How to lessen the odds of a desert hairy Scorpion dying of molt?

Chickenfeeder100

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Sep 15, 2017
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I'm thinking of buying a desert hairy scorpion, but I read that the majority of the scorpions die in molts. Can some one direct me to a thread or give me an answer?
 

Jason Brantley

Arachnoknight
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Apr 26, 2011
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I make sure my scorpions are heavily misted when about to molt. I spray the enclosure and not the scorpion itself. Check frequently to see how it's doing like every half hour to hour.
 
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ArachnoDrew

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Most people assume this to be because of the lack of gradient in captivity that they have in the wild from making deep and extensive burrows.. the best way would be to offer it a nice substrate @Scorpionluva has had great success with them, raising from babies
 

Chickenfeeder100

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I'll be looking for some adults, but there is a high chance that I can't find any so that's why I'm made this thread.
 

Scorpionluva

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Jul 15, 2013
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Yes i have to agree the easiest way to avoid molt issues with any hadrurus species is to buy adults and because alot of people seem to doubt my setups that did work for me ( and didnt work for others ) im reluctant to post my methods anymore.....although 1 of my best attributes i possess is i love to help people ... so here goes
I used play sand , excavator clay , aquarium gravel , chunks of broken sea shells as my substrate about 2 inches deep. I used clear solo cups that had 1/3 of a side cut off buried under the substrate with tiny holes poked through it for water to drip through ( this was to simulate the conditions where my cousin found all of my specimens in scrapes under creosote bushes ) i asked him to bring me a few small bushes to use but all the plants died or got mangled on his way to Pa from AZ. The cup idea was crude and not appealing to look at by any means but everytime i found a newly molted juvie - it was inside 1 of the " humidity dome" solo cup hides. I added about a 1/2 cup of water once a week to each cup on top straight through the substrate and misted over top seashells and other rocks to create tiny pools of water for them to drink if they were out and about.
I kept them this way for over 10 years and had great success ( and had no idea of the troubles most people had with them until i joined AB a few years back) this was the species that started my passion for scorps over 20 years ago and because of hadrurus - im still keeping scorps now.
Even though this method worked well for me after i sold my tanks + hadrurus to a friend who kept them relatively the same way i did - he failed miserably and sold them to keep bearded dragons (which meant i couldnt even use the tanks again for scorps )
Heres a couple pics ( sorry theyre not great quality but they are scans of old polaroid pics )
20170916_140249.jpg 20170915_135913.jpg
There were occasional fights between tankmates but i never had a death occur so i left them together. If there woulda been a death - i wouldnt have kept them communally. Hope this helps if you do purchase any hadrurus :)
 

Chickenfeeder100

Arachnosquire
Joined
Sep 15, 2017
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107
I'm gonna try to replicate what you did but if
I fail miserably, I might buy a tarantula instead. Will this work for hoffmannius spinigerus?
Cause my scorpion is going in his pre-molt. He or she is really fat and won't eat.
 

darkness975

Latrodectus
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Aug 31, 2012
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5,610
@Scorpionluva Do you have any Hadrurus spp. left?

@Chickenfeeder100 That species does not have the same issues (as far as I know) as Hadrurus spp. regarding molting. @Scorpionluva is not the only one that has mentioned set ups involving a moist area for them. True the risk of mycosis is something that worries people but I wonder what amount of humidty vs dryness is actually right. Maybe a certain time of the year? Hard to say.
 

