# New scorpion, weird behavior, a little worried..



## geneparmesan (Jan 20, 2013)

I just bought my emperor scorpion 4 days ago. I got a heating pad to keep him warm and all that. But when I turn the light off on top of his cage and he "comes out to play" so to speak, I still have a lamp on in the corner of the room, because he's in my entertainment room, well when I turn off his light, he walks around for a minute, then goes to the corner closest to the lamp and he tries to climb the glass cage by propping himself up on his tail and tries to claw his way up, then he jusy sits there on his tail for a while until I move him away. Is something wrong with him? Is he cold and trying to get heat from the lamp? Or is he just being a weirdo? I'm kinda worried and new to this. Any advice would be appreciated!


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## Formerphobe (Jan 20, 2013)

Describe or post a pic of your enclosure.  Heat pad should be on the side, not the bottom, so as not to cook the scorp.  They don't like light, so it makes sense that it comes out when the light goes off.  You should offer a good 6 inches or more of firmly packed substrate so it can burrow.  You can pre-start a burrow for it, though it may or may not use it.  In a new setting, many will explore and/or try to escape until they feel more at home.  Be sure there is nothing in the enclosure it can stand on to push against the lid.  They aren't quite the escape artists that centipedes are, but it has been known to happen.  Congrats on your new scorpion.


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## geneparmesan (Jan 20, 2013)

Thanks a lot! I appreciate that. The heat pad said to put it on the bottom and it also said once I put it on, to not remove it once its on. As someone who is clearly more knowledgable in this matter than me, what should I do with the heating pad issue now? Buy a new one or just remove it and stick it on the side?

And I'm on my phone at the current moment, won't e able to post a picture yet. But it's a ten gallon tank with maybe 4 inches of bedding, a drinking sponge in a plastic shallow dish, and a fake rock with a fake tree for him to hide around and under, a mesh lid, with a 2 bulb lamp lip on top of that, with duct tape on the mesh lid for a little reassurance of no escape issues.


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## vespers (Jan 20, 2013)

*Remove the sponge from the dish ASAP. They will drink from the dish, and even climb in it sometimes. The sponge is just a bacteria trap.

*Remove the heating pad. Honestly, if your using bulbs on top, you may not need to use a heating pad at all. Check your temps with a thermometer. If absolutely feel you must use a heating pad, put it on the side like Formerphobe said. Those pads aren't very efficient anyhow.

*Do not use regular bulbs in the light fixture. Use Infrared or red bulbs so the scorpion isn't disturbed. 

*If the lid is mesh, you may have to cover some of it to help retain humidity in the enclosure.

There is a basic caresheet here in the scorpion forum to help get you started on the right track:
http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?11336-Basic-emperor-scorpion-(P.-imperator)-care.

Emperor scorpions are the most commonly kept species pet scorpion, and there is plenty of info to be found here if you use the search function.

Reactions: Like 1


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## geneparmesan (Jan 20, 2013)

Awesome. I really appreciate this. Thanks for all you guys' help. Much appreciated!!


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## darkness975 (Jan 21, 2013)

We call it glass dancing, it's perfectly normal especially for new scorpions.  Once they settle into their homes you likely won't see them that much.


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## geneparmesan (Jan 23, 2013)

Okay, update on my new scorpion. Any advice and words of wisdom would be appreciated haha.

Well I've made some modifications to the tank. I bought a heat lamp with a 150 watt infrared bulb and put it in the cage, with a thermometer that has a temperature gauge and a humidity gauge, with areas on it tha says "desert" and "tropical." Right now the tank is about 89 degrees with 54% humidity. The heat lamp also has a dimmer switch on it so I can turn it down if it gets extremely hot. I also heard that I should keep the cage at 100 degrees maybe once a week or so to mimic his climate as best as possible.

Now on to my other problem.

I put 2-3 crickets in there every 4-5 days or so, and he's still got 2 left and hasn't even interacted with them in about 2-3 days now. Can anyone give me any insight on to this worry I have as to why he won't eat?

Thanks again guys!


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## darkness975 (Jan 23, 2013)

89 degrees temperature is a bit too warm in my opinion I'd lower it to 80-82ish.  The humidity should be around 70 - 80%.  The stress from the higher temp, low humidity, and the fact that he is still relatively new to the environment are likely all factors in why he hasn't eaten.  You should get the temp/humidity into the ranges I stated and then try feeding him maybe next week.

