First post and a newbie question..

Luke

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Hello tarantula world! My name is Luke i am just starting in this hobby and have 3 beautiful T's...one being a B. smithi sling where-in lies the question..i got this little guy from ken the bug guy in march and it molted somewere around april...now it looks like this:
(sorry for the crappy cellphone pic...thats a quarter for a size comparison)

and im wondering if this means he/she is gunna molt again? It is being really sluggish and is refusing food...but i dont know if its because she just isnt hungry or not...the last molt caught me by surprise so i really dont know exactly what to look for if this is in fact a pre-molt..

Thanks for any help and advice!
Luke
 

Luke

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whoa whoa....you can over feed a tarantula?! ! didnt know.....:(....its not gunna die is it?! I have only been feeding it a cricket every week....what should i do?! just not feed it until its abdomen goes down????

Thanks for the reply?
 

Shell

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It is pretty fat, just go easy on the feeding until it molts. A molt shouldn't be too far off, but exactly when is hard to say. An overfed spider is more prone to rupturing the abdomen if it falls.
 

hassman789

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It won't die don't worry:). Are you feeding it big crickets? because one small cricket a week probably won't make it that fat. If they are big crickets mabey just cut it up, I think it will eat pre killed.
 

Luke

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Shell: SO IT CAN POP?!?!......jeez...i feel horrible....i will definetly go easy now...

hassman789: Thanks...i really hope it doesnt...and yes i read that they could eat something the same length as their body? but okay i will definetly downsize..it ate a dead wax worm like last friday..so that might work..:)
 

Shell

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Shell: SO IT CAN POP?!?!......jeez...i feel horrible....i will definetly go easy now...
It can, but it's not likely to just rupture for no reason. If it were to fall, then yes, being overfed would make it more prone to injury. Relax, and just lay off the feefing until it molts. Once it is ready to eat again after molting, just keep a close eye on abdomen size and try smaller prey items. :) Make sure the substrate is nice and deep also (it should be regardless for a terrestrial species) so that if it was to climb and fall, it doesn't really have much of a fall at all.

Don't feel horrible, we all had to learn somewhere, and you came to the right place.
 

Luke

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whew..thank you for the advice! :) Sorry for freaking out there...this is just my first sling and i was feeding it so much because i didnt want it to starve or something..lol..so it does look like a pre molt then?
 

Shell

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whew..thank you for the advice! :) Sorry for freaking out there...this is just my first sling and i was feeding it so much because i didnt want it to starve or something..lol..so it does look like a pre molt then?
It looks like it's getting close, but length of premolt varies with every spider. You would be amazed at just how long they can go without food. I usually feed mine once every 10-14 days, but I have left them longer before, and of course I have had a few of my bigger ones fast for months at a time.
 

XzotticAnimal420

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i got this little guy from ken the bug guy in march and it molted somewere around april...now it looks like this:

OP~ Are you saying that its abdomen has looked like that since the molt??

If thats the case, IMO it kind of looks like it could have been the result of a wet molt...but Im no expert. Compared to some of the pictures Ive seen, the threads Ive read and some of the researching Ive done myself, I think it kind of looks similar. Other than that, he is a portly little guy :}
 

JimM

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whew..thank you for the advice! :) Sorry for freaking out there...this is just my first sling and i was feeding it so much because i didnt want it to starve or something..lol..so it does look like a pre molt then?
For a general point of reference, keep the abdomen at least as wide, or a little wider than the carapace. If the abdomen is wider, you needn't worry about
feeding at all.

I don't feed every day, or every week as a matter or course. I feed according
to abdomen size. Based on this I may skip feeding an animal for many weeks, often until after the next molt.
 

Luke

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Okay cool.....and WOW!!! thats awesome! See this is the exact reason i wanted to join here..:)..ya learn something new every day! Thank you again Shell and everybody!
 

Luke

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OP~ Are you saying that its abdomen has looked like that since the molt??

If thats the case, IMO it kind of looks like it could have been the result of a wet molt...but Im no expert. Compared to some of the pictures Ive seen, the threads Ive read and some of the researching Ive done myself, I think it kind of looks similar. Other than that, he is a portly little guy :}
Oh no, i was just asking to see if its abdomen looked like it was getting darker (which i think it is supposed to do before a molt)..and yes...he is a fatso...lol
 

Shell

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If thats the case, IMO it kind of looks like it could have been the result of a wet molt...but Im no expert. Compared to some of the pictures Ive seen, the threads Ive read and some of the researching Ive done myself, I think it kind of looks similar.
This little guy is just "chubby", it looks nothing similar to a wet molt. I ran a quick search to pull up an example of a wet molt.

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=129175&highlight=molt



You're welcome Luke, just relax and enjoy your spiders. The search function here can be your best friend. There is a ton of info to absorb!
 

Luke

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Shell those wet molts look horrible! :(...but okay i will! How exactly do you get to the search function? i cant seem to find it..hah

edit: oops nevermind! i found it! thanks anyway! lol
 

Luke

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oh one more question...since a molt may be in the cards here should i be doing anything in particular to make sure everything goes smoothly?
 

Shell

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Just make sure to mist/moisten the substrate in one corner/side of the enclosure once a week or so to keep it hydrated (I'm assuming due to it's size that it doens't have a water dish yet.) B. smithi like dry substrate, so you just want to wet a little portion of it, or else it will be climbing the walls to avoid it. Otherwise, leave it be. Don't disturb it while it's molting, and wait a week to offer food afterwards.
 

Luke

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okay thank you again! the substrate is kinda damp right now...but it doesnt seem to mind it...but it IS just staying in its tunnel right now, which is another reason i think it may be preparing to molt..but could it also be stress? I dont mess with it at all..and nope! no water dish yet...maybe after this molt we will see...:)
 

Shell

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okay thank you again! the substrate is kinda damp right now...but it doesnt seem to mind it...but it IS just staying in its tunnel right now, which is another reason i think it may be preparing to molt..but could it also be stress? I dont mess with it at all..and nope! no water dish yet...maybe after this molt we will see...:)
A happy spider doesn't usually move around much, it doesn't sound like it's stressed out. Hiding away while in premolt is always possible, some will barricade themselves in and not come out until they have hardened up after.

Let the substrate dry up a bit, and just keep one little bit moist after that. Once it's about 2" DLS (diagonal leg span) it can have a little water dish (water bottle lids are what I use for mine.)
 
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