Lost insects

What to do if you lost a mantis, a tropical bug or cockroach or a stick-bug.

Lost a pet insect, such as a butterfly, a tropical cockroach, a mantis or a stick-bug? No reason to worry! Just follow our advices to find the insect as quickly as possible, as the missing insect can be dangerous for others (if, for example, a poisonous cockroach has escaped) and itself may be in danger.

If you have lost a cockroach, a mantis or a stick-bug because of an unlocked cage or terrarium within your apartment or house - there are no reasons to worry much while the insect stays inside.

• The first thing to remember is to move cautiously and carefully watch your steps to not crush your pet while searching and close all exits from the room so that the insect search is localized within the acceptable boundaries. Open and close doors and move furniture while looking for an insect very carefully, because, for example, stick-bugs and cockroaches can climb onto the door jamb or hide between furniture and there is a possibility to crush them with careless movement.
• If, in addition to insects, there are other animals or children in the house, keep them under full control or ask relatives or friends about it. In such a situation, depending on the type of a lost insect, other pets may be dangerous to for or it may be dangerous for them.
• The most probable spots that the insect will sooner or later seek for are any heat emitters, such as radiators, ovens and stoves, fridge compressors, bright lamps, etc. To speed up the process of finding an insect, you can slightly reduce the temperature in the room, leaving heat sources' temperature higher than the room temperature.
• Experts recommend placing thermal, edible and water baits in each room. You can use table lamps, heaters or containers with warm water as thermal baits. For edible baits you may utilize favorite delicacies of the missing insect, such as fruits or fodder insects placed in vented containers. Vessels with water can also lure your pet out of the shelter because of the increased humidity around them. Regularly, at least once an hour, check all your baits and remember their condition.
• Some types of pet insects are very sensitive to any light. In this case, try to not turn a bright light on, as this can cause the insect to get deeper into its dark shelter. Use the night vision mode of your camera, special lamps or a dim flashlight. Do not despair if you can not find an insect - many of them are nocturnal creatures and probably will not go out until dark.

If, for example, an insect is lost outside of a house - finding it will be much more difficult.

• First of all, you need to let as many people as possible to know about the lost insect and report what danger it may pose to them. Many people have insects phobias and their first reaction will be to crush your pet, even if it is absolutely not dangerous. And on the contrary, if an insect carries a threat - people should know that it is not worth approaching and it is better to inform you immediately. You can announce such information to people, for example, using Petrieve - online map-based pet search service. With us you can not only submit an absolutely free advert about the lost insect, including all its traits and the place of its loss. Having a profile of your pet on Petrieve, you can share it on social networks (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) and print flyers or posters of your insect totally free. You can also receive notifications if someone has found an insect similar to yours. Stock up with flyers to post and distribute them along your route while searching for the insect. It is also possible to use television and newspapers, but contrary to our service that will not be cheap.
• In accordance with the habits of your insect, consistently inspect all the places that can attract its attention, especially paying attention to the traditional sources of food and water for the pet.
• Let neighbors and passers-by know about your lost pet and ask for permission to inspect their territory and buildings. Talk to the dog and cat owners - maybe when they were walking they saw the lost insect in the neighborhood.
• Sometimes it would be reasonable to report to local law enforcement offices, animal shelters or pounds, veterinary clinics, pet shops and other organisations of this kind. Here you will also need some flyers and posters to hand them out.

If you are looking for a missing insect - for your convenience use our map of found pets. Find the place where the insect disappeared, look at the marks on the map near this place (click them to get additional info) - maybe your insect has been found and it is already waiting for you!

Below you may find a list of countries where lost insects have been registered on Petrieve: