What do you do with your mantids during vacations?

[MintyWood826]

What the title says.

I'm going on a vacation soon and right now I'm thinking I'll bring them with since I don't have many, and it's a roadtrip.

 

[hysteresis]

We left the house for a couple days a while back. I put my cups in a fish tank with a clean wet towel. Gave everyone water to drink, and away we went. 

Longer than that, and i'd have to ask a friend to come tend.

 

[Sean_N]

For three or four-day weekends, we feed and hydrate them well, leave a little food in their containers, and make sure they have moist substrate/proper humidity (especially if we’re expecting molts or ooths). Anytime  longer, we leave them with a friend.

The biggest challenge we had was last December, when we went on a two-week vacation. We had 9 Carolina ooths inside an 8x12 Exxo Terra that were due to hatch in the Jan-Feb timeframe, and as far as I knew, they needed to have the proper amount of humidity as not to dry out. The subtrate could only keep moist for a day or two before humidity levels dropped low. So I made a small drip humidifier tailored to my container and tweaked it intil I consistently maintained the right humidity.

well, we either got lucky, or it worked (or it didn’t matter) because by mid-Jan, we started seeing our little nymphs come out

 

[hysteresis]

@Sean_N that's cool! 

 

[MantisGirl13]

For a few days, they are ok to be left alone, but I have a friend who can come to the house and check on them and such daily for longer vacations. All of my mantids come camping with me all summer long.

- MantisGirl13

 

[Jaywo]

I get a mantids sitter. A few days its ok.

 

[Mantis Lady]

Last summer I had only 2 mantids. I took them with me on vacation. But now I have more mantids that doesn't fit in a caravan, I need to find someone who wants to care for them. I know someone who would like to do it. We take care of their animals too when they are on vacation.

Maybe I will take a few with me. 2 weeks whitout mantids, nah

 

[MintyWood826]

For those of you who have taken mantids with you, do you just leave them in their normal enclosures? I'm going to be leaving in a couple days and I want to be sure I'm doing everything well.

 

[MantisGirl13]

For those of you who have taken mantids with you, do you just leave them in their normal enclosures? I'm going to be leaving in a couple days and I want to be sure I'm doing everything well.

It depends on what enclosures I have them in. I'm not gonna bring a 10 gal tank with me, but a net cage or smaller plastic enclosures are easy to pack and bring along.

- MantisGirl13

 

[Mantis Lady]

For those of you who have taken mantids with you, do you just leave them in their normal enclosures? I'm going to be leaving in a couple days and I want to be sure I'm doing everything well.

Mine are in plastic boxes turned into mantis homes. They stay in there if I take them with me. Their homes i put in a crate that is open at the top for journey.Filling it up with socks, sjawls and other small stuff againts moving in the crate.  Leave only a towel on top. Later they will be put on the table so I can see them and take care of them. Feeder insects I take with me too. But everything that I catch alive in the caravan I feed to my mantids too

 

[MintyWood826]

I just realized that I don't know of they spray/have sprayed for pests at the place we are staying at. I don't want to leave the nymphs alone though, so I'm stuck in indecision.

 

[MantisGirl13]

I just realized that I don't know of they spray/have sprayed for pests at the place we are staying at. I don't want to leave the nymphs alone though, so I'm stuck in indecision.

Are you staying outdoors or indoors? (Camping or hotel?)

- MantisGirl13

 

[hysteresis]

I cant imagine tenting with mantises.

 

[MintyWood826]

Are you staying outdoors or indoors? (Camping or hotel?)

- MantisGirl13

It's a cabin we are renting. I don't know if they would spray cabins so I'm probably being paranoid. At this point, I'm bringing them with pretty much for sure. I hope none of them decide to molt while we're driving.

 

[hysteresis]

If they are in their enclosures, I don't see what the fear is.

✌

 

[Mantis Lady]

It's a cabin we are renting. I don't know if they would spray cabins so I'm probably being paranoid. At this point, I'm bringing them with pretty much for sure. I hope none of them decide to molt while we're driving.

My mantids were fine after the drive and the way back too.

 

[MantisGirl13]

I think they'll probably be perfectly fine. If you are worried about pesticides, just don't feed wild insects to your mantids.

- MantisGirl13

 

[MintyWood826]

One of them molted before we drove and another the day after, so they had good timing not to do it during the drive back. 

 

[MantisGirl13]

Great! Congratulations on the molts!

- MantisGirl13