Does my tarantula look full?

Chris LXXIX

Chris LXXIX

ArachnoGod
Joined
Dec 25, 2014
Messages
5,845
Looks exactly like what should be: A quite healthy sling, from those pics.

Full? What do you mean with "full", btw? You mean 'full = healthy', therefore 'fat = healthy'?

If so, I've saw definitely more "fatty" slings than yours, but then again, yours looks healthy.
 
OaTheTarantulaLover

OaTheTarantulaLover

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jun 24, 2021
Messages
4
I interchan
Chris LXXIX said:
Looks exactly like what should be: A quite healthy sling, from those pics.

Full? What do you mean with "full", btw? You mean 'full = healthy', therefore 'fat = healthy'?

If so, I've saw definitely more "fatty" slings than yours, but then again, yours looks healthy.
Click to expand...
i interchange fat and healthy quite a bit, even though they shouldn’t be, but as far as I know it’s the only even slightly useful way to gauge the health of a tarantula so I use both. Either way, I meant like not starving or anything, so that answered my question, thank you!
 
cold blood

cold blood

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jan 19, 2014
Messages
13,259
OaTheTarantulaLover said:
I interchan
i interchange fat and healthy quite a bit, even though they shouldn’t be, but as far as I know it’s the only even slightly useful way to gauge the health of a tarantula so I use both. Either way, I meant like not starving or anything, so that answered my question, thank you!
Click to expand...
Nope, its not a way at all to gauge health. Thin is normal and healthy, as is fat. Both fat and thin are both part of every healthy ts life. All ts are thin after molting, its normal and in no way a bad sign or even a sign that the t is starving.

Ts molt, are at their thinnest, and during the next molt cycle they will gradually plump up and get fat. Then they molt again and the process starts over.

Signs of issues would be curled legs, stumbling, not reacting to stimuli and a shriveled up abdomen. When the abdomen starts looking like a raison, then you have a problem.

Your sling looks perfectly normal and healthy. :) Now if your intent was "should I still be feeding", then the answer would be yes....its not very plump (or as plump is it could be), but that doesnt mean you need to hurry. The other thing about slings is that you really don't need to ever stop feeding until the sling stops wanting food or is in the late stages of pre molt (in which case it should be plump). You really can't over feed a spiderling.....the molt cycles of juvies and adults are much longer and slower so they can be over fed, but you're little dude isn't quite to that stage yet.
 
YungRasputin

YungRasputin

Arachnobaron
Joined
May 25, 2021
Messages
403
not too big, not too small - just right and seems perfectly healthy, nicely done
 
Jonathan6303

Jonathan6303

Arachnoangel
Joined
May 14, 2021
Messages
836
cold blood said:
Nope, its not a way at all to gauge health. Thin is normal and healthy, as is fat. Both fat and thin are both part of every healthy ts life. All ts are thin after molting, its normal and in no way a bad sign or even a sign that the t is starving.

Ts molt, are at their thinnest, and during the next molt cycle they will gradually plump up and get fat. Then they molt again and the process starts over.

Signs of issues would be curled legs, stumbling, not reacting to stimuli and a shriveled up abdomen. When the abdomen starts looking like a raison, then you have a problem.

Your sling looks perfectly normal and healthy. :) Now if your intent was "should I still be feeding", then the answer would be yes....its not very plump (or as plump is it could be), but that doesnt mean you need to hurry. The other thing about slings is that you really don't need to ever stop feeding until the sling stops wanting food or is in the late stages of pre molt (in which case it should be plump). You really can't over feed a spiderling.....the molt cycles of juvies and adults are much longer and slower so they can be over fed, but you're little dude isn't quite to that stage yet.
Click to expand...
Is feeding your adult t till there full really a problem. I heard mixed opinions about this. From what I gathered it’s more at your disadvantage then the ts because if you over feed your t it will just go in premolt and you won’t see it. Does power feeding affect the ts health.
 
YungRasputin

YungRasputin

Arachnobaron
Joined
May 25, 2021
Messages
403
Jonathan6303 said:
Is feeding your adult t till there full really a problem. I heard mixed opinions about this. From what I gathered it’s more at your disadvantage then the ts because if you over feed your t it will just go in premolt and you won’t see it. Does power feeding affect the ts health.
Click to expand...
i would be interested in learning the effects of power feeding as it’s always been my opinion that over feeding and under feeding are both incorrect and unhealthy and that a balanced diet is the goal, as with other animals
 
cold blood

cold blood

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jan 19, 2014
Messages
13,259
Jonathan6303 said:
Is feeding your adult t till there full really a problem.
Click to expand...
The word "full" may not be the right way to describe it. Plumping an adult is fine, but there is a point where more isn't going to be needed....usually ts stop eating before this, but they don't always, and if fed more and more they can get obese. Obesity is very difficult and time consuming to reverse as they will molt carrying extreme weight, yet will be as ravenous as they are after any molt. Slimming them means minimal feedings, which lead to extra long molt cycles.
YungRasputin said:
i would be interested in learning the effects of power feeding as it’s always been my opinion that over feeding and under feeding are both incorrect and unhealthy and that a balanced diet is the goal, as with other animals
Click to expand...
Powerfeeding is not a term that applies to tarantulas because of the way in which they grow..
 
A

AphonopelmaTX

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
May 7, 2004
Messages
1,821
YungRasputin said:
i would be interested in learning the effects of power feeding as it’s always been my opinion that over feeding and under feeding are both incorrect and unhealthy and that a balanced diet is the goal, as with other animals
Click to expand...
There has only been one formal published study of "power feeding" tarantulas that I know of. In this study "power feeding" is defined as feeding a tarantula a cricket two times a week. The tarantula species used was T. albopilosus (as Brachypelma albopilosum). Spoiler alert... The spiderlings fed two times a week grew faster and larger than the ones fed once a week.

Mario Padilla, Mary Ann Colley, and Richard P. Reading "Growth Rates of Laboratory Reared Honduran Curly Hair Tarantulas (Brachypelma albopilosum) in Response to Power Feeding," Arachnology 17(7), 325-327, (1 March 2018). https://doi.org/10.13156/arac.2017.17.7.325
 
Marlana

Marlana

Arachnoknight
Joined
Mar 27, 2020
Messages
211
Don’t worry about over feeding a sling. They need the resources to molt. Feed until they refuse. Not feeding enough can cause mismolts in slings. Now you don’t need to feed them 3x a day but feeding 1-2x a week is perfectly fine. Your sling looks healthy but needs to plump up before it’ll molt again. Just keep feeding it until it decides it’s done.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top