Rosehair fasting to death?

[Mariemarie]

Hi guys,
My rosie has been giving me some trouble lately. So the first month that I got her she refused food and seemed to dehydrate. So I made an ICU tank and put her in and within a day or so she molted. She molted fine, exept for her abdomen which eventually came off. It's about 3 weeks later and she is back in her normal tank and I have started to offer food. She is still refusing it. She has a small water dish and the substrate around it is damp but she is starting to put her legs at akward angles, not quite a death curl and her abdomen is tiny. I have read that Rosie's have really odd behavior patterns, where they will fast and such but since she looks almost emaciated and seems weak is this normal?

 

[le-thomas]

Do you know for a fact that it's female?

 

[DannyH]

Wait, her abdomen fell off? If so, she doesn't really have a chance.

If I read it wrong, posting pics might help. If she is starting to curl, I would put her back in an ICU. You could make cricket soup for her so she gets some nutrition. I'm really sorry to hear about you're rosie, and I hope she gets better.

Do you know for a fact that it's female?

Oh yeah good point.
To further elaborate, "she" might be a mature male. MM's rarley molt after their ultimate molt, and when they do, they don't survive long. If this is the case, its only natural and there isn't really anything you can do about it.

 

[Mariemarie]

No her abdomen did not fall off =P when she molted she shed everything but what was on her abdomen, then it was just kind of flaking off for awhile before it eventually fell off. The person at the store I got her from said it was a female, she had a fat abdomen then too, and I took a look at her molt and it looks more female than male, but I could be wrong.

 

[le-thomas]

Wait, her abdomen fell off? If so, she doesn't really have a chance.

I think she meant that the old exo on the abdomen didn't come off until later.
If the tarantula is indeed female, just leave the food in with her and make sure the enclosure is small and simple enough that the T can find its food. Unfortunately, that's all the advice I can think of.

 

[Mariemarie]

I can take another look at the molt, I still have it.

 

[Chris_Skeleton]

Does it have hooks under its first set of legs? And do the pedipalps look balled up like its wearing boxing gloves?

 

[Mariemarie]

Yes hooks, and pedipalps do not look like boxing gloves.

 

[catfishrod69]

i dont think this is a case of a mature male dieing of old age...it has only been 3 weeks since it molted... abdomen size will not tell if its a female either..it might just be stressed due to the icu movement. just make sure to keep a prekilled cricket in front of her, and leave her alone. i say prekilled, because a live cricket crawling all over her wont help out...

 

[DannyH]

Yes hooks, and pedipalps do not look like boxing gloves.

I think you prob just have a MM if you see hooks. Sorry about you're guy .

 

[Anonymity82]

Pictures! Pictures of the hooks. Pictures of the molt and where it is you are determining it is a female. Pictures of the peds if you can. Take at least a few from different angles and try to take clear pics. Thanks!

 

[catfishrod69]

ahh didnt see that before i replied...yeah let us see the pedipalps...

Yes hooks, and pedipalps do not look like boxing gloves.

 

[Mariemarie]

Took ANOTHER look at the molt, and took the spider out for a better look, I was looking at the tank before... It's a she. No hooks. Small pedipals. She ate by the way!!! I was so exicted. I really thought I was going to loose her there she had the smallest opithosoma I had ever seen on a tarantula. She was moving her fangs and pedipalps and I was wondering what she was doing then I saw a little ball of "leftovers" underneath her. I almost cried lol. I gave her a bigger cricket and she snatched it right up.

 

[Hobo]

Took ANOTHER look at the molt, and took the spider out for a better look, I was looking at the tank before... It's a she. No hooks. Small pedipals. She ate by the way!!! I was so exicted. I really thought I was going to loose her there she had the smallest opithosoma I had ever seen on a tarantula. She was moving her fangs and pedipalps and I was wondering what she was doing then I saw a little ball of "leftovers" underneath her. I almost cried lol. I gave her a bigger cricket and she snatched it right up.

