Growth rate after mating

[Tobey]

Hi everyone,

Is T's growth affected in any way after mating?

Thank you!

 

[Venom1080]

What do you mean? Tarantulas grow by molting.

Sometimes a female molts after mating, so yes, kind of, I suppose.

 

[Devin B]

Well T's have to be mature to mate so that means they are pretty much full grown.

Males usually dont molt after maturing and as @Venom1080 said female might grow a little.

 

[Tobey]

I got an LP that had her slings around 6 months ago. The owner said she's around 2/3 her size and that she should still grow a bit. Just wondering if she will keep growing after that, or it doesn't affect T's at all.

 

[Devin B]

I got an LP that had her slings around 6 months ago. The owner said she's around 2/3 her size and that she should still grow a bit. Just wondering if she will keep growing after that, or it doesn't affect T's at all.

Could you tell us about how big your LP is?

 

[aphono]

They can molt again after mating for sure. If they molt before making a sac, they need to be bred again for fertility. So breeding/mating by itself doesn't affect their growth.

Haven't seen anything about making sac affecting their growth.. probably doesn't prevent them from growing/molting again after they make a full recovery.

All of this is for females of course. Mature males are at the end of their line.

 

[Tobey]

and how long does it take for her to make a full recovery after she made a sac?

 

[boina]

So, the previous owner said she had a sac, but she's only 2/3rd of her maximum size? That's unlikely. Tarantulas rarely mature that small, although it isn't impossible.

Your tarantula will grow with her next molt, as any tarantula does. If she had a sac 6 months ago she should have had enough time to eat her fill and replace the bulk she lost through laying eggs.

On the other hand the adult size of an LP is often overestimated, so how big is your tarantula, exactly?

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Well T's have to be mature to mate so that means they are pretty much full grown.

Mature doesn't always equal fully grown, females can become sexually mature at 2/3 - 3/4 of maximum size, usually closer to the latter though, point is that they can still continue growing after being mated and dropping a sac.

Males obviously won't.

 

[Devin B]

Mature doesn't always equal fully grown, females can become sexually mature at 2/3 - 3/4 of maximum size, usually closer to the latter though, point is that they can still continue growing after being mated and dropping a sac.

Males obviously won't.

Thats exactly why I left myself a safety net by saying "pretty much" full grown