House Centipede found drowning - Paralyzed? Need Advice

[Rinfish]

Hey all!

Last night I found a house centipede which seemed to be dead in my dogs water dish. I immediately pulled him out and dried him off, hoping he would bounce back, but he seemed to be completely dead. I placed him on a paper towel and left him there overnight, somewhat hoping that he would bounce back....and he did!...sort of.

He went from looking completely dead, to moving his back legs a small amount this morning, to moving a few more legs in his back in the afternoon. His front arms however (more than half) seem to be in the "dead" position. He has enough energy to move around the humidi-cup I put him in for recovery, but the arms seem very much paralyzed.

I am not at all educated on the anatomy or functioning of centipedes and am not sure what is going on here. Since he couldn't move some of his other limbs but now can, I'm hopeful these other arms will regain movement.

Has anyone come across a similar situation, or could offer me some advice? He's in a deli cup with small holes (originally had tiny crickets in it) with a paper towel i lightly sprayed with water for humidity. He's in a dark quiet spot on my floor, where it's still a bit cooler. I don't plan on giving him any food until he is able to move on his own.

If he recovers, if only partially, I hope to make a proper enclosure for him and keep him. If some of his arms are paralyzed, then he will definitely not be able to survive in my apartment anymore.

Attached is an image when I poked him, so you can see him lifting his body up as he looks around. Additionally, here is a link to a short video of him moving: https://imgur.com/a/VvLEr62

Update, 9PM:

Now dubbed "Tiny Tim" He has still not fully recovered, but his front arms do twitch slightly, so I am hopeful. If anyone has any additional care suggestions or other first Aid I could apply, I would be very grateful!

 

[Dave Jay]

Looks somewhat hopeful going by the video. Personally I'd put the tub away somewhere dark and leave it alone for a day or so, I don't think there's much more you could do.

 

[Wesley Smith]

Looks somewhat hopeful going by the video. Personally I'd put the tub away somewhere dark and leave it alone for a day or so, I don't think there's much more you could do.

Completely agree, people actually use a "drowning" method to sex centipedes so they are capable of coming back after a short while. This seems to be taking longer than normal, but with the slow progress, I feel confident he'll bounce back.

 

[Rinfish]

Completely agree, people actually use a "drowning" method to sex centipedes so they are capable of coming back after a short while. This seems to be taking longer than normal, but with the slow progress, I feel confident he'll bounce back.

oh gosh, good to know!! I'm glad they seem to naturally be able to bounce back. I may go ahead and get the supplies ready for a proper enclosure. =)

 

[LawnShrimp]

Housies are tough, and your care seems to be working. 'Pedes don't always recover from long paralysis but if it does survive another molt will set it right.

 

[Rinfish]

Housies are tough, and your care seems to be working. 'Pedes don't always recover from long paralysis but if it does survive another molt will set it right.

Thank you for the good advice. =) I am a bit worried as the little one is still paralyzed, but I put some cricket legs in the cage so hopefully he can munch on those. (though he has not touched them yet)

In the mean time...I actually found *another* baby house centipede running around on my porch, so I caught it and put it in a nice enclosure with coco fiber, oak leaves and cork bark. One question though, what do baby house centipedes eat?! I purchased small crickets at the store, and they looked way too big for it to hunt.

 

[NYAN]

Thank you for the good advice. =) I am a bit worried as the little one is still paralyzed, but I put some cricket legs in the cage so hopefully he can munch on those. (though he has not touched them yet)

One question though, what do baby house centipedes eat?! I purchased small crickets at the store, and they looked way too big for it to hunt.

I wonder if the centipede could’ve been exposed to pesticides. If small crickets are too big, you can prekill them probably. Another option is pinheads or wingless fruit flies.

 

[VolkswagenBug]

Thank you for the good advice. =) I am a bit worried as the little one is still paralyzed, but I put some cricket legs in the cage so hopefully he can munch on those. (though he has not touched them yet)

In the mean time...I actually found *another* baby house centipede running around on my porch, so I caught it and put it in a nice enclosure with coco fiber, oak leaves and cork bark. One question though, what do baby house centipedes eat?! I purchased small crickets at the store, and they looked way too big for it to hunt.

"Small" crickets from pet stores aren't usually pinheads, but I'd imagine pinhead crickets would be the right size. If not, try fruit flies or maybe springtails (though I'm not sure exactly how nutritious the latter are...)

