So sorry to hear your news. We get so fond of the little guys, and have such high hopes for them. What a disappointment when things go wrong.
Liz

sorry about your cats, I hope the rest will be ok. good luck on the next one..I myself lost 4 cats from eating host plants I bought from home depot.. ugh, will never do that again.

Did you bring these in as eggs or caterpillars? I have lots of problems with caterpillars I find and bring in. And my yard is herbicide/pesticide free. The only way I can guarantee healthy butterflies is to bring in the eggs.

Sorry you are having such a bad time. I think we all have been through it one time or another, and it is depressing. Hang in there.

Sandy

These were brought in as eggs moments after the momma laid them. Two managed to form a chrysalis, I walked in just in time to watch the end and the shake off of the skin. The one who vomited everywhere is now in the J position. Time will tell I suppose but if I do see those black spots on the chrysalis' then I will freeze them even tho it will make me very sad to have to do so. Thank you for the encouraging words.

This is what happened to one of my batches - I had 19 and I had raised every one of them from eggs. They got about half way - and some of them started vomiting - some of them attached themselves to the side of the container as if to molt and then just hung there, vomiting until they died. One caterpillar formed a chrysalis, but the butterfly was unable emerge - she was "stuck" to the shell of the chrysalis. There had been no dark spots on the chrysalis to indicate OE. Shortly after they all started dying I realized that the city trucks that spray for mosquitoes had been in our neighborhood. So either I fed them leaves that had pesticide on them (though I was rinsing the leaves) or the pesticide itself had gotten into the container. Broke my heart.

~Laura

Oh Shoot:( I hate hearing stories like that...Sorry for the loss of your caterpillars.
I would rather have mosquito bites head to toe than to lose my butterflies. Fortunately for us, we have no such mosquito spray program on our cul de sac, but the spraying for Gypsy Moths c Bt in Madison and surrounding areas has me concerned...
I've seen fewer butterflies than ever this year, and it's not just the Monarchs that are low in number either.

Three managed to pupa, I found a cat this morning that was spinning it's floss when I went to bed, dead on the floor of the cage, still had a mouthful of floss.. 2 more are trying to spin also... sigh....

I too have had similar problems. I raise tons of my own milkweed and have had some luck bringing in late stage cats that I stumble upon. Many times when I bring in eggs, they hatch but the little cats just don't seem to thrive. Also, I know that a lot of eggs are being deposited in my garden, but something seems to be cleaning them up, as I rarely see hatchlings. My luck seems to wax and wane. I am hopeful that as things cool down, down here, my luck will improve. I live in an area where lawns are sprayed all around me. I guard my garden from poison in every way I know how, but we all know how adults love to cruise the neighborhood...even though several adults spend much of their time in my back yard. Good luck to you....Fred