Open Letter to my B. Smithi sling:

[Corranthe]

Dear Sir or Madam:

I have only fed you a single pinhead cricket once a week. Yet you are very round and bulbous at this point. Your backside is very dark and shiny and, in my humble opinion, you look quite ready for a good molt. That having been said, my question to you is this: WHY ARE YOU STILL EATING!?
I dropped in a cricket for you today, just like I do every week. But this time I fully anticipated that you would ignore it and I would have to fish it back out. But that was not to be. You snapped it right up and started munching. I am getting a little afraid that if you do not molt soon you will pop. Please have a little consideration for my nerves in this matter and please either roll on over and molt or at least stop eating.

Kindest Regards,

Your Humble Servant

 

[Andrew273]

My sling is about 3/4" and looks just like that. Eats a baby cricket a week, has the nice little dark spot and huge abdomen. I'm starting to think it will never molt.

 

[peterUK]

Nice letter :clap:

They get bigger than that !!!!
My smith slings have butts bigger than that, they are so shiny and stretched I'm frightened to bump the table in case the pop !!

 

[Anastasia]

that is such cute letter
hope lill bugger will molt soon for you

 

[mikeymo]

You could try feeding it twice a week as oppose to just the once. There is a big debate over what one considers "over-feeding" or "power feeding" to enduce molts and thus, increase size, but I'd hardly consider an increase of one pin head cricket/week power feeding. hope this helps.

 

[GartenSpinnen]

Stick to feeding once a week, i dont even feed my Ts that. They get 1 roach every other week. I have never had any problems and they all stay pretty plump. Just give it time, they will molt sooner or later.
-Nate

 

[desertdweller]

Can I copy your letter to my F H lividum? She is fat and eating like a field hand. Her abdomen is already darkening and still she waits at her burrow with legs poised for her next meal!

I think you should start a new business: ecards to our T's. Funny, smart endearing letter. Thanks!:worship: :worship: :worship:

 

[mikeymo]

Stick to feeding once a week, i dont even feed my Ts that. They get 1 roach every other week. I have never had any problems and they all stay pretty plump. Just give it time, they will molt sooner or later.
-Nate

But I’m sure you're not feeding roaches to slings. I've fed all my little guys twice to three times a week and reduce the feeding frequency as they get bigger/more mature. If you're desperate for a molt, then feed a bit more often.

But like I said, there is a huge debate going on about feeding patterns. Those in favour of less frequent feeding usually cite that sudden increases in 'butt' size, due to frequent feeding, make the T vulnerable to rupturing should the T fall while climbing up the side of their tank.
In essence, shammer4life is right for pointing out that you could just wait, but it’s ultimately going to be up to you and how you want to feed your T.

 

[Mina]

Very cute, lol. Relax, and don't worry, it will happen eventually, you might, however want to pack a lunch.

 

[Corranthe]

Nice letter :clap:

They get bigger than that !!!!
My smith slings have butts bigger than that, they are so shiny and stretched I'm frightened to bump the table in case the pop !!

That is my worry! I feel like if I look at it wrong it's going to just pop right infront of me! Hopefully this means that when it finally does get around to molting it will gain some good size... maybe even some color...if I dare to hope.

Can I copy your letter to my F H lividum? She is fat and eating like a field hand. Her abdomen is already darkening and still she waits at her burrow with legs poised for her next meal!

I think you should start a new business: ecards to our T's. Funny, smart endearing letter. Thanks!:worship: :worship: :worship:

LOL to "eating like a field hand". I was sooo sure it wouldn't eat this time. It is only about 1.5 inches now. If it is going to do this to me it had better double in size when it does finally molt! :razz: j/k

How is Ike these days, btw?

 

[penny'smom]

Fat though that booty may be, and cute because of it, the whole thing will get much darker before a molt happens. The dark spot you see now is the area where the urticating hairs are located. I can still see the heart outlined on the top of the abdomen (striped looking area in front of the patch). When the entire thing looks the same color as the heart, and you can't distinguish the outline anymore, THEN you are getting close.

In the meantime, let the little one eat it's cricket a week. That booty will get a bit bigger yet!

 

[Diggy415]

mine hasn't eaten or molted since ive gottwn it 8mnths ago, mealworms don't work and too cold for inscects around here, so next is crickets, and again ita too cold to order them and be alive as overnighttemps are in the 20's. the rest of my collection eats worms, what to do, the slowest creature out there, not getting another one if this one passes.

 

[Skulnik]

Yep, my B. Smithi is the slowest growing of all my slings. She's molted 3 times now and she's bot a whole hell of a lot bigger than yours. It's a big event at my house when she molts - like a birthday almost.

 

[Corranthe]

It's a big event at my house when she molts - like a birthday almost.

Probably happens about as often as a birthday too. Ah well, for all my complaints, I'm sure in five years she'll be huge and it will all be worth it.