Karen,

Please read my post called My First BST. I'm having the same delima (sp) as you. This is my first experience with butterflies and I'm trying to learn as much as I can. Good luck and I'm hoping someone can help us out with our decision.

Kathy

Thanks for all the help, maybe I should have asked where to find chicken sh*t and I would have more results.

bluebirdbabe,

I think you're doing what all of us would do. I don't euthanize my deformed BFs unless they are really bad. I put them out on a Buddleia close to my house which is kind of sheltered. I will see them hanging around for several days. Sometimes they fall off, and I put them back up on a flower. As long as they are not on the host plant, I don't think it's a problem. I might be totally wrong, but I struggle with killing them.

Sandy

Well I can't kill them either. I just let nature do it. If they are meant to live then so be it. I don't suppose there is really anything you could do to help it have a normal life. Out of about 30 hatches, I had about 4 that had problems. One of which died before its' wings dried. The others I placed on flowers and walked away knowing full well that the spiders or lizards had them for lunch, but at least if they were full then I probably saved someone else from being lunch. Butterflutter

Hate to say it BUT this Monarch sounds like it is OE-tainted. I had one myself TODAY, no less, that I did euthanize.

It sounds like it is mean to euthanize the butterfly but truly, what are you doing by allowing it to live?

Recently, in my Kindergarten class, we had a butterfly that eclosed that was obviously NOT healthy. Its wings did not unfurl completely. It was not in perfect shape. Should we let it 'go' or should we euthanize? I had a long talk with the children about the lifecycle of the butterfly and diseases as well as parasites that could infect butterflies. We talked about what we should do to this particular butterfly. It was decided that euthanizing it was the BEST thing to do to avoid "getting more 'bad' butterflies in the environment." (children's words)

So, out of the mouths of babes! Despite how sad it is, the fact that ONE butterfly could infect hundreds (affect hundreds) was NOT in the best interest of the population is what determined their answers/votes.

There is a more humane way to use the freezer method, if the butterfly is really suffering. I was advised by a very experienced butterfly gardener to put the butterfly in the refrigerator for several hours or overnight first, so that the butterfly falls asleep due to the cold temperature. Then put it in the freezer. This way the butterfly does not wake up and doesn't know it's being frozen. I would also find it very hard to put a fully conscious butterfly into the freezer, but this other way does make this terrible job a bit easier, on yourself and the butterfly.

Thank you Tpolony, that sounds a little better. My little butterfly Norman seems to be doing fine. Tomorrow it will be a week that he has lived with me. I have made him a home in a plastic tote with a sand puddle. He sleeps on flowers at night. On nice days, I let him out to fly around but he crash lands. I pick him up and let him fly some more. When he lands and doesn't try to fly, I put him back in the tote. He has sugar water and gatorade in the morning and at night. I put him on his sand puddle and he will drink from that. He has come to recognize the q-tip as food. I am ashamed to say I have become extremely attached to Norman.

I know his time in captivity is limited, but in my heart, I feel I am doing the right thing. I just can't kill him.

Keep in mind that IF a Monarch has OE and you put it out on Milkweed then the spores are being spread. This would not be a good thing. As hard as it is to euthanize, it really is better for the overall population.

Recently, in my Kindergarten classroom, we had several Monarchs eclose. One had OE. I discussed this with the children and what had to be one (euthanizing the butterfly). It was even more apparent because the butterfly had deformed wings. Maybe the children didn't fully understand or comprehend the why of euthanizing the butterfly but they seemed to be agreement that it was better to have the healthy ones released but the unhealthy one to be 'put to sleep so as not to infect hundreds of other butterflies.' (potentially)

I, too, was like many of you and did not want to kill off any butterfly. I changed my mind, however, when I realized the potential danger that could come of allowing unhealthy butterflies to spread their diseases in my garden.

Just my opinion...

When I am in a position like that I think of the fastest way to go so they may never know what hit them. This may sound cruel but ultimatly it is so fast and instant. I take them outside in a concrete area and find the heaviest brick and drop it on them. I can tell you two different occasions where this worked great and instantly. I accidently gashed a VERY large tree frog's legs with my weed eater when he jumped up from the weeds. It truly devastated me because he was so beautiful and then I had a Monarch that had just emerged I brought him in to show my daughter and then took him back outside to finish drying, not even thrity minutes later my daughter's friend came over and she went out to show her the Monarch and a wasp had eaten most of the head off the poor thing before it was able to fully flap its wings. I had to put both of them out of their misery. The freezer seems to long to me. A brick is instant!
I also completely agree with TDOGMOM, the longer you keep it the more attached your going to become, and the more butterflies you may infect.
Kelli

This butterfly can not infect any other butterflies or anything else. He stays in a plastic tote. When I let him fly around outside, he lands on the grass. My milkweed is dead so he can infect the milkweed. The flowers that he sleeps on at night are ones I picked from the garden and put in his tote so he can't infect the flowers either.

When his time is up, I will bleach his home and anything that I used to care for him. I appreciate all of your comments.

Karen