# To Feed or not to Feed (Molting Questions)



## sonny_soniel

My 1'' (now approximately 1.5-2'') G. Rosea recently molted. (I discovered him/her molting yesterday at 6:00 AM, and its now 4:10 PM here  ) 

As the title suggests, when do I start feeding it? I read somewhere that after molting their new "skin" is not hard enough and the fangs are not developed to actually eat anything...

I feed it with mealworms ( protein baby!) and it seems pretty happy with it. 

Take note that this is my first Tarantula, so yeah, i'm kinda paranoid about my T.. :O


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## Talkenlate04

Wait a week or so and then try and offer something. If she refuses it within the first few minutes take it out, wait another few days then try again. Trust me that little bugger can go a long time without food. The odds of you harming her by waiting a little bit long before feeding are pretty much zero.

Reactions: Like 2


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## desertdweller

Great thing you asked.  DO NOT feed your T for at least the next 5 days!!!!  It is in THE most vulnerable situation it can be in.  It will take about that long for the new exoskeleton to harden up enough to protect it.

Not long ago someone didn't see a meal worm in with her newly molted T and well, let's just say the meal worm won.  It was grizzly.

Reactions: Like 1


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## sonny_soniel

Well, my Tarantula dealer told me not to feed it in the next 2 weeks. (which I think might be cruel). But then, maybe I'll wait a week or two and offer it with food.

BTW, I cut off the head of the mealworm before offering it...and I try to cut the size of the mealworm to the size of my Rosea's abdomen (again, I read this somewhere 

Thanks for the replies  I do hope my sling grows into one beautiful spider.. before trying to get a P.Regalis 
@desertdweller
that is the scariest thing i have ever imagined

Reactions: Disagree 1


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## Mushroom Spore

sonny_soniel said:


> Well, my Tarantula dealer told me not to feed it in the next 2 weeks. (which I think might be cruel).


Tarantulas can go months, sometimes years without eating and not even lose any weight. Trust us, it's not cruel.

Reactions: Like 2 | Agree 1


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## Crazy0monkey

umm 1  question, after a trantula molts is it normal 2 see them omost in a death curl for awhile. Not realy in one but legs are kinda pulled closer to the middle then normal


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## Mushroom Spore

Crazy0monkey said:


> umm 1  question, after a trantula molts is it normal 2 see them omost in a death curl for awhile. Not realy in one but legs are kinda pulled closer to the middle then normal


They will sit in all sorts of odd positions after molting, as they must stretch out their new body while it hardens. Just make sure they have water and don't worry about it.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 2


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## Aubrey Sidwell

Just a simple word of advice. If you use crickets as feeders then never have any in the tarantulas home during the molt and for about 1 week after. Some can eat sooner then others depending on species and size but 1 week is a good rule of thumb. On the other hand if you use feeder roaches such as Dubias or Red Runners they will not harm your spider even during a molt as they are not cannibalistic like the crickets. I have had a range of tarantulas molt with roaches in the cage with no side effects. Once the tarantula is ready to eat they will find the roach when they are ready. I would still have no live food in the cage during or after a molt to alleviate any stress for the tarantula but if you miss a live cricket it can eat your spider where a roach will not.

Reactions: Like 2 | Informative 1 | Sad 1


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## AzJohn

Talkenlate04 said:


> Wait a week or so and then try and offer something. If she refuses it within the first few minutes take it out, wait another few days then try again. Trust me that little bugger can go a long time without food. The odds of you harming her by waiting a little bit long before feeding are pretty much zero.


This is great addvice for any situations involving molting. Pre molt, post molt ect. How many threads are dedicated to odd, unusual, or starnge tarantula behavior. Tarantulas march to the beat of a different drum. I've had Avic slings eat a day or two after molting and others adult species go months. My female G. rosea spent 18 months in premolt. She didn't eat a thing.

Reactions: Like 2


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## xhexdx

Run a search on this thread.  The amount of information you'll find is amazing.

I bet there's been at LEAST ten threads on when to feed a tarantula after molting within the last...two months.

Reactions: Award 1


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## penny'smom

AzJohn said:


> My female G. rosea spent 18 months in premolt. She didn't eat a thing.


It's reports like this that make me wonder if Penny will ever molt/eat again. ROFL!!!!!  Actually, it makes me feel a bit better, knowing that she is being a "normal" rosea.


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## sonny_soniel

@Icelos

I only feed it small (or sliced mealworms, if ever i didn't find the small ones) as its the common T food sold in most petshops here. THey do sell the dubia roach.. and they go for 12$ per 25 pieces.

Reactions: Like 1


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## MaxJay

This thread has been very helpful just got a T for my daughter and she just molted and I was unsure when to feed her but now I will wait a week maybe more and see how it goes thanks for the help.


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## gldnrott

My husband and I have had our first Rosehair for about a year and a half and she (yes, we're positive.:biggrin: ) just molted about 3 weeks ago. We finally got her to eat this week. Should we start her back on the normal feeding routine? She's eating a cricket a day for the last 3 days but I know they can eat until they're obese, so we don't want to over feed her.