Reactions: Like 1


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## vespers (Jan 23, 2013)

A humidity gauge with "desert" and "tropical" on it? You probably got that from a pet store. Ignore it; most of them are crap. Keep the substrate moist to the touch (just damp, not soaking) and your humidity will be fine. No, I wouldn't recommend bringing the temps up to 100 degrees once a week, or at all.


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## geneparmesan (Jan 23, 2013)

I did get it from the pet store, because the store that I bought my scorpion from was closed, and it was the only one they had besides one that was 20-something dollars haha. So I'll keep it around 80 degrees. And to keep the humidity up, I have to spray the tank quite often, right? Or is there any other ways to keep it more humid, for longer?


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## ShredderEmp (Jan 23, 2013)

Another way to keep humidity that many people use is called a false bottom. Search it on here to find info as it takes some time.


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## vespers (Jan 23, 2013)

geneparmesan said:


> And to keep the humidity up, I have to spray the tank quite often, right? Or is there any other ways to keep it more humid, for longer?


Opinions vary, but the most effective method is probably using the "false bottom" method, which is briefly described in the link I posted earlier (a layer of gravel beneath the substrate, and sometimes a tube for adding water to said gravel layer).

Adding water directly to the substrate is often more effective than misting regardless. A small cup of water poured directly in the substrate once a week will likely be fine, if you have the ventilation somewhat restricted.


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## geneparmesan (Jan 23, 2013)

Well as far as ventilation goes, since I got the heat lamp, I removed the lighting fixture top, and put the mesh locking top back on and have the heat lamp rigged to heat one side of the tank so he can retreat to the cooler side if necessary. I'll try the one cup of water once a week and see how that works. I misted the tank about an hour ago and it's stayed around 55%. Is there anything else I should know or do to make sure this little guy is ok?


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## Formerphobe (Jan 23, 2013)

Use plastic wrap to seal most of the lid to keep the humidity up.  With a mesh top and a heat lamp, it will really dry things out in there.


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## Bugmom (Jan 23, 2013)

I tried the false bottom with my emp. All I got was stagnant water. I probably did it wrong, but watch for that.

Blame Tapatalk + "smart" phone for the typos kthnx


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## geneparmesan (Jan 24, 2013)

@formerphobe what about ventilation/oxygen? I mean obviously I don't wana seal off the entire tank but can I possibly get a brief description of how to and what to do as far as plastic wrap goes? I just want to make sure he doesn't die in two weeks from too much heat or from freezing to death. I live in Delaware and it was 21 degrees today and it worried me a little because I don't like to crank my heat due to the fact that I don't feel like wasting all my money on a heating bill haha.


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## Formerphobe (Jan 24, 2013)

I'm not too far south of you with the same temps.  We've been keeping the thermostat about 70 for my mom, used to keep it ~68.  I don't bother measuring tank temps or humidity any more.  I currently have two Emperor tanks.  One female I moved into a tiny 2.5 gallon because someone was interested in her, then backed out.  It has a small heat mat on the side, no light and plastic wrap covering all but about 1/2 inch on either end.   She birthed a clutch of babies in there a few weeks ago and they all seem to be doing nicely.  The bigger tank (20 gal) has a single 40 watt round red lamp on it (more because because I'm nosy than for anything else) and heat mat on one side.  The screen top is covered with plastic wrap except for an area just slightly bigger than the lamp that sits on it. Due to the lamp, that tank tends to dry out faster so I put in a wider mouthed bowl.  One, or both, of the females in that tank gave birth recently as well.  I over flow the water bowls and pour water around the sides of both tanks about once a week.  Both tanks have isopod colonies that do a great job cleaning up leftovers and any mold that may deign to form.

A few years ago when I was monitoring temp/humidity, I tried to keep both somewhere around 80.  Current babies are the third generation born in this type set up.  They are great fun to watch grow.  After the first batch of babies was born a few years ago, I even caught my octogenarian mother in the floor a few times with the blacklight watching the babies.  LOL


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## geneparmesan (Jan 24, 2013)

Now a question I have, is if I remove my heating pad from the bottom of my tank, can I restick it to the side? I'd really hate to waste 20 bucks on something I can't even use cause its in the wrong spot.


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## ~Abyss~ (Jan 24, 2013)

Depends on the type of heating pad. Usually once you stick it once, it won’t restick. But don’t let that deter you from moving it you can always use some tape or something although it wont be as appealing.


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## Formerphobe (Jan 24, 2013)

If it hasn't been stuck there too long, it should come off fairly easily, proceed gently.  I've relocated mine before and they were none the worse for the wear.  Moving the heat mat more than once or twice may cause the adhesive to fail. And each subsequent move increases the chances of causing damage to the heating elements.


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