G. pulchra sling stuck in molt?

[NovelCat]

Hey! (Hopefully I'm posting this in the right section.)

My G. pulchra sling (about 3cm legspan) has been on its back for at least 1.5 hours (could be much longer).

I wouldn’t be too worried normally, but I haven’t seen it move at all, and it’s been in a bone-dry enclosure for a while now. -I had to move it to this setup because the previous one developed a mold issue, and the mold was even growing on the tarantula itself.

I just didn’t expect it to molt already and the enclosure is extremely dry. I also can’t easily open the enclosure without shaking it a lot, so I’m afraid to try adding moisture. Water doesn’t seem to pass through the ventilation holes either.

Is there anything I should be doing right now, like trying to add some moisture despite the shaking?
Or would it be better to just leave it alone? The complete stillness is what worries me the most :/

 

[Cmac2111]

Or would it be better to just leave it alone?

This. Leave it be just now.

 

[NovelCat]

This. Leave it be just now.

Thank you for your response, that's what I've been doing so far.
When should I take action (if ever)? and what exactly should I do? It's been almost 3 hours now (since I noticed this) and judging by the position, there hasn't been any movement at all

 

[cold blood]

in order for you to even take action, the process would need to begin at the very least. Theres absolutely nothing you can do right now but wait.

 

[Mustafa67]

Hey! (Hopefully I'm posting this in the right section.)

My G. pulchra sling (about 3cm legspan) has been on its back for at least 1.5 hours (could be much longer).

I wouldn’t be too worried normally, but I haven’t seen it move at all, and it’s been in a bone-dry enclosure for a while now. -I had to move it to this setup because the previous one developed a mold issue, and the mold was even growing on the tarantula itself.

I just didn’t expect it to molt already and the enclosure is extremely dry. I also can’t easily open the enclosure without shaking it a lot, so I’m afraid to try adding moisture. Water doesn’t seem to pass through the ventilation holes either.

Is there anything I should be doing right now, like trying to add some moisture despite the shaking?
Or would it be better to just leave it alone? The complete stillness is what worries me the most :/
View attachment 497409

WAIT

 

[Cmac2111]

Thank you for your response, that's what I've been doing so far.
When should I take action (if ever)? and what exactly should I do? It's been almost 3 hours now (since I noticed this) and judging by the position, there hasn't been any movement at all

Nothing you can do would help it, you can only wait for the molt to happen. It’s not often a speedy process.

 

[NovelCat]

in order for you to even take action, the process would need to begin at the very least. Theres absolutely nothing you can do right now but wait.

Okay, thank you very much for this info!

Nothing you can do would help it, you can only wait for the molt to happen. It’s not often a speedy process.

So it seems . This is the first time I've witnessed it, and I got a bit worried about the complete lack of movement. Googling, of course, told me that if it (as a sling) doesn't move for over an hour, there's nothing more that can be done lol.
But thanks for the reply! I'm gonna keep myself busy.

 

[viper69]

Wait

 

[NovelCat]

Update! In case someone else is ever struggling with the same issue – he finally molted after a couple of hours and is already waving to me

 

[HoneyOilers]

Update! In case someone else is ever struggling with the same issue – he finally molted after a couple of hours and is already waving to me View attachment 497482

So then I don’t need to tell you to wait?

 

[Mike41793]

Large spiders can take 24hrs+ to molt. Something to look forward to lol. Looks like it went well though!

The molting process as far as moisture goes starts well in advance of the day they actually decide to molt. Misting or adding water to anything the day they molt is too late. They need the fluid in their system beforehand to separate their old skin from the new one. If they're not hydrated the fluid can't build up between the two layers and allow them to separate. That's probably not the perfect scientific explanation, but you get the idea.

It would be like an athlete barely drinking the week before the game on Sunday. Then wondering why they're cramping up at half time on gameday and chugging Gatorade isn't helping?! They were dehydrated all week and did not properly prepare.

 

[TheraMygale]

The way it looked, in initial molt phase, looked perfect. It can take a while. But the position was right on spot.

glad it molted. this is a learning experience.

 

[Muffinforall]

Back in March, one of my slings had a stuck moult.
Everyone in this thread was right to tell you to wait. There is in fact a small window where you can actually help. The rest of the time you will hurt it.
As others have stated, the process actually has to begin. And even then, they're only stuck when they haven't made progress on a specific point in a very long time. What I mean by that is if you see them move or wiggle for a bit, stop, move or wiggle, stop again, repeat, and NO progress has been made. This usually happens with the cepholothroax top. So you'll have to be very vigilant when watching to make sure they are actually stuck.