Is my T in premolt?

Kamobeas fan

Arachnopeon
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Sep 21, 2023
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So I came home and saw that my T was resting his entire body on the ground instead of standing up, so I took a closer look and I'm not sure if he's in premolt, he has a weird "crinkled" looking bit on his back, the picture isn't great but here it is, and as I went to take a picture he shifted his legs like he was trying to walk but didn't move, is this premolt? Or something else
 

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IntermittentSygnal

Arachnotic
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Hard to see there, but may just be where they’ve flicked hairs off their abdomen. While setting up that “booby trap system” is common before molting, it doesn’t necessarily mean that. I’ll usually see a dark, more stretched looking abdomen before a molt. If the abdomen looks shriveled, that could be dehydration. Make sure they have constant access to clean water.
 

fcat

Arachnobaron
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I hope you are sitting down for this. It is a dire case of cuteness (one of the worst I've seen in a while), and it's terminal 😭😭😭

Your T looks okay. The abdomen will get much darker when it's getting ready to molt and thankfully it kicked off some hairs to give you a better view to monitor for changes.

You couldn't have picked a better species to not appreciate a water bowl. I have a sling that hasn't surfaced for two molts now. There's no water dish down there, but I make sure to moisten the substrate for him once every few weeks or so, and no he doesn't drink it.

They actually get most of their moisture from their food! When in doubt, I feed them. If they refuse food, then I can start to suspect an upcoming molt sometime in the next year :)

Edit I just reread your post and want to make sure I didn't gloss over something ominous...

You said it looked like he tried to run but couldn't...could you elaborate?
 

Kamobeas fan

Arachnopeon
Joined
Sep 21, 2023
Messages
11
I hope you are sitting down for this. It is a dire case of cuteness (one of the worst I've seen in a while), and it's terminal 😭😭😭

Your T looks okay. The abdomen will get much darker when it's getting ready to molt and thankfully it kicked off some hairs to give you a better view to monitor for changes.

You couldn't have picked a better species to not appreciate a water bowl. I have a sling that hasn't surfaced for two molts now. There's no water dish down there, but I make sure to moisten the substrate for him once every few weeks or so, and no he doesn't drink it.

They actually get most of their moisture from their food! When in doubt, I feed them. If they refuse food, then I can start to suspect an upcoming molt sometime in the next year :)

Edit I just reread your post and want to make sure I didn't gloss over something ominous...

You said it looked like he tried to run but couldn't...could you elaborate?
He just sort of moved his legs around and wiggled his body a bit
 

NMTs

Spider Wrangler
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So I came home and saw that my T was resting his entire body on the ground instead of standing up, so I took a closer look and I'm not sure if he's in premolt, he has a weird "crinkled" looking bit on his back, the picture isn't great but here it is, and as I went to take a picture he shifted his legs like he was trying to walk but didn't move, is this premolt? Or something else
Any update? T's sometimes rest in strange positions so it's easy to see something concerning that is really nothing...
 

fcat

Arachnobaron
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Some of mine don't move for days

It might just be laying booby traps for the unsuspecting trespasser. It *can* be a sign of defensiveness if there are frequent stressors to trigger it to kick, such as being handled, vibrations, breezes (even you breathing), moving shadows or bright lights, crinkly plastic, or feeders present when they are not hungry. Not an exhaustive list.
 
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