Strange behavior, help please

MrsHaas

MrsHaas

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My Florida ivory millipede has been laying on top of the substrate on his side in the shape of a C for hours now with his legs flailing randomly about. I tried to touch him and pick him up but his body remains almost locked in this position and does not respond by curling up or stretching out and he can't seem to get up right to walk. There was a bit of mold in the substrate from a melon I left yesterday so I changed the substrate and still no Difference in his behavior. It is definitely a male. Should I be worried??

Please help...

---------- Post added 05-27-2015 at 07:03 PM ----------

https://vimeo.com/129052288

Here's a video - hope it posts.
It's like he's short circuiting or something!
He has been exactly like this for a long time already.



--J.Haas
 
Last edited:
Cavedweller

Cavedweller

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There needs to be a term for the C of death. It looks like he's on the way out. Sorry man.

Also, that substrate looks like straight cocofiber. It's not, right?
 
MrsHaas

MrsHaas

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So he is still in the same position, but moving a little less.
So he's probably not going to make it, I assume...
It is strait coco fiber... The guy who sold me the pedes said it was ok... As long as it was moist :-$
But regardless, it's my fault...
I don't want the same fate for my other girl, can you recommend some potting soil or other wise to mix it with if that's what is best? And what's the best way to keep it moist without inviting mold?
 
Cavedweller

Cavedweller

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I made the same mistake with my first pedes as a kid. :(

Millipedes' diet is mostly their substrate (in the wild, this would be leaf litter and rotten logs), straight cocofiber is inedible. I've had good success with a 25% leaf litter, 25% aspen shaving pet bedding/shredded rotten wood, 50% cocofiber mix (with an extra couple inches of leaf litter on top). The cocofiber helps prevent mites and mold, and also retains moisture. I haven't had much issues with mold, but a little bit is ok, just remove supplementary food within a day or two. Mold and fungi break down the cellulose in wood and leaves so millipedes can eat them.

Here's a caresheet that covers substrate, diet, and the other basics as well: http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?263344-Cavedweller-s-Basic-Millipede-Caresheet

Edit: Oh yeah, it would be a good idea to pick up Orin McMonigle's Millipedes in Captivity as well http://www.amazon.com/Millipeds-Captivity-Diplopodan-Husbandry-Reproductive/dp/1616461438
 
MrsHaas

MrsHaas

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Cavedweller said:
I made the same mistake with my first pedes as a kid. :(

Millipedes' diet is mostly their substrate (in the wild, this would be leaf litter and rotten logs), straight cocofiber is inedible. I've had good success with a 25% leaf litter, 25% aspen shaving pet bedding/shredded rotten wood, 50% cocofiber mix (with an extra couple inches of leaf litter on top). The cocofiber helps prevent mites and mold, and also retains moisture. I haven't had much issues with mold, but a little bit is ok, just remove supplementary food within a day or two. Mold and fungi break down the cellulose in wood and leaves so millipedes can eat them.

Here's a caresheet that covers substrate, diet, and the other basics as well: http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?263344-Cavedweller-s-Basic-Millipede-Caresheet

Edit: Oh yeah, it would be a good idea to pick up Orin McMonigle's Millipedes in Captivity as well http://www.amazon.com/Millipeds-Captivity-Diplopodan-Husbandry-Reproductive/dp/1616461438
Click to expand...

Oh goodness thank you!! Will check this out for sure!

Update: my pede is still in the same position but moving very little at this point. I do think it's probably his time to go to pedey heaven :-( too bad
 
SDCPs

SDCPs

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Millipedes can live on coco fiber for a long time but it certainly isn't the best. The fiber in the video didn't look moist. It looked dry. If that's your idea of moist its going to have to change. I can't see how millipedes can survive in such a dry enclosure. Of course this may not be their actual enclosure, IDK!
 