The absence of hooks or bulbous pedipalps does not mean it's definitely a she...
But glad it's eating for you

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Hi guys,
My rosie has been giving me some trouble lately. So the first month that I got her she refused food and seemed to dehydrate. So I made an ICU tank and put her in and within a day or so she molted. She molted fine, exept for her abdomen which eventually came off. It's about 3 weeks later and she is back in her normal tank and I have started to offer food. She is still refusing it. She has a small water dish and the substrate around it is damp but she is starting to put her legs at akward angles, not quite a death curl and her abdomen is tiny. I have read that Rosie's have really odd behavior patterns, where they will fast and such but since she looks almost emaciated and seems weak is this normal?

good news its not a male... did it recently molt??
So many New T owners get confused by the fasting G rosea does !!!

 

[Stan Schultz]

First, "Welcome to the hobby!"

And, "Welcome to these forums!"

Then, read Stan's Rant. Pay particular attention to the part about not believing anything a pet shop tells you!

Pay particular attention to the part about not believing anything you read on an Internet care sheet.

Pay particular attention to the part about reading the 4 books.

Also read Care and Husbandry of the Chilean Rose Tarantula.


And, a Chilean rose requires 1-1/2 to 2 years to starve to death. Forget that problem for now.

Further, awkward angles may be the result of her/him/it merely cleaning itself. Or simply cowering in the corner in terror. Of itself, it doesn't mean much. HOWEVER, do not touch or move the tarantula (in its cage) for at least 2 weeks after it molted. Go by the calendar. Don't guess at it.

And, here is a photo of a MATURE male Chilean rose. The upper red circle outlines the hook on the front leg. The lower circle highlights the clubbed pedipalp (second appendage from the front counting the chelicera-and-fang).


(Uploaded with ImageShack.us)

With females (either mature of juvenile) and IMMATURE males, there are no hooks and the tips of the pedipalps look the same as the tips of the legs (i.e., not clubbed).

[SIZE=+1]WE NEED LOTS OF PHOTOS[/size]. Experiment with your cell phone's camera if you don't have a regular camera. The better the focus (i.e., less blurry) the better. We need to see what kind of cage you're using. How the cage is set up. What kind of substrate you're using. How big this beast is. What it's front end looks like (i.e., a photo something like the one I show you above).

Also, what, how much, and how often have you been trying to feed it?

Why is the substrate damp around the water dish?

Don't discard the cast off skin. There's a pretty good chance we can tell from it what sex your little darling really is. (But, we'll wait till later.)

You started out on the wrong foot by moving it into the ICU when it was preparing to molt. Don't feel badly about that, you were trying to do the best you knew how. The reason I even mention it is to point out that your case is unusual and if this tarantula dies you shouldn't give up the hobby. Just get back to me and we'll try to talk you through these difficult times.

We need those photos.

Hope this helps.

EDIT: There was a time delay between my first reading your post and my final response due to a dead laptop battery. Now that I read the rest of your responses it appears you're well on your way to successful tarantula keeping. Congratulations!

Still, read the books and the webpages I recommended.

Cheers,

 

[InvertFix]

If this happens again, I wouldn't worry.
Don't underestimate your T, they know what they are doing.
I had a female G. rosea that didn't eat for a little over a year, just because. She didn't molt for about another 4 or 5 months after she began eating.
Don't get me wrong, it worried me tremendously too, but G. rosea are known for fasting randomly.
Have you read the "How to really take care of your rose hair" thread? You should look into it.

Congrats on the T eating again as well!

 

[jujubean]

My rose hair ( marabella) is on month 9 of fasting now she is going to death curl I'm so worried I tryed ICU but still she curling worried

 

[skippydude]

Isn't that a mature male?

---------- Post added 07-24-2014 at 03:28 PM ----------

Older males will sit around in this position quite often and still snap out of it for a breeding session. If it is male, he is just old and tired and at the end of his journey

 

[jujubean]

No female for sure she laid eggs 10 yrs ago

---------- Post added 07-24-2014 at 07:19 PM ----------

Also her legs were tightly under her she would not respond at all I placed her in ICU and her legs came out just. A lil