Chilean Rose not eating

[SuetheBlue]

Had my grammostola rosea for 5 months and she hasn't eaten a thing. She molted around 6 weeks ago after which i thought she'd be starving. Have tried her with crickets, locusts, grasshoppers and silkworms and she wont have any of them, she just shys away like shes scared of them. Her abdomen looks small compared to our costa rican curly hair, chaco golden knee and giant brazilian white knee who are all eating fine. Its quite cold here now so even tried half her tank on a heat mat but thats done no good either, its like shes forgotten how to eat. Getting quite worried about her now, shes so gorgeous as well and dont want to lose her. Can anyone suggest what I can try??

 

[Pokie11]

It is normal for arid species to fast for a long time even though they are not in premolt. Post a picture of your rosie, so we can see if there is anything wrong with her. Also, what are the temperatures in your house?? If it's not under 18-20degrees Celsius, don't bother with artificial heat. Heat mats are not good for tarantulas.

 

[Grace Cannell]

I have heard that this species is notorious for being a bad eater, they can fast for long periods of time. Tarantulas can go a good long while without eating, providing there is a water source and it's environment is maintained, the heat mat won't do much to inspire your tarantula to eat. So my advice would be to not worry too much, and keep trying every now and then.

 

[PidderPeets]

Had my grammostola rosea for 5 months and she hasn't eaten a thing. She molted around 6 weeks ago after which i thought she'd be starving. Have tried her with crickets, locusts, grasshoppers and silkworms and she wont have any of them, she just shys away like shes scared of them. Her abdomen looks small compared to our costa rican curly hair, chaco golden knee and giant brazilian white knee who are all eating fine. Its quite cold here now so even tried half her tank on a heat mat but thats done no good either, its like shes forgotten how to eat. Getting quite worried about her now, shes so gorgeous as well and dont want to lose her. Can anyone suggest what I can try??

Post a picture of the enclosure to rule out any husbandry issues that might be stressing it out enough to not eat?

The 5 months not eating in premolt is fine. It likely had enough food to carry it through the molt, so it had no need to eat. Grammostola rosea/porteri are imfamous for fasting. I've heard reports of going as long as 18 months without eating.

What size is it? If it's larger, it just may not be ready food yet.

Did the molt look normal?

 

[SuetheBlue]

It is normal for arid species to fast for a long time even though they are not in premolt. Post a picture of your rosie, so we can see if there is anything wrong with her.

Had my grammostola rosea for 5 months and she hasn't eaten a thing. She molted around 6 weeks ago after which i thought she'd be starving. Have tried her with crickets, locusts, grasshoppers and silkworms and she wont have any of them, she just shys away like shes scared of them. Her abdomen looks small compared to our costa rican curly hair, chaco golden knee and giant brazilian white knee who are all eating fine. Its quite cold here now so even tried half her tank on a heat mat but thats done no good either, its like shes forgotten how to eat. Getting quite worried about her now, shes so gorgeous as well and dont want to lose her. Can anyone suggest what I can try??

 

[SuetheBlue]

Post a picture of the enclosure to rule out any husbandry issues that might be stressing it out enough to not eat?

The 5 months not eating in premolt is fine. It likely had enough food to carry it through the molt, so it had no need to eat. Grammostola rosea/porteri are imfamous for fasting. I've heard reports of going as long as 18 months without eating.

What size is it? If it's larger, it just may not be ready food yet.

Did the molt look normal?

 

[SuetheBlue]

molt was fine, we took it in to shop where we bought her so they could sex her. Pic of her molt attached.

 

[SuetheBlue]

I have heard that this species is notorious for being a bad eater, they can fast for long periods of time. Tarantulas can go a good long while without eating, providing there is a water source and it's environment is maintained, the heat mat won't do much to inspire your tarantula to eat. So my advice would be to not worry too much, and keep trying every now and then.

thanks, will try not to worry, her abdomen does look small though compared to our other T's whose are all nice and plump.

 

[PidderPeets]

What's the enclosure look like? Is it kept dry? They're an arid species and don't seem to tolerate moisture very well. Is the substrate packed down enough? It looks kind of loose, which might be uncomfortable for it to walk on to chase prey. What's the temperature like?

The tarantula itself looks fine. But do you handle it frequently? I ask because it looks like it's on a bed in the second picture. Frequent handling might stress it out enough that it would be less inclined to eat.

 

[Grace Cannell]

Yeah loose substrate can be a cause. I had a similar problem with one of mine, it was more interested in cleaning it's feet constantly or pacing/climbing than eating. The abdomen will be smaller as it has moulted, handling and moving your T to other places won't help, they really get nothing out of it and it can stress them out.

