Skinny abdomen: how long does she have left?

[utterbeastage]

she's coming up for a moult soon and I need some ingenious way of getting her to eat ANYTHING before it or she'll die during , or shortly after for sure.

She's extremely skinny, and has refused my homemade fly paste , I even tried honey and soup of the day , mashed morio.

(yes I KNOW it's flying foods only, I've raised her from L1 to L8, but anything is better than nothing)

how long do you reckon she has before she dies if she doesn't eat ?

 

[Rick]

She doesn't look that bad really. Get an insect and crush part of it. Make sure some juicy part is sticking out. Using tweezers or forceps put the juicy part to her mouth. If she starts eating she should eventually reach up and grab it. I have some bark mantids that I have to hand feed like this. They won't catch anything on their own.

 

[utterbeastage]

She doesn't look that bad really. Get an insect and crush part of it. Make sure some juicy part is sticking out. Using tweezers or forceps put the juicy part to her mouth. If she starts eating she should eventually reach up and grab it. I have some bark mantids that I have to hand feed like this. They won't catch anything on their own.

believe me I've tried , I tried crushed bluebottles but she just pushes it away , even back when she was L5/6/7 she never responded to any handfeeding at all , she struck at a moth I caught by chance last night and I'm waiting on some arriving tomorrow.

(Someone from RFUK kindly mailed me them three days ago but tomorrow will be the fourth day I've waited for "first class" delivery)

as long as you dont think she looks bad that's fine , only thing im worried about is the dtrength she'll need for her final moult , if she pulls through I'll go insane

 

[Rick]

Her wing buds don't look swollen at all so I think you have time before the molt. Just make sure she is hydrated if they like water. I dont' know much about these so am not sure if they like it dry.

 

[utterbeastage]

Her wing buds don't look swollen at all so I think you have time before the molt. Just make sure she is hydrated if they like water. I dont' know much about these so am not sure if they like it dry.

they love it dry , you only have to spray just before a moult , I'll give a droplet on a tweezer a try.

 

[Rick]

they love it dry , you only have to spray just before a moult , I'll give a droplet on a tweezer a try.

Maybe try a drop of honey too. I would make sure she is warm enough as well. Have you tried a living moth or butterfly? Few mantids can resist the flapping of their wings.

 

[utterbeastage]

Maybe try a drop of honey too. I would make sure she is warm enough as well. Have you tried a living moth or butterfly? Few mantids can resist the flapping of their wings.

no chance Ill get my hands on either of those unless I order them in , those waxworms seem to have disappeared in the post , I've ordered some next-day delivery for tomorrow, so that's all I've got