Need Advice (Shedding Mishap)

[Krissim Klaw]

Yep, I need some advice on the probability of survival of one of my special needs mantises. A week or so back, I ordered some mantises, and one of them, a Texas Unicorn, didn't handle the stresses of shipping well. The poor guy arrived with several injuries. First off, one of his claws was missing the top half, making it useless for hunting. Thankfully his other claw was whole, though he was missing the arm/suction foot part of it that swings out for walking. Outside of that he was also missing the foot off of one of his secondary legs. Thankfully however both his back legs were still in working order and I was hopeful he would still be able to successfully shed and survive without too much trouble.

The little guy, aptly named Nubs, had a hard time walking forward and it took a bit of extra work helping him catch his food, but I managed to get him eating and all seemed like it was going good. Well today he finally shed and sadly things did not go as they should have. He cleared the skin fine but it appears when drying he must have maneuvered himself poorly and one of his back legs ended up completely twisted. It is now useless which leads me to what I need advice on. With one of his back legs crippled, will he still be able to shed in the future?

He is peppy but now his leg count has gone down to only one back leg and one secondary leg that are in complete working order and I fear there is no way he will be able to properly shed in the future. Does anyone have experience with mantises with only one good back leg shedding successfully? I must admit out of the seven plus years I've been raising up the little guys, this is the first missmolt I've ever had so it is all new territory for me.

He is acting so lively so I would hate to give up on him, but the thought of him suffering when it comes time to shed again is also very saddening. =(

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Update- Going to update this with some pictures for a better idea of what his back leg looks like. Sorry if they aren't the best quality but the camera I was using isn't exactly made for close up pictures of tiny little mantises.

In addition to the pictures I would like to note that after giving him a good looking over I am amazed at how much regeneration he had and improvement after molting. The missing foot on one of his secondary legs seems to have pretty much completely regenerated. The top part of his missing claw also had some major regrowth to the point it is basically a working claw again. O__O

So really now his only huge problem is the twisted leg. Anyways here are the pictures-

 

[darkspeed]

What instar is he??

 

[Birdfly]

It sounds to me when you say "missing" that these injurys happened before shipping and were a knock on effect, i would contact the shipper, explain what has happened and why and get them to send a replacement

 

[darkspeed]

While this may be true, and recieving a damaged mantis is something that should not be tolerated, the main point is to determine whether to hold out for the damaged mantis to get better or to euthanize it to prevent further suffering. My experience is that if the mantis is young enough when the limb loss occurs, they ususally regain those limbs in future molts. Some species may regenerate better than others, but I have seen limbs grow back to their full extent over the course of just a couple molts, including one with a hind leg that was gone completely. If you are worried that the next molt will be unsuccessful due to having a twisted hind leg, it may be best to snip it off and hope that a new one regrows.

 

[Krissim Klaw]

What instar is he??

Not exactly sure but I would guess 3rd-4th instar. My first time having this species so I'm not the best of judge, but from the top of his head to the tip of his but he would be about 1 1/4" to give you a better idea of his size. Clearly not Subadult so he still has a few molts ahead of him. I'm not worried about whether he will regrow his limbs or anything, just his chances of being able to successfully survive his future molts. As for the twisted leg, and snipping it that was my other concern. It isn't bothering him now, but with as messed up as it is I fear it will get stuck in his next shedding. I'm going to take some pictures and post them in a bit to let everyone see the twisted hind leg and see what everyone suggests.As far as euthanizing him, I wont be at this point. He isn't an any pain as far as I can tell, can still cling and move around although he isn't going to win any marathons. I also have no doubt he'll still be able to eat. Really for me it is just a matter of giving him the best possible chance to survive his future molts, while mentally preparing myself for the chance I may have to euthanize him to quicken his passing if the next molt does not go well and he falls, gets stuck, or any other number of problems.

Birdfly- This is an extra freebie mantis. I only ordered one Texas Unicorn Mantis, but was sent two. The other one arrived in perfect condition and shed a few days earlier without so much as a bent antenna. Thus I already got the mantis I paid for. Still despite Nubs injuries I have gotten attached to the little guy and want to give him the best life and chances at survival possible.

 

[Krissim Klaw]

Just wanted to let everyone know I updated the 1st post with pictures and a bit more info. ^__^

 

[Krissim Klaw]

Update- Just wanted to let everyone know that Nubs finally shed a few days back and not only did he make it through fine but his crippled leg is nearly completely healed. It is still a little warped but he has about 95% usage out of it and can now do things such as firmly plant his foot on the ground. His future is looking much brighter now. ^_^

 

[bugzilla]

Good news then

One of my Texas unicorns has lost both of his back legs, I'm not overly confident of this guy making it

 

[Krissim Klaw]

Oh, I wish him the best of luck. It's always nerve wracking when you know it all counts on that next molt. About drove myself crazy waiting for Nubs to hurry up and shed. I hope everything goes fine with yours. It might be a long shot, but mantises can be downright amazing in their recovery sometimes.

 

[acerbity]

I've had all of the above mis-sheddings with my texas unicorns, and then some. I had one that had its whole thorax bent like a question mark, leaving his raptorial claws way out to his sides and completely unable to catch anything, not to mention messed up back legs as well. I lovingly named him "little retard" and fed him by hand, expecting to just keep him alive until he had to shed again since he wasn't in pain. Then surprise, 3 molts later he is now a perfectly shed female!

 

[macro junkie]

Good news then One of my Texas unicorns has lost both of his back legs, I'm not overly confident of this guy making it

i have 5 of them..there all 5th instar

 

[mantidsandgeckos]

My subadult ghost is about to shed in a day or two to adult but it only has 1 working back leg and the other does not have a foot.It does not have 1 middle leg and the other does not have a foot too.Hope it will make it...