My smithi has been in a blocked off cave for a month is this normal?

[Richlard]

My smithi mantis was eating awesome and looked nice and healthy he then started to build a blockade in his cave as many mantis shrimp do to molt I thought he was dead on the end of week 3 so I tried to take it apart and they were wedged in there good! I opened a small crack and stuck the dull end of the feeding skewer in and he punched it and looked at me through the crack so he is still alive but why has he not molted/gone out of his cave yet?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Sorry, I've been watching your post to see if anyone has any ideas for you....

I've not seen that before. I've only worked with peacock and big zebra mantis. My losses always seemed to coincide with a molt.

Jay

 

[DapperCuttlefish]

My smithi mantis was eating awesome and looked nice and healthy he then started to build a blockade in his cave as many mantis shrimp do to molt I thought he was dead on the end of week 3 so I tried to take it apart and they were wedged in there good! I opened a small crack and stuck the dull end of the feeding skewer in and he punched it and looked at me through the crack so he is still alive but why has he not molted/gone out of his cave yet?

So it is alive? He just doesn’t appear to be ready to come out? I would say if he had the energy to punch and then investigate he is still not feeling safe enough to come out. When he is hungry he will emerge. I have not personally experienced this, so I am purely speculating. Maybe wave a nice stinky piece of his favorite treat near the hole you made and see if that entices him if he doesn’t emerge after few days.

 

[Richlard]

So it is alive? He just doesn’t appear to be ready to come out? I would say if he had the energy to punch and then investigate he is still not feeling safe enough to come out. When he is hungry he will emerge. I have not personally experienced this, so I am purely speculating. Maybe wave a nice stinky piece of his favorite treat near the hole you made and see if that entices him if he doesn’t emerge after few days.

I got an opening in his hole and fed him ghost shrimp which he immediately ate and he spent the rest of the day enjoying the view of his tank and today he has rebuilt his barricade