First Molt Questions!

[ArvadaLanee]

Thanks for the suggestion. I was actually just doing a bit of reading on roach types, and then I was going to look into ordering some.

 

[kormath]

any roach type has the possibility of invading your home. The lateralis and dubai can't climb smooth walls though, so they're the prefered. Dubia burrow though so unless your T hits them fast they'll be gone. I've read they'll dig them back up later, but i have yet to have any of mine dig one up after it burrows away.

I prefer the H. Lateralis, (red racers, turkish reds, etc.) as they're fast and that makes them a great feeder as it attracts lots of attention to them. Most of my Ts will sit and wait on them to run by and tackle them. Some will just watch until the lateralis wears itself out and starts slowly exploring, then will tackle them once they're in range.

Neither type of roach will harm the T during a molt, which is another bonus.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

any roach type has the possibility of invading your home. The lateralis and dubai can't climb smooth walls though, so they're the prefered. Dubia burrow though so unless your T hits them fast they'll be gone. I've read they'll dig them back up later, but i have yet to have any of mine dig one up after it burrows away.

I prefer the H. Lateralis, (red racers, turkish reds, etc.) as they're fast and that makes them a great feeder as it attracts lots of attention to them. Most of my Ts will sit and wait on them to run by and tackle them. Some will just watch until the lateralis wears itself out and starts slowly exploring, then will tackle them once they're in range.

Neither type of roach will harm the T during a molt, which is another bonus.

Roaches freak me out. If one gets loose in my house, I'll be super freaked out, although my kitties would likely get it for me if they could. I can handle many bugs, but my weaknesses are earth worms, which I have a serious phobia about, roaches, silverfish, and those centipedes with the extra long legs. I am going to have to be very extra careful if I get roaches. Very very very careful.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

Well, I tried to get some red runners, but it's hard to get people to ship to my home this time of year, and with our cars both being in the shop, I can't pick up from the post office. I was able to order some of the Dubai Roaches, though. I hope Blanche likes them.

 

[Nicolas C]

Does this picture help? It doesn't look like her pedipalps (hopefully I'm spelling that right) are bigger at the ends to me. I thought that was how you can tell if it's a male or female. If this picture doesn't help at all I can try to get a better one, but it's hard with just this crappy phone camera.

I was kind of hoping it was normal for her to be wandering quite a bit, because she's been moved to a new home. Or that it was normal premolt behavior.

Your photo is good enough to show us she's no mature male, as Kormath rightly said.

The "wandering a bit" behavior is normal for a tarantula in a new enclosure, you are right. If she wanders because of this, she'll settle down soon. And, as you rightly said, it could also be a premolt behavior. I've noticed many of my Ts roaming a lot some weeks before entering in the "quiet" premolt phase (for instance, my smithi does this for some weeks, then calm down, all this before having the dark bald spot). Could be the case for yours too. I don't know why some of mine do this... I've imagined it's because they are looking for the perfect conditions/safety for the molt and, as my enclosures are not exactly as it is in nature, this behavior means they tolerate these enclosures but aren't fully satisfied. I say this because it's completely different for my burrowing or arboreal spp. It only happens to my Grammostola, Brachypelma, Xenesthis, Lasiodora, etc (only to some of them, not all...) Anyway, it's only a guessing game for me...

Back to the subject, I notice you spoke about "dragon sand" as a substrate. Maybe this substrate doesn't suit her well?

Anyway, all of this doesn't explain the skinny abdomen. It's a good idea to try another kind of food. But beware: Dubia roaches burrow deep rather quickly. B lateralis could be better if you can find some...

 

[ArvadaLanee]

Your photo is good enough to show us she's no mature male, as Kormath rightly said.

