Should i consider checking on my molting pluchra?

FOREVER

Arachnopeon
Joined
Apr 19, 2018
Messages
10
It's all in the title, i'm the proud owner of Grammostola Pluchra sling for a month and a half now, about a week after i got it it buried itself and went into premolt (i expected that by his look).

The issue here is this: it's been 5 weeks!

I wouldn't normally consider checking it and i know pluchra tend to take their time but we are talking 3/4 inch (2cm) sling, and i haven't found any thread where a pluchra sling this small took this long to molt...

I'm starting to worry a bit so any advice is useful.

note: i can lift the bark just high enough to see above the pile of dirt at the entrance without collapsing anything so it's not about digging it up, just checking if it still live.
 

cold blood

Moderator
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it could be much longer. I will say, this is typical of a NW terrestrial housed in an over sized enclosure...id say get used to not seeing much of it.
 

Campi95

Arachnosquire
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May 8, 2017
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97
5 weeks? It’s either done molting or gone. HOWEVER, this doesn’t mean you should look. With these slings, their survival strategy is to hide in their burrow and come out at night if at all. It is a great survival strategy.

Let it be in there. Kill a cricket and leave it in front of the burrow, dead. Check in a day or two after. If the cricket is gone, congratulations. You are now the proud owner of a pet hole :p

If the cricket isn’t eaten, remove and try again with a different dead cricket a week after.
 

Nightshady

Dislike Harvester
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Oct 24, 2017
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Five weeks? Haha, that’s nothing. My 3/4” pulchra sling was barricaded in its hide for almost four months. I finally unearthed the entrance and the pulchra was just hanging out in there and hadn’t molted.

Since then I’ve fed it two crickets and it hasn’t re-barricaded its hide. As @cold blood said, it’s probably because it’s a small sling in a largish habitat. Some slings do great in bigger habitats and some just go into hiding.
 

BoyFromLA

Spoon feeder
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Oct 26, 2017
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Most of the time, if not always, old skin will be thrown out once molting is done.

Below picture is the old skin from burrowed 1/4” Grammostola pulchra sling.

1668C5F6-7B37-481F-A5C3-803A2D0A55FC.jpeg
 

PidderPeets

Arachnoprince
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May 27, 2017
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G. pulchra seem to take literally forever to molt. I've had my pulchra sling (it was 3/4 inch when I got it) for about 8 weeks. Of those 8 weeks, 6 were spent with a big enough abdomen that it looked like it was about to pop. I thought it would molt within a week or two of having it. But it only just molted last week, despite being in obvious premolt for weeks.

I have mine housed in a 2oz deli cup, so taking longer to molt doesn’t strictly indicate too large of an enclosure in my book.

My G. pulchripes also hid herself away for a long time as a tiny sling (3 1/2 months!), and she didn't even end up molting in that time.

What I'm getting at is: be patient. I know it's tough at times, but it's what's best for the animal. You should develop more patience as you grow in the hobby, and little things like a few weeks off food will be nothing. :)
 

Devin B

Arachnobaron
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
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326
Ive had a B. Hamorii sling stay underground for over 5 months! I was lucky enough that uts burrow was against the side of the enclosure and I could see it. This is part of the reason I have 6 tarantulas now.
 

FOREVER

Arachnopeon
Joined
Apr 19, 2018
Messages
10
Alright just posting to say pluchra is fine, it (finally) molted after 2.5 month, it still sits under its hide but it sometimes come out now, great to be able to feed it for the first time :) (voracious one, it tried to bite the tweezers before it found the cricket). It's nearing 1 inch and if learned something out of this it is that G. Pulchra rly take forever to molt (i don't even want to think about the time it will take when it will mature o_O)

anyway thx all and cya
 

Nightstalker47

Arachnoking
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Jul 2, 2016
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2,612
Alright just posting to say pluchra is fine, it (finally) molted after 2.5 month, it still sits under its hide but it sometimes come out now, great to be able to feed it for the first time :) (voracious one, it tried to bite the tweezers before it found the cricket). It's nearing 1 inch and if learned something out of this it is that G. Pulchra rly take forever to molt (i don't even want to think about the time it will take when it will mature o_O)

anyway thx all and cya
Glad everything went well with the molt, no need to tong feed in the future.

In some cases the T can injure its fangs if it hits the steel, arboreals can run straight up them and unto you.
 
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