Advice on feeding my tarantula

[MiaCarmela]

Hi!
I’ve had my first tarantula since July 2024. She’s a brachypelma Hamorii. She eats really well and has been really healthy. She hasn’t moulted yet though since I’ve had her. She is a juvenile with approximately a 7cm diagonal leg span. We made the mistake of overfeeding her and she became overweight. I haven’t fed her for a month but she hasn’t come out of her hide since the end of March so I cannot assess whether her abdomen is still too large. I don’t know if she is in premoult or if she’s ready for a feed. I have tried to encourage her out of her hide but she isn’t interested. Do I try feeding her? I have included a picture of her from 21st March.

 

[BoyFromLA]

Feeding process, simple yet complicated

This post is dedicated to feeding process. A bit more detailed version of my previous post in Tarantula Chat, which is the below link: https://arachnoboards.com/threads/when-feeding%E2%80%A6.364054/ A feeding in general, is very simple process. This can be as simple as five steps. Locate the...

arachnoboards.com

 

[TheraMygale]

That tarantula is enormous. I cant imagine its just 7cm wow.

it wont shrink in size until it molts, whenever that will be.

feeding it more will not make it molt faster.

premolt or not, you dont need to feed it. It might still take food if you give it, but i don’t think its the best move considering its been fasting.

when weather is warmer, it will activate metabolism. then you might see some molting. And still, maybe not. It takes a long time for them to molt. Even if fat.

full does not equal molt, especialy in these kinds of tarantula. Fat only means the time between molts can be extra long.

photo of full enclosure please. Substrate seems low for this big of an abdomen.

 

[viper69]

No your T is fatter than Jupiter, leave it alone

 

[IntermittentSygnal]

It’s not uncommon for a T to hide away when she doesnt need to eat any more to molt. I have a different species that made a blockade 120 days ago that still hasn’t molted. Just make sure she has constant access to clean water.

 

[Nitroxide]

The comments killed medefinitely leave her be, may be about to molt which is why she's hiding out. As others mentioned, she's absolutely massive and definitely doesn't need anything more to eat. Let her be for now and hopefully she molts for you soon!

I wouldn't want to walk around if I was that big either.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Just worry about the water dish. Super fat Ts don’t need food.

 

[Brewser]

Fresh Water n Waiting Game.
Enjoy

 

[Gevo]

This species is known for having really long fasting periods. They can be great eaters too until they've had enough, which makes it easy to overfeed if you're not careful. Just wait until she molts (which could be months away yet!) and don't worry. Once they're fat, they stay fat until they molt and aren't going to starve or anything. After her next molt, wait until she's hardened up and then space out feedings more to try not to plump her up too much too quickly again. Mine's also around 7 cm, and I either feed her once every 2-3 weeks or so, or I'll feed her a couple of crickets within a week and then wait a few more weeks before feeding again. I know lots of feeding guides say juveniles should be fed about 1-2 times a week, but I find that with this species at that size, that's way too much.

 

[Arachnophobphile]

Make her the next candidate for the 2026 Krispie Kreme calender super porker model.