Hi everyone! I was given a millipede a few hours ago with absolutely nothing. I was told it is a Giant African Millipede. I got a clear plastic container Similar to a shoebox but larger and drilled holes in the top of the sides for air and placed organic catus potting mix as well as dried leaves and some twigs from outside. I also had a coconut in the house so i took a knife to it and tried to get as much of the fibers as i could off of it to add to the mix. I sprayed the mixture with water from a mist bottle used for air plants. I have never owner a millipede before but i am hoping to give this one some love and a nice home! I know the substrate is really important for them and i am not sure if i have done it correctly or not. What steps should i take from here and have i done anything wrong? Also i was told i could put foods such as spinach and carrots in the enclosure for it to eat is that correct and what other things can they eat? I read they also eat their substrate. Also, are live plants a good idea to have in the enclosure or will they get sick if they eat them? Is there anything else i should know about them? Thanks so much in advanced! Im posting a picture of her(pretty sure shes a female) aswell
New Millipede Owner - Please Help
- Thread starter Annamarie
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The substrate is their main diet pretty much. You can feed them cucumber also, it’s a millipede favorite according to most here. With live planets I think they will just dig them up or bulldoze them. If you use the search function, you can find some recipes people use for millipede substrate, you can also buy it online.
Thank you! I will look for the substrate recipes. My fish also love cucumbers so luckily we already have that in the house aswell. Do you know how often or how much i should put in?
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I'm not sure the cactus mix is the best substrate idea. Organic is important and it is also very important for substrate to NOT have any fertilizers added. They need plenty of rotten wood and leaf litter.
Congrats on a great new pet!
Congrats on a great new pet!
I dont think i will be keeping that soil mixture forever. I mainly got it because i had a millipede in an empty box and i figured she needed something. I went for the catus mixture because it was organic and also seemed to be the most pet safe from what the store had. I have read a lot about the rotten wood and leaf litter, but i dont totally know what that means. What is the best way to do it in your opinion?
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If you have an area where you can collect leaf litter, where there haven't been a lot of chemicals in use, you can collect them. I always soak them and sometimes even bake them. The wood is harder. You can usually find a decaying piece of wood. You just need to scrape it and make sure you can shred it with your fingernail; otherwise it is likely not rotten enough. You don't want something dark or slimy. It's good to use wood that has had isopods etc. living on it.
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They eat the wood and also the leaves. Soil is usually broken down peat, wood or leaves. You just have to be CERTAIN there are no fertilizers; organic or not. No fertilizers. I mix cocofiber in mine also. I have a thread on here about how I make mine. I will tag you in that so you can read it. Maybe it will make more sense.
Thank you! You have helped a lot and i will definitely look at it and ask if i have any questions from there, but i think im beginning to understand. This is my first animal that requires this type of habitat and i dont want to do anything wrong.
LawnShrimp
Arachnoangel
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Keep your substrate as deep as the milli is long so it can molt safely. Be prepared for it to burrow for months at a time when it molts and NEVER dig for it.
I suggest you microwave/bake any material from outside as it may contain fungus or pests that can hurt your 'pede.
I suggest you microwave/bake any material from outside as it may contain fungus or pests that can hurt your 'pede.
Thank you. I was actually given another 3 today. I am pretty sure i have 4 females, but im not positive because they are still pretty small are were moving a lot when i was trying to check. I was hoping i would be able to breed, but as i said i think i only have females. They were given to me indirectly from a school teacher. I have not seen mites on them at all and there were a couple of dead millipedes in the container when i went to get what remained of them today. Im not sure what kind of care they were in, but i have the only four that survived. They were eating common mushrooms, are those safe? Also im worried about there possibly not being mites. What are your thoughts?
LawnShrimp
Arachnoangel
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Young millis, which is around 3-4" and under for AGBs, do not always display missing 7th pair of legs for males. You might actually have males, so check after the next molt.
Mushrooms are a good milli treat but make sure they get dead leaves and wood soon, they can't last long without a proper meal.
Why would no mites be a problem? Parasitic/phoretic mites are bad, and while commensal mites look cool they are far from necessary.
Also I have to say that you got a great deal getting these free. AGBs are hard to source in the US and the last reliable import company just stopped carrying them. Already, AGBs are $60-100 but I expect that price to get higher.
I remember reading somewhere they were supposed to have mites, but I am glad you cleared that up for me. They currently have leaves and a little wood to munch on until i can get their proper substrate in the next day or so. I had a coconut in the house so i added the fibers from the shell and also i made a little hut out of half the shell and a food dish(for the mushrooms or cucumbers so they dont rot in the subsrate) out of a smaller section of the shell. They seem to like to go under the hut i gave them so i would like to give them some other things to climb on and under besides the substrate. Any suggestions?
Also they are a kind of decent size, one is a bit smaller than the rest for sure though. I will keep an eye on them and hope one is actually a male. Also, how often do they molt?
I did look into them after i got them home and your right they seem to be super hard to get in the US. I think it would be great if i was able to breed them so that more people would be able to get them.
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@Annamarie there is also a sticky post on Millipede care at the top of this forum. That will help a lot. They need the substrate to stay moist. I have some juveniles that are about 4" and they aren't showing signs of gender yet. Hopefully with 4 you will get at least one of each gender and will be able to breed them. We need to keep these in the hobby!