 

[SuetheBlue]

What's the enclosure look like? Is it kept dry? They're an arid species and don't seem to tolerate moisture very well. Is the substrate packed down enough? It looks kind of loose, which might be uncomfortable for it to walk on to chase prey. What's the temperature like?

The tarantula itself looks fine. But do you handle it frequently? I ask because it looks like it's on a bed in the second picture. Frequent handling might stress it out enough that it would be less inclined to eat.

We mist her enclosure every few days as we do with our other 3 T's. I will pack the substrate down further though so its not loose although I have held food in front of her and she still refuses and runs away. As for the temperature am not sure what is correct, its quite cold in england now but our other T's seem fine without a heat pad. We don't handle her too often as heard they dont really like it.

 

[SuetheBlue]

We mist her enclosure every few days as we do with our other 3 T's. I will pack the substrate down further though so its not loose although I have held food in front of her and she still refuses and runs away. As for the temperature am not sure what is correct, its quite cold in england now but our other T's seem fine without a heat pad. We don't handle her too often as heard they dont really like it.

 

[SuetheBlue]

Have attached pic of her enclosure

 

[SuetheBlue]

Have attached pic of her enclosure

Oh and the plastic plant isnt in there now btw

 

[KezyGLA]

Too moist in there for desert sp.

Stress may be the issue.

The substrate should be bone dry.

Is it an old photo?

 

[SuetheBlue]

Too moist in there for desert sp.

Stress may be the issue.

The substrate should be bone dry.

Is it an old photo?

It was quite moist then but its a lot dryer now as we have her half on a heat pad. Should we be misting the enclosure or not?

 

[PidderPeets]

We mist her enclosure every few days as we do with our other 3 T's. I will pack the substrate down further though so its not loose although I have held food in front of her and she still refuses and runs away. As for the temperature am not sure what is correct, its quite cold in england now but our other T's seem fine without a heat pad. We don't handle her too often as heard they dont really like it.

The substrate looks pretty damp for that species. I'm assuming the colder temps are responsible for the condensation, but there really shouldn't be any condensation at all. They like it completely dry.

Don't mist at all for this species, and I wouldn't for the others either. For the ones that do like a little extra moisture, just overfill the water bowl every so often. Misting doesn't do much, as it only dampens the very top layer of substrate for a very short time

 

[SuetheBlue]

The substrate looks pretty damp for that species. I'm assuming the colder temps are responsible for the condensation, but there really shouldn't be any condensation at all. They like it completely dry.

Don't mist at all for this species, and I wouldn't for the others either. For the ones that do like a little extra moisture, just overfill the water bowl every so often. Misting doesn't do much, as it only dampens the very top layer of substrate for a very short time

Thank you for your help, I wont mist anymore and see if it helps. Hopefully the girl will eat soon.

 

[boina]

Yes, please stop misting. This species comes from a desert and really does not do well in any kind of moisture. It will very likely still take weeks for your tarantula to recover from the moist conditions and start eating.

And stop misting your G. pulchripes (Chaco golden knee), too. That's another species that does not like too much moisture.

And another thing: From the way you photographed the molt it's impossible to tell anything. What you are looking for is to see, if the sucking stomach has molted properly and is attached to the molt. For that you need a close up shot of the inner side of the cephalothorax.

(And I would never trust any shop to sex a tarantula, but your shop may be the big exception)

 

[SuetheBlue]

Yes, please stop misting. This species comes from a desert and really does not do well in any kind of moisture. It will very likely still take weeks for your tarantula to recover from the moist conditions and start eating.

And stop misting your G. pulchripes (Chaco golden knee), too. That's another species that does not like too much moisture.

And another thing: From the way you photographed the molt it's impossible to tell anything. What you are looking for is to see, if the sucking stomach has molted properly and is attached to the molt. For that you need a close up shot of the inner side of the cephalothorax.

(And I would never trust any shop to sex a tarantula, but your shop may be the big exception)

thank you, will definitely not mist any of them now, i do worry the temperature is too cold for them and theres a lot of controversy regarding heat pads. Its difficult to know if your doing the right thing.

Yes, please stop misting. This species comes from a desert and really does not do well in any kind of moisture. It will very likely still take weeks for your tarantula to recover from the moist conditions and start eating.

And stop misting your G. pulchripes (Chaco golden knee), too. That's another species that does not like too much moisture.

And another thing: From the way you photographed the molt it's impossible to tell anything. What you are looking for is to see, if the sucking stomach has molted properly and is attached to the molt. For that you need a close up shot of the inner side of the cephalothorax.

(And I would never trust any shop to sex a tarantula, but your shop may be the big exception)