder nutritious food. Heck I've considered just cutting off the heads of dubias (they're about the size of fruit flies) and feeding them to future nymphs. Older mantis can eat the rest of the dubia.


----------



## Bugmankeith (Dec 12, 2021)

The Wolven said:


> I find it a lot simpler just to cut up insects. I cut my dubia roaches in half for Mocha, hold them up to her mouth, and then just wait til she grabs them. If anything, just make sure to feed your feeder nutritious food. Heck I've considered just cutting off the heads of dubias (they're about the size of fruit flies) and feeding them to future nymphs. Older mantis can eat the rest of the dubia.


I find old wild mantids that usually don’t have too long to live and help them by feeding them inside, but I don’t have space to set up insect live food for only a few weeks because after I won’t need them. That’s why I use baby food


----------



## The Wolven (Dec 12, 2021)

Bugmankeith said:


> I find old wild mantids that usually don’t have too long to live and help them by feeding them inside, but I don’t have space to set up insect live food for only a few weeks because after I won’t need them. That’s why I use baby food


That's fair lol. So far any mantis I've found I end up keeping since I'm a sucker like that. That's why I personally need a fair amount of insects.


----------



## agent A (Dec 13, 2021)

they do make powdered insects, or you can buy dehydrated insects and grind them up

my concern is not only the moisture content but the way the insects were dehydrated. if they were freeze-dried, you're PROBABLY fine, but if they were heat dried, you may lose some of the protein content that a mantis would need

you'd want to make a paste with an accurate moisture content, which may be difficult. Honestly it's less of a hassle to just feed them live prey


----------