keks

Arachnobaron
Joined
May 7, 2017
Messages
517
Yes i have to agree the easiest way to avoid molt issues with any hadrurus species is to buy adults and because alot of people seem to doubt my setups that did work for me ( and didnt work for others ) im reluctant to post my methods anymore.....although 1 of my best attributes i possess is i love to help people ... so here goes
I used play sand , excavator clay , aquarium gravel , chunks of broken sea shells as my substrate about 2 inches deep. I used clear solo cups that had 1/3 of a side cut off buried under the substrate with tiny holes poked through it for water to drip through ( this was to simulate the conditions where my cousin found all of my specimens in scrapes under creosote bushes ) i asked him to bring me a few small bushes to use but all the plants died or got mangled on his way to Pa from AZ. The cup idea was crude and not appealing to look at by any means but everytime i found a newly molted juvie - it was inside 1 of the " humidity dome" solo cup hides. I added about a 1/2 cup of water once a week to each cup on top straight through the substrate and misted over top seashells and other rocks to create tiny pools of water for them to drink if they were out and about.
I kept them this way for over 10 years and had great success ( and had no idea of the troubles most people had with them until i joined AB a few years back) this was the species that started my passion for scorps over 20 years ago and because of hadrurus - im still keeping scorps now.
Even though this method worked well for me after i sold my tanks + hadrurus to a friend who kept them relatively the same way i did - he failed miserably and sold them to keep bearded dragons (which meant i couldnt even use the tanks again for scorps )
Heres a couple pics ( sorry theyre not great quality but they are scans of old polaroid pics )
View attachment 252252 View attachment 252253
There were occasional fights between tankmates but i never had a death occur so i left them together. If there woulda been a death - i wouldnt have kept them communally. Hope this helps if you do purchase any hadrurus :)
Thank you very much that you're sharing your experience once more :).
 

Scorpionluva

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Joined
Jul 15, 2013
Messages
925
I'm gonna try to replicate what you did but if
I fail miserably, I might buy a tarantula instead. Will this work for hoffmannius spinigerus?
Cause my scorpion is going in his pre-molt. He or she is really fat and won't eat.
I hope whichever way you decide to try is successful for you. In most cases it seems that some keepers just have a niche for certain species , others do well with many different species and some just get lucky with any or all species they keep ( example) i absolutely love parabuthus and androctonus but ive had minimal to no success with them so when i feel im not going to be successful with them - i find someone i feel is more capable of being successful with them.
I would never doubt anyone's method if it works but what works for some may not work for others.
I will even admit that i tried recreating my own methods about 4 years ago but all of the females died before birthing. Im guessing they were old adults and i havent tried again due to all the other species i keep now.
As far as the vaejovis/hoffmanius/paravaejovis/what ever genus name it is now lol they seem to be fairly easy to keep. I know @gromgrom use to keep these and produce broods regularly but not sure if he still does.
 

Scorpionluva

Arachnoangel
Joined
Jul 15, 2013
Messages
925
@Scorpionluva Do you have any hadrurus ssp. left?
No i dont have the space or even close to the same set-up i had before at my old house. (Moved about 5 years ago ) I had alot more ventilation at my old house since my scorp area was more of a wall in my bedroom as opposed to now where i tossed all of the wife's clothing outta our master closet and its officially the scorp room now lol next step is tear the walls out and rebuild to expand my scorp room :)
 

Chickenfeeder100

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Sep 15, 2017
Messages
107
Ima just do a 3:1 sand and excavater clay and try to find a female adult. But if I can't and have to get a juvenile, I'll take all of your advice and pray that it works for me.
 

Scorpionluva

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Joined
Jul 15, 2013
Messages
925
Ima just do a 3:1 sand and excavater clay and try to find a female adult. But if I can't and have to get a juvenile, I'll take all of your advice and pray that it works for me.
That or try a combo of all the methods and come up with a new ingenious idea that could set the standard on how to keep this species. :) experimentation is half the fun and battle in keeping scorps successfully !
 

Chickenfeeder100

Arachnosquire
Joined
Sep 15, 2017
Messages
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My vision is 3:1 mixture with a little bit of that eco earth that's 6 inches deep that's in like a slope. One of those shallow rock dishes and some crushed sea shells. I'm not going to spray my cage heavily everyday is he molting cause to much moisture might kill her cause I'm hoping to get a she. If you guys are really really really interested (or if you guys don't have anything better to do than watch a beginner ramble on) I'll give you people an update in like a month.
 

keks

Arachnobaron
Joined
May 7, 2017
Messages
517
My vision is 3:1 mixture with a little bit of that eco earth that's 6 inches deep that's in like a slope. One of those shallow rock dishes and some crushed sea shells. I'm not going to spray my cage heavily everyday is he molting cause to much moisture might kill her cause I'm hoping to get a she. If you guys are really really really interested (or if you guys don't have anything better to do than watch a beginner ramble on) I'll give you people an update in like a month.
I'm sitting in the first row, watching your successes :D.
 
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