Hello! I was wondering if you, or anyone you know, have any recommendations on pet millipede species? I’ve always loved the little guys, but I don’t really know where to start. For relevancy (and the concept of not being allowed to keep invasive species) I live in Oregon, if that would limit options. I wouldn’t be able to keep them anytime super soon, but I want to start my research early so when I someday have the space, I’ll be as prepared/educated as possible in the chosen species.

amazingpetenclosures:

As a part two I guess – I know that yellow spotted millipedes are probably my favorite (so far), because I’m used to seeing them around here natively and I’m not seeing anything on them being illegal to keep (though I would try to avoid wild caught for a number of reasons, including parasites) but I’m not sure if these would be considered a good species to keep for any reasons I might not find on most care sheets. Any and all opinions are very helpful, thank you!

Congrats on soon getting a new pet! And on doing your research, too, I’m glad to see things like this 🙂 My only advice would be to look into what is readily available in your area; go to expos, check out facebook groups and breeders, etc, and start doing more in depth research of those species. If none of those types interest you (which is totally fine!), finding a breeder online and having the animal shipped to you is always an option too. As for what may or may not be allowed, you might have to contact fish and game in your area, or another similar service.

The number one thing to remember with millipedes is to never let them dry out. They always need a source of moisture, and most species need their entire substrate to be varying degrees of moist. 

By and large, they’re easy pets, especially the commonly available ones. You give them a moist, soft substrate, some food, some warmth, and oxygen, and that should do the trick. Get a glass tank to keep them in, it’s easier to use heaters with. Petco has dollar-per-gallon sales, go buy a $10 10gal tank and that’ll fit any millipedes you want. 

I’d suggest setting up a generalized millipede tank, then going to an expo in hopes of picking up something there. AFAIK, you’d just have to adjust the moisture level slightly depending on what millipede you got, you could just do a generic setup in preparation. 

You could also buy a millipede at an expo and keep it in a small container with moist sphagnum moss or paper towels and some food for a few days while you got the tank set up. They aren’t hard to maintain temporarily.