Concern about G. rosea size

[grimmjowls]

Hi. A friend of mine has expressed some concern about the size of their G. rosea's abdomen size lately, and said that she hasn't been eating very well, so I thought I'd ask if anyone had any thoughts of how to help out.

Said friend is aware of them fasting for periods of time, but is worried because her abdomen size isn't looking the best. Here's the stats I got for her:

room temp: 72
last molted: August 23rd
sex: confirmed female
age: unknown (got her winter 2014)
last ate: crickets* 2-3 weeks ago
has eaten in the past: crickets, superworms, dubias
substrate: coco fiber
DLS: ~4.5-5"

-I tried to feed her most recently a few days ago, superworms but she bit into one and dropped it
-talk conditions haven't been altered in any way for 6+ months
-she's been grooming, walking around, doing her usual thing
-just not eating and I'm worried about the size of her abdomen
-she seems ok...she was getting 8∆ at me for opening her tank and doing stuff, not lethargic at all

Attached pics below.

If you'd like any more info, let me know and I'll get right to it!

 

[Haksilence]

Just keep offering her food, she is definitely strangely thin. I would leave 2 or 3 fat crickets in for a day or two to allow her to pick them off at her leisure.

If she doesn't eat then she doesn't eat, there isn't much you can do to remedy that other than have food available.

I've found with some of my slower new world females they aren't really interested in eating any time around being disturbed or during daylight hours, so just give her some roommates for a day or so

 

[viper69]

Was it MOLT confirmed female?

 

[Andrea82]

Pictures of pedipalps would help for ruling out the rosea being a mature male.

 

[grimmjowls]

Was it MOLT confirmed female?

Yes.

Pictures of pedipalps would help for ruling out the rosea being a mature male.

She's not out in the open right now, but they'll try to get a picture when they can.

For clarification, the friend had a MM G. rosea for a year and a half, knows what they look like with bulbous palps, hooks, etc.

Thanks for the replies.

 

[grimmjowls]

Just keep offering her food, she is definitely strangely thin. I would leave 2 or 3 fat crickets in for a day or two to allow her to pick them off at her leisure.

If she doesn't eat then she doesn't eat, there isn't much you can do to remedy that other than have food available.

I've found with some of my slower new world females they aren't really interested in eating any time around being disturbed or during daylight hours, so just give her some roommates for a day or so

Forgot to reply to this, sorry!

Thank you for the reply, we'll just have to try and encourage her to eat.

Earlier today, a cricket was dropped in and she grabbed it. Friend doesn't see the cricket anywhere now (few hours later) but they don't know for certain if she got it.
(I'll be asking them to watch for longer next time... I believe they had errands to run and couldn't stay and watch to confirm a meal.)

 

[grimmjowls]

Update: Cricket was found. Silk on it, seems like she might have eaten some? Here are some photos. (Apparently she did the same with her superworm from a few days ago.)

Friend said maybe she didnt want to eat during the day, but she has in the past, making this puzzling and worrisome.

 

[Venom1080]

there may be something wrong with the Ts fangs. it may not be able to hold onto prey.

 

[grimmjowls]

there may be something wrong with the Ts fangs. it may not be able to hold onto prey.

If that's the case, what do you suggest they do? Mush up the food for her? Would she even recognize that as food...

They said: "when she grabbed the cricket, I looked underneath her as best I could and it looked like it was shoved in her mouth" although there still could be issues with her fangs, I suppose.

 

[Nixphat]

This website in general is actually pretty great in terms of useful info.

http://people.ucalgary.ca/~schultz/FanglessZombie.html

Specifically, you can find info if you scroll down to: "BUT WHAT DO YOU DO NOW THAT IT HASN'T ANY FANGS TO EAT WITH?"

 

[grimmjowls]

I asked my friend to get a picture of her fangs... its not the best, but you can clearly see both are intact and in line. :\ I'm looking up options in case they're non-functional, so I'll suggest those to them.

@Nixphat thanks, I'll look into it and see if it has any information I can use.

 

[viper69]

If that's the case, what do you suggest they do? Mush up the food for her? Would she even recognize that as food...

They said: "when she grabbed the cricket, I looked underneath her as best I could and it looked like it was shoved in her mouth" although there still could be issues with her fangs, I suppose.

Yes. Some will live on insect goo, some won't. If it's an issue of fangs, the T may die of starvation. Keep extra water in the container if that's the case to keep up their blood pressure.

EDIT- Those fangs are fine.

 

[grimmjowls]

A better photo... I don't see anything wrong with her mouth, so what should our next plan of action be?



@viper69 Thanks. I'll make sure they keep the water dish filled.