Ripa

Ripa

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SDCPs said:
Millipedes can live on coco fiber for a long time but it certainly isn't the best. The fiber in the video didn't look moist. It looked dry. If that's your idea of moist its going to have to change. I can't see how millipedes can survive in such a dry enclosure. Of course this may not be their actual enclosure, IDK!
Click to expand...
Coco fiber can work if it's mixed with other materials, or if you have the other materials resting atop the coco fiber (e.g.- rotting leaves, wood, etc.). The main concern with coco fiber is lack of nutrition, but if you can offer the nutritional substitutes that it lacks compared to regular soil, you should be set.
 
MrsHaas

MrsHaas

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SDCPs said:
Millipedes can live on coco fiber for a long time but it certainly isn't the best. The fiber in the video didn't look moist. It looked dry. If that's your idea of moist its going to have to change. I can't see how millipedes can survive in such a dry enclosure. Of course this may not be their actual enclosure, IDK!
Click to expand...
It wasn't their actual enclosure, I took them out of their original enclosure while I was changing the moldy substrate and noticed that my pede was acting funny.

As of right now, he is in a strait line and still wiggling his legs but not so much.

Is there a water to substrate ratio I can use as a guideline to make sure it's moist enough without being too wet?
 
SDCPs

SDCPs

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I've always sortof eye-balled the water and don't always get it right!
 
SDCPs

SDCPs

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Put fibrt in bucket, add water. Leave and come back. If its not fully expanded add more. If too much that will probably be fixed when adding leaves otherwise squeeze out by hand.

Fiber should not be light brown but not sopping either.
 
MrsHaas

MrsHaas

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SDCPs said:
Put fibrt in bucket, add water. Leave and come back. If its not fully expanded add more. If too much that will probably be fixed when adding leaves otherwise squeeze out by hand.

Fiber should not be light brown but not sopping either.
Click to expand...
Do you use substrate bricks? Or the loose stuff?

---------- Post added 05-29-2015 at 04:39 PM ----------

By the way, I looked at your site an I will be trying out some of your substrate suggestions :)
 
SDCPs

SDCPs

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I typically use the compressed stuff and have been buying it in a giant brick from my local hydrophonics store. Need a...chisel?...and a hammer to break it up before soaking lol. If you don't mind paying more just keep going to the pet store.

Glad you're finding the site useful :-D
 
MrsHaas

MrsHaas

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SDCPs said:
I typically use the compressed stuff and have been buying it in a giant brick from my local hydrophonics store. Need a...chisel?...and a hammer to break it up before soaking lol. If you don't mind paying more just keep going to the pet store.

Glad you're finding the site useful :-D
Click to expand...
I will start purchasing the brick for my pedes and keep the loose stuff for the Ts. Thanks for all your help. :)
 
Cavedweller

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There's not really an exact science to how much water to use. I just make sure the cocofiber in the substrate is sort of dark, and mist them about twice a week.

You don't need to buy two kinds of cocofiber. You can just buy the big bricks, soak them, and let the cocofiber dry out for when you'll need it for Ts. I like to keep a big tub of reconstituted cocofiber on hand for that purpose.
 
MrsHaas

MrsHaas

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Cavedweller said:
There's not really an exact science to how much water to use. I just make sure the cocofiber in the substrate is sort of dark, and mist them about twice a week.

You don't need to buy two kinds of cocofiber. You can just buy the big bricks, soak them, and let the cocofiber dry out for when you'll need it for Ts. I like to keep a big tub of reconstituted cocofiber on hand for that purpose.
Click to expand...
I recently purchased organic Canadian sphagnum moss and some ground cover bark, can I mix the coco fiber with those things and use that mixture for the pedes?
 
Cavedweller

Cavedweller

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I used sphagnum in my first big pede tank a few years ago (I used the ABG soil mix, since I wanted to grow plants in that tank). It ended up being an unnecessary addition. The cocofiber does fine for retaining moisture (it's not particularly dry where I live, if you're in SoCal it might be another story) Just a thick layer of leaf litter is plenty ground cover.

Sidenote: I tried growing live moss in my failed attempt at a planted pede tank, it ended up being expensive pede food.
 
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