 

[Rinfish]

I wonder if the centipede could’ve been exposed to pesticides. If small crickets are too big, you can prekill them probably. Another option is pinheads or wingless fruit flies.

hmmm, possible, but i doubt it. I am strongly against pesticides, and my neighbors upstairs don't use them either (I know them quite well). The poor creature was very much waterlogged when I found him.

"Small" crickets from pet stores aren't usually pinheads, but I'd imagine pinhead crickets would be the right size. If not, try fruit flies or maybe springtails (though I'm not sure exactly how nutritious the latter are...)

I have an active springtail culture I was going to add, so hopefully that will provide some nutrition. I also threw in a cricket leg for that one as well (unfortunately the legs are from trying to fed one of my tarantulas, and the crickets wriggle away). I'll see if there's any place that sells pinheads near me. =)

 

[Dave Jay]

hmmm, possible, but i doubt it. I am strongly against pesticides, and my neighbors upstairs don't use them either (I know them quite well). The poor creature was very much waterlogged when I found him.



I have an active springtail culture I was going to add, so hopefully that will provide some nutrition. I also threw in a cricket leg for that one as well (unfortunately the legs are from trying to fed one of my tarantulas, and the crickets wriggle away). I'll see if there's any place that sells pinheads near me. =)

Although there are 3 pet shops nearby that stock crickets they don't stock pinheads because of the mortality rate. All are quite happy to get them in if I ask before they place their weekly order though so if they're not on the shelf it's worthwhile asking, chances are they will order some for you.

 

[Rinfish]

Although there are 3 pet shops nearby that stock crickets they don't stock pinheads because of the mortality rate. All are quite happy to get them in if I ask before they place their weekly order though so if they're not on the shelf it's worthwhile asking, chances are they will order some for you.

I will keep that in mind! There is one in particular I bet would stock them if I asked.

In other news - Still paralyzed, BUT at half a cricket leg! Not much, but clearly there is a will to survive. =)

 

[NYAN]

I will keep that in mind! There is one in particular I bet would stock them if I asked.

In other news - Still paralyzed, BUT at half a cricket leg! Not much, but clearly there is a will to survive. =)

Maybe it’ll be like the Myriapod section version of the scorpion without a tail or that huntsman spider that had no legs.

 

[VolkswagenBug]

Maybe it’ll be like the Myriapod section version of the scorpion without a tail or that huntsman spider that had no legs.

Whoa. Do you have links? Those sound interesting.

 

[NYAN]

Whoa. Do you have links? Those sound interesting.

Scorpion
http://arachnoboards.com/threads/say-hello-to-stoom-pei.299887/

This is a video series actually where the guy keeps it and nurses it back to health.

 

[Dave Jay]

The spider is just weird!
I was hoping the scorp survived, I have a little one that broke it's tail and it's shrivelled up so I've been wondering whether to amputate soon because in July I'll have had it a year so it's due to moult soon.

 

[Rinfish]

Scorpion
http://arachnoboards.com/threads/say-hello-to-stoom-pei.299887/

This is a video series actually where the guy keeps it and nurses it back to health.

!!!! I've never seen that before - this gives me hope!

 

[Wesley Smith]

Any news?

 

[Rinfish]

Any news?

Still Alive! I moved him to a tupperware container with a naturalized set up (cocofiber, cork bark, oak leaves and springtails) and he seems to enjoy the moisture. There are spots of mold on the leaves, but im hoping the springtails will proliferate and get rid of that. I had been wracking my brain over what to feed him, as I feel bad decapitating crickets....but I realized chicken might be suitable and he's been chowing down on that no problem. =)

Is chicken and beef a sustainable food source, or should I bite the bullet and kill crickets myself?

 

[NYAN]

Is chicken and beef a sustainable food source, or should I bite the bullet and kill crickets myself?

I don’t think they eat chicken and beef in the wild, so no. Stick to crickets I advise. If they are anything like scolopendrids and others larger centipedes that can be a treat type thing rather than a staple diet.

 

[Wesley Smith]

I don’t think they eat chicken and beef in the wild, so no. Stick to crickets I advise. If they are anything like scolopendrids and others larger centipedes that can be a treat type thing rather than a staple diet.

Completely agreed, though he should be able to eat live crickets unless he still has some mobility issues.