The "wandering a bit" behavior is normal for a tarantula in a new enclosure, you are right. If she wanders because of this, she'll settle down soon. And, as you rightly said, it could also be a premolt behavior. I've noticed many of my Ts roaming a lot some weeks before entering in the "quiet" premolt phase (for instance, my smithi does this for some weeks, then calm down, all this before having the dark bald spot). Could be the case for yours too. I don't know why some of mine do this... I've imagined it's because they are looking for the perfect conditions/safety for the molt and, as my enclosures are not exactly as it is in nature, this behavior means they tolerate these enclosures but aren't fully satisfied. I say this because it's completely different for my burrowing or arboreal spp. It only happens to my Grammostola, Brachypelma, Xenesthis, Lasiodora, etc (only to some of them, not all...) Anyway, it's only a guessing game for me...

Back to the subject, I notice you spoke about "dragon sand" as a substrate. Maybe this substrate doesn't suit her well?

Anyway, all of this doesn't explain the skinny abdomen. It's a good idea to try another kind of food. But beware: Dubia roaches burrow deep rather quickly. B lateralis could be better if you can find some...

Her enclosure isn't new, but her surroundings are. She went from being in an unused room that was always dark and quiet, to being in a home where she gets filtered sunlight, and there are cats, and kids, and more activity. I thought that could still seem like a big change. I do intend to change her enclosure up a bit. Mostly, I want to get that sand out of there. I think it's probably not been cleaned for a very long time. I have eco earth, and jungle mix on the way, that I ordered online. I'm planning to use mostly the eco earth, but have a little patch of jungle mix on one side. I'm just waiting to do this change, in case she is in premolt, so I don't disturb her.
I was trying to get her the red runner roaches, but my car is in the shop, and every site I tried is having packages held at the post office in my area because of the cold. After a while, I gave up and ordered the Dubai Roaches. I can order the other ones once my car is fixed, but I don't know how long that will take. (I am getting a discount, so I can't complain about the time it takes.) I could have sworn the site I ordered from said these roaches were not big burrowers, but I could be wrong, or maybe they just wanted to make a sale. I had to order 50 of those buggers, too! I'm very nervous about having them in the house. I hope Blanche can find them before they burrow. I have a feeling poor Blanche hasn't been fed well in a long time. I know she has only ever been offered crickets before, so maybe the roaches will be very tempting. I would just like to help her get back to a healthy size, and live a bit more comfortably.

 

[Nicolas C]

You are doing great! She's lucky to have found your home!

 

[ArvadaLanee]

You are doing great! She's lucky to have found your home!

Thanks! I'm such a softy. I fall in love with every animal I meet.

 

[Meludox]

I think you should do the sub change as soon as possible. Not that sand is harmful or anything, but I'd rather do it now before she ACTUALLY goes into pre-molt. She could hide away for a matter of months before actually molting.

 

[kormath]

Good luck with the roaches. You may have to maim them until she gets used to eating them, and to keep them from burrowing out of site quickly. You can order lateralis from aaronpauling.com in batches of 100. He has the best price for anything sized over a pinhead I've been able to find. Also he has tons of other insects you can try as feeders, or keep as more pets, etc

Another idea is to use bamboo tongs, they're not supposed to damage their fangs like metal tongs are said to do. You can find those on amazon for quite cheap. Or get some chopsticks at your local grocer if you're able to use them, I can't use them to do anything with chopsticks but toss them in the garbage after getting frustrated trying to use them.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

I think you should do the sub change as soon as possible. Not that sand is harmful or anything, but I'd rather do it now before she ACTUALLY goes into pre-molt. She could hide away for a matter of months before actually molting.

Her new substrate just arrived today, and Blanche is still pretty active, so I think I will go ahead and do it today. I really hope she likes the eco earth/jungle mix. She has been in this sand for years, so it will probably be quite a change for her.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

Good luck with the roaches. You may have to maim them until she gets used to eating them, and to keep them from burrowing out of site quickly. You can order lateralis from aaronpauling.com in batches of 100. He has the best price for anything sized over a pinhead I've been able to find. Also he has tons of other insects you can try as feeders, or keep as more pets, etc

Another idea is to use bamboo tongs, they're not supposed to damage their fangs like metal tongs are said to do. You can find those on amazon for quite cheap. Or get some chopsticks at your local grocer if you're able to use them, I can't use them to do anything with chopsticks but toss them in the garbage after getting frustrated trying to use them.