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## Poec54

gldnrott said:


> My husband and I have had our first Rosehair for about a year and a half and she (yes, we're positive.:biggrin: ) just molted about 3 weeks ago. We finally got her to eat this week. Should we start her back on the normal feeding routine? She's eating a cricket a day for the last 3 days but I know they can eat until they're obese, so we don't want to over feed her.


Feed them more often after a molt, they've lost most of their fluids and food reserves, and their instinct is pushing them to regain that ASAP.  It's not the time to ration their food.  Once they're up to a moderate weight, then slow down the feeding frequncy.

Reactions: Like 2 | Informative 1


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## EightLeggedFreaks

You don't have to wait a week after molting.  You can try in 3 or so days.  Since its only 1 inch it takes less time to harden.  Crush the head of a cricket and throw it in and leave it.  It won't hurt.  I have so many T's I don't know if they molt in their burrows or not.  I've had some eat a day after molting, some eat a week after molting.  It all depends on the t itself.

Reactions: Agree 1 | Informative 1


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## BobGrill

One of the reasons I'm not too big on Rosies. You can never tell half the time if they're about to molt or just being themselves when they refuse food.


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## JetBoxOne

BobGrill said:


> One of the reasons I'm not too big on Rosies. You can never tell half the time if they're about to molt or just being themselves when they refuse food.


if its an adult im not sure but usually theyre abdomen turn black when they are about to molt thats what hapenned with mine her abdomen just started turning black another signe is the tarantula kind of shining reflecting light like if its wet using that i predicted my T pre molting and she actually molted few hours before i posted this message. hope i helped

Reactions: Funny 1


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## REEFSPIDER

JetBoxOne said:


> if its an adult im not sure but usually theyre abdomen turn black when they are about to molt thats what hapenned with mine her abdomen just started turning black another signe is the tarantula kind of shining reflecting light like if its wet using that i predicted my T pre molting and she actually molted few hours before i posted this message. hope i helped


Lol reviving the dead

Reactions: Funny 3


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## Paiige

REEFSPIDER said:


> Lol reviving the dead


...and I'm sure this rosea in question is probably still fasting 



penny'smom said:


> It's reports like this that make me wonder if Penny will ever molt/eat again. ROFL!!!!!  Actually, it makes me feel a bit better, knowing that she is being a "normal" rosea.

Reactions: Like 1 | Funny 2


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## Urban Country Spider

ok what about a B. Vagan it just molted sometime in the late/early of 5/29/2017


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## MGery92

Urban Country Spider said:


> ok what about a B. Vagan it just molted sometime in the late/early of 5/29/2017


Um, what is the question here? It is a very old thread...


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## Lucashank

Urban Country Spider said:


> ok what about a B. Vagan it just molted sometime in the late/early of 5/29/2017


That date is today, so definitely do not feed your tarantula yet.
I think that waiting one week after a molt to feed is the safest, but the size of the tarantula can make a difference.


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## Urban Country Spider

Lucashank said:


> That date is today, so definitely do not feed your tarantula yet.
> I think that waiting one week after a molt to feed is the safest, but the size of the tarantula can make a difference.


I got that part but I look at my Vagans ass (the abdomen) and it was skinny so that's why I ask


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## MGery92

After a molt all of them are skinny. If it is a juvenile/adult, give it a week or so to recover. If it is a sling, give it 5-6 days, or a week, if you want to be sure.


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## Lucashank

Urban Country Spider said:


> I got that part but I look at my Vagans ass (the abdomen) and it was skinny so that's why I ask


That is normal, and it will be fine. I would try feeding the tarantula in five days or so. Make sure you have a water dish provided.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Urban Country Spider

OK so I am doing everything correctly now that I knew I was doing sorry for the confusion but this is my first one but I am planning to get another one. So its like a new mother for a baby I just do not want to do this



Lucashank said:


> That is normal, and it will be fine. I would try feeding the tarantula in five days or so. Make sure you have a water dish provided.


I always do I try to keep water in it


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## Ellenantula

I may have missed the size of 'new' 2017 OP's sling. 

I feed slings in about 5 days.  A small juvie might get offered something in 7 days or so.  Larger juvies, sub-adults and adults I wait 10 days -- sometimes even 2 weeks.  
It's often a case by case -- and I have been know to feed much earlier if I can see for myself the fangs have blackened/hardened.


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## Alfredscorpkeeper

So i just had a juvie fireleg tarantula. 
It literally motled a few hours before i picked it up at the seller's house. Now, its abdomen is a bit small. What do you guys suggest i do for it?


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## antinous

Alfredscorpkeeper said:


> So i just had a juvie fireleg tarantula.
> It literally motled a few hours before i picked it up at the seller's house. Now, its abdomen is a bit small. What do you guys suggest i do for it?


Wait until it hardens, depending on its size it could take a week+.

Reactions: Agree 1


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