Boehmei concerns

[kormath]

My son asked me to post this to see what advice was out there. He's concerned about his new Fire Leg Koby.

Koby has been with us since Tuesday before Thanksgiving. I thought he ate that night after we got him but my son doesn't think he's eaten yet. He flicked a few hairs at us when we put him in his enclosure, and since then has flicked all the hairs off of the back half of his abdomen. We're guessing he was flicking them at the crickets we've been trying to feed him.

First cricket feeding I saw was on Friday, and Koby ran from that one. Then we tried a cricket with the rear legs removed Saturday and Koby wouldn't go near it. Monday my son killed a cricket and placed it near his burrow entrance but he wouldn't come out at all until it was removed. Last night i wounded a cricket and placed it near his burrow, hoping the spasms would draw the spider out but he didn't take the bait.

My son's worried with all the hair flicked off his abdomen and Koby not eating there's something wrong. I'm wondering if he's going into molt.

 

[Fleas]

It looks healthy enough does not look like pre molt but when there that small they can turn dark quick. just give it a week before feeding again give it some time to make it self feel at home, just make sure it has water and it will be fine and congrats on the new T's

 

[Nicolas C]

I think Fleas is right. Your boehmei looks healthy, and if it doesn't want to eat, it's either because it's going to molt soon (abdomen turning dark will give you the clue), or is full. As Fleas stated, be sure to give it a waterdish. If your temps are too low, it could slow a little be the feeding rate, but if Koby's kept in your apartment where you live, it should be just fine. Don't worry. Tarantulas don't need food every day as we human need. And Brachypelma spp. can be very good at fasting! If you see the abdomen going dark, remove all crickets and wait, not only until it has molt, but one week/ten days after the molt until you try feed it again.

About hair kicking: Brachypelma boehmei is probably one of the best (worst?!) hair kickers of all the genus! Mine was always with a barren abdomen a few times after the molt. Don't worry: just normal! But beware not to get them into the eyes or the lungs!

Enjoy your little new self-ass-kicking friend: they are absolutely beautiful and stunning.

 

[kormath]

Thanks Fleas and Nicolas. I'll keep an eye on him but i agree he doesn't seem to be unhealthy. I'll have my son quit feeding him for a few days to let him settle. What i've read said they're very good eaters so we were expecting him to eat like his GBB.

 

[kormath]

Over the weekend Koby finally was settled in enough, or maybe hungry enough, to eat. My son put a small Dubai roach in his enclosure on Friday evening and Koby ran from it, like he has all food, even the tiny pinhead roaches.

The roach explored for a few minutes, then burrowed into the substrate. So we decided to leave it a while and see if Koby would come back and eat him later. On Saturday early afternoon i check and Koby was in his favorite place under a silk leaf, with no sign of the roach anywhere. On Sunday just before lunch i checked on him and he had the roach almost fully eaten. My son was quite relieved and excited he finally ate. That made me confident we have a healthy, but temperamental, T in our collection.

 

[kormath]

Good news! I came home from work and found Koby dug his own burrow. Bad news is my son found mold in the opposite side of the enclosure.

We removed Koby, trashed all the substrate in the enclosure and washed the enclosure out with Dawn and dried it thoroughly. Then added all new substrate and decorations. I don't think there was enough ventilation in that enclosure. I'll drill holes in the sides this weekend to add more ventilation.

I also recreated his hide but my son removed it, he wanted to see if Koby would burrow again.