Thanks for the website suggestion. I do like the idea of giving Blanche some new options on the menu, and my kids would probably really love the idea of more pets! Lol. Is there a good place to find a list of acceptable prey insects we can offer?

How do you maim the roaches to keep them from burrowing? Does it involve pulling off legs? (You can't see the grimace on my face right now, but I don't find the idea appealing.) I don't have chop sticks, or bamboo sticks, but I bet we have something around here that would work. Do you just hold the roach in front of her for a bit to see if she takes it? Her roaches will be arriving tomorrow. I hope I can be brave enough to work with them!

 

[kormath]

No don't hold the roach, she may stab your fingers with their fangs by mistake.

Maim them by pulling off legs so they can't burrow as fast, or crush the head and put it in front of Blanche. The death spasms will draw attention.

You don't need to maim the lateralis, they don't burrow. Check Aaron's website, he has the largest variety of roaches I've found for feeders.

Check Josh's frogs for crickets and a good variety of worms, meal worms, super worms, wax worms etc.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

No don't hold the roach, she may stab your fingers with their fangs by mistake.

Maim them by pulling off legs so they can't burrow as fast, or crush the head and put it in front of Blanche. The death spasms will draw attention.

You don't need to maim the lateralis, they don't burrow. Check Aaron's website, he has the largest variety of roaches I've found for feeders.

Check Josh's frogs for crickets and a good variety of worms, meal worms, super worms, wax worms etc.

Whoa. No way would I hold a roach with my bare hands. Lol. I'm just trying to work out the best way to work with the roaches to even get one into the enclosure, or maim it, or use chop sticks or whatever to put it in front of Blanche. I want to help her out, but I really don't want a roach to touch me. I'll be honest, I'm not sure if I have it in me to maim a roach. We are going to Wal-Mart soon, and I'm going to get some rubber gloves, and maybe some kind of pinchers. Blanche is cool. I am fine with her touching me, if she so chooses, but her dinner is kinda gross. I haven't seen the roaches in person yet, but I have a feeling, I'm going to be feeling pretty squeamish trying to somehow hold a roach still and mess with it's legs. I will hold a roach with pinchers, or something, but not even in rubber gloved hands. This spider is lucky I am willing to do this for her. Lol.

When I got my corn snake I found out that some people feed their snakes by hand, and thought that might be cool. I have no aversion to holding frozen/thawed mice. But once I saw the way he struck the mouse, I realized this was a horrible idea. If the poor snake tags you instead, it could hurt you both, needlessly. I haven't seen the way Blanche eats yet, but I imagine it's somewhat the same with feeding a tarantula. There's no reason to add risk of injury to either one of us.

 

[kormath]

Walmart has chopsticks. You can look for bamboo olive tongs there also, not sure if they have them or not, metal olive tongs are what i use. they have small "teeth" on the tongs to help hold the worms.

Roaches i tap into a small deli cup, then use a brush to sweep the ones i don't want that fell in the cup back into the roach container, and dump the one i want to feed into the enclosure that way. I'm not real big on touching roaches either lol

 

[Kymura]

I use these but bamboo is a great idea ^^
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/200694242979?ul_noapp=true&chn=ps&lpid=82

 

[kormath]

I use these but bamboo is a great idea ^^
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/200694242979?ul_noapp=true&chn=ps&lpid=82

Nice, i might have to get some of those. I like them a bit longer though, makes me feel like i have more control lol That and my fingers are farther away from the flashing fangs

 

[Kymura]

I use these but bamboo is a great idea ^^
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/200694242979?ul_noapp=true&chn=ps&lpid=82

Nice, i might have to get some of those. I like them a bit longer though, makes me feel like i have more control lol That and my fingers are farther away from the flashing fangs

Mine are twelve inches, it works well, if they are feeling froggy or pissy I have a lid i poke the handle part through to keep them from crawling up them ill tag you an image later,,

 

[kormath]

that's a great idea! Tong fighting with my A. chalcodes lol