Moonlight mantids

[KevinsWither]

I have no idea but is moonlight mantids still around? I tried going to the website but it sadly shutdown for some reason. And I tried messaging him but he seems to be gone. Any ideas where he could of gone? 

 

[proserpina]

I was wondering the same thing. The website has been gone for a few weeks and I have him on Facebook but it seems he's also inactive there. It's a shame, his videos on mantises were part of what reeled me into the hobby.

 

[CosbyArt]

Well Kevin was having some major issues with orders/customers, read some of his feedback, and hired a customer service rep awhile back to help mediate. Not sure what happened at the moment though.

A look at his website's domain, see record here, shows he renewed the domain January 13th (a few weeks ago) for another year. If he has disappeared from Facebook and not responding elsewhere either though, it sounds like he likely called it quits. Otherwise, he would at least still be on Facebook or reachable, at least logically speaking.

 

[hibiscusmile]

Do yourself and us a favor, stay away from him if u find him.

 

[Sarah K]

Do yourself and us a favor, stay away from him if u find him.

Couldn't have said it better myself!

 

[KevinsWither]

I'm still trying to find a source for some nice exotic mantids.

 

[proserpina]

I'm still trying to find a source for some nice exotic mantids.

I get mine from breeders here on the forum, have you tried looking at them?

 

[KevinsWither]

I have tried posting but no luck.

 

[crabbypatty]

Yeah I would stay away from him. Tried once, never again. Never responds on Facebook either, but comments from people there are not good.

 

[sschind]

I would think the video posted in his feedback thread (link provided by CosbyArt) would be enough to make anyone stay away from him but I suppose a lot of people subscribe to the "it wasn't me so its OK" theory of doing business.

 

[crabbypatty]

@sschind a lot of ppl starting out don't immediately sign up to the forum and so they don't know who is a good breeder and who is going to rip them off. Anytime someone asks me about my pets I'll let them know to sign up here right away and join a keeper page on Facebook. I'll refer them to trusted sources that I've used as well. I had someone help me out and he recommended this place after I had a bad experience with moonlight mantids. It's a tight knit community and everyone knows each other, I wish I'd known right from the start to come here. 

 

[sschind]

@sschind a lot of ppl starting out don't immediately sign up to the forum and so they don't know who is a good breeder and who is going to rip them off. Anytime someone asks me about my pets I'll let them know to sign up here right away and join a keeper page on Facebook. I'll refer them to trusted sources that I've used as well. I had someone help me out and he recommended this place after I had a bad experience with moonlight mantids. It's a tight knit community and everyone knows each other, I wish I'd known right from the start to come here. 

Oh for sure.  I wasn't making any sort of insinuation.  I knew him for a while before the video came about and I would have purchased from him myself prior to being aware of it.  I agree, newcomers are not always privy to the same information that those of us with more experience in the hobby may have.  I certainly wouldn't fault someone for buying from him if they were not aware of this video.  My comment was meant for those who have seen the video and either ignored it or made comments like "he sent me some great mantids so I'll continue to buy from him"  I'm not saying anyone here made those types of posts but I did see several on other forums where the video was posted.

 

[crabbypatty]

@sschind I've always wanted to see the infamous video, but it was removed. I heard it was really bad though, haha. As for my mistake, you live and learn. Thankfully I didn't spend a lot of money my first time. 

 

[sschind]

@sschind I've always wanted to see the infamous video, but it was removed. I heard it was really bad though, haha. As for my mistake, you live and learn. Thankfully I didn't spend a lot of money my first time. 

I did not know it had been removed.  I saw the link and just assumed it was still viable.   Its a shame because it really exposed a very dark side of him and he did seem to have some very good videos regarding mantid care.

 

[crabbypatty]

@sschind I guess it had to be removed because of foul language, plus I think I saw somewhere that he reported it. He has great care videos, he should stick to that. 

 

[Jessie]

At least i learned from him instead of using coconut fiber i could use a paper towel instead which is good for my allergies.

 

[Kermit]

I saw the video recording. It was a vulgar rage / rant left on one of his customers  voicemail  that  was trying to get an update  on a mantis they had ordered  for their  young child .  The child was very anxious  and  the time elapsed was excessive .  I believe Kevin the owner of moonlight mantids  basically  snapped  and left  the most horrific foul-mouthed  message .  The customer  videoed it and posted it on YouTube  and it basically went viral  on Facebook and the mantid Forum .  It was so damning  that  it was eventually removed .  Obviously  this was not something  that  was possible to recover from .  It appears that this was the final demise for his business.

 

[crabbypatty]

@Kermit Oh yeah that sounds pretty bad. 

 

[proserpina]

I saw the video recording. It was a vulgar rage / rant left on one of his customers  voicemail  that  was trying to get an update  on a mantis they had ordered  for their  young child .  The child was very anxious  and  the time elapsed was excessive .  I believe Kevin the owner of moonlight mantids  basically  snapped  and left  the most horrific foul-mouthed  message .  The customer  videoed it and posted it on YouTube  and it basically went viral  on Facebook and the mantid Forum .  It was so damning  that  it was eventually removed .  Obviously  this was not something  that  was possible to recover from .  It appears that this was the final demise for his business.

Wow  :blink:  That sounds horrific. I didn't purchase any mantises from him though I was getting ready to, after reading this and the feedback thread I'm so glad the site went down before I could actually buy anything from him.