 

[CakeLore]

Welp I know this species is notorious for absurd fasts, but I haven't heard much about how skinny they get during these fasts. Sounds like she's almost certainly not in premolt. When was the last time she ate?

Edit: Whoops I'm dumb.

 

[grimmjowls]

Welp I know this species is notorious for absurd fasts, but I haven't heard much about how skinny they get during these fasts. Sounds like she's almost certainly not in premolt. When was the last time she ate?

Info in OP, about 2-3 weeks ago.

 

[cold blood]

Now if y'all are 100% sure its female, then my course of action would be to try as many different feeders as possible. Often there's something they will take. The fact that it pounced on the cricket and killed it, tells me its hungry. Wax worms, earthworms and, people won't like this, but a pinkie mouse are all things to try. I'd suggest pre-killed items, but many rose hairs won't touch pre-killed...they are a notoriously picky eating group of tarantulas. Mine for instance, often refuses food unless the prey item is large enough, then it will drill it....mine's shown a clear preference for the largest prey items many times.

Now for the potential bad....its last molt could have had an issue with the mouthparts, specifically the sucking stomach. If this is the case, it may just not be able to consume anything....its a long shot, sure, but it happens and isn't unheard of. A freshly molted t, even a rose hair, should be heavy on the feed.....aside from damage to the mouthparts, the only other reason I would expect to see this is if it were a MM.....I'm not saying it is, I'm just sayin'.

Has your friend noticed it drinking water at all?

On the other hand, its only been 2-3 weeks since its last meal, that practically a feeding schedule for the species, so I wouldn't even begin to worry...until it doesn't eat for 3 months, I don't even consider it a fast for the species.

 

[BCspiderman7]

My G.Rosea is a strange eater sometimes. It will stop eating for a month or so and makes me think it is in premolt. Than all of a sudden it will start eating again for a few weeks. Than stop and not eat for another month or so......they really are picky eaters. Hope your friend's T is ok

 

[grimmjowls]

Now if y'all are 100% sure its female, then my course of action would be to try as many different feeders as possible. Often there's something they will take. The fact that it pounced on the cricket and killed it, tells me its hungry. Wax worms, earthworms and, people won't like this, but a pinkie mouse are all things to try. I'd suggest pre-killed items, but many rose hairs won't touch pre-killed...they are a notoriously picky eating group of tarantulas. Mine for instance, often refuses food unless the prey item is large enough, then it will drill it....mine's shown a clear preference for the largest prey items many times.

Now for the potential bad....its last molt could have had an issue with the mouthparts, specifically the sucking stomach. If this is the case, it may just not be able to consume anything....its a long shot, sure, but it happens and isn't unheard of. A freshly molted t, even a rose hair, should be heavy on the feed.....aside from damage to the mouthparts, the only other reason I would expect to see this is if it were a MM.....I'm not saying it is, I'm just sayin'.

Has your friend noticed it drinking water at all?

On the other hand, its only been 2-3 weeks since its last meal, that practically a feeding schedule for the species, so I wouldn't even begin to worry...until it doesn't eat for 3 months, I don't even consider it a fast for the species.

Thanks for the reply. Btw, the Ts I bought from you are doing just fine.

The concern isn't over the space of time from her last meal, the concern is how thin she is. We don't want it to get so far as for it to be too late to do anything.

Friend says they don't think she is dehydrated, but I will ask about the water.

 

[grimmjowls]

My G.Rosea is a strange eater sometimes. It will stop eating for a month or so and makes me think it is in premolt. Than all of a sudden it will start eating again for a few weeks. Than stop and not eat for another month or so......they really are picky eaters. Hope your friend's T is ok

Thank you. We wouldn't be too concerned, if she wasn't so thin already. She hasn't gained back any mass after her molt in August...

 

[grimmjowls]

Currently, I've suggested my friend squeeze out the insides of a few superworms and add some water, put the dish in her container. I researched as much as I could about damaged fangs, and although her fangs look fine, I wonder if they're not as functional as they look. That, or her mouth parts maybe not as well off as they seem. If this fails, and she continues to not gain any mass, I've also read of people using a dropper to "spoon feed" Ts that are struggling to feed on their own. I would next suggest that, but I am no expert. Simply a rationalist.

My friend is very attached to her, and they've suffered the loss of their MM incei a few days ago, and yesterday their A. anax died surprisingly, no apparent cause. I'm willing to do whatever I have to do to find a solution, if possible, to avoid them losing another beloved pet in such a short period of time.

Thank you for any good wishes or replies. It's easy to feel hopeless with smaller critters. It's best to try and keep your moral up!