molting issue?

[yellow_boots]

hello, i have a Chilean rose hair, Snoopy, who is about 6 months old. ten gallon tank, coconut fiber substrate, live cricket and occasionally mealworm diet, wide shallow water dish with tuft of frog moss. unsure of the sex. i read that crh's molt roughly every 2 months, and mine has been under my care for 4 months with no molt! but- as of about a month ago, Snoopy has been displaying signs of preparing to molt: fasting, web-bed, spending like 99 percent of hir time in a little hidey corner of the tank. ive stopped introducing live crickets one week ago, placed 3 nickel-sized tobacco humidifiers in the tank 4 days ago, and have been misting one side of the tank once a day (we live in dry conditions) for the past 3 days. I've been trying to be as quiet as possible when changing the water and trying my best in general not to disturb hir. Snoopy still isn't molting! am i doing something wrong? is there something more I can do to help hir feel comfortable as possible for the molt?

 

[DalilahBlue]

Just be patient. It takes some time. Don't worry if she isn't "molting on schedule." It is an individual process.

 

[yellow_boots]

thank you - should I keep doing what I'm doing?

 

[Atx13]

I'd take the humidifiers out. But otherwise, everything else sounds fine. Rose hairs are odd... they can go off food months to a year before moulting. Just keep her some fresh water available, and she'll be fine .

 

[DalilahBlue]

I am not sure about the tobacco humidifiers; I am not familiar with those. I think everything else sounds ok. keep in mind too Rosies are known for going long periods with out eating, even if they aren't about to molt. You might consider just overflowing her water bowl to keep the humidity up.

 

[Tguy]

hello, i have a Chilean rose hair, Snoopy, who is about 6 months old. ten gallon tank, coconut fiber substrate, live cricket and occasionally mealworm diet, wide shallow water dish with tuft of frog moss. unsure of the sex. i read that crh's molt roughly every 2 months, and mine has been under my care for 4 months with no molt! but- as of about a month ago, Snoopy has been displaying signs of preparing to molt: fasting, web-bed, spending like 99 percent of hir time in a little hidey corner of the tank. ive stopped introducing live crickets one week ago, placed 3 nickel-sized tobacco humidifiers in the tank 4 days ago, and have been misting one side of the tank once a day (we live in dry conditions) for the past 3 days. I've been trying to be as quiet as possible when changing the water and trying my best in general not to disturb hir. Snoopy still isn't molting! am i doing something wrong? is there something more I can do to help hir feel comfortable as possible for the molt?

hello and welcome to TF... how do you know the age ?what size is it's legspan?....rosies like it bone dry unless it's a sling...sub is good but they don't need moss or humidifiers overflow the waterdish once in a while no need to mist ... they are know for fasting and taking forever to grow ...as T's get older the time between molts gets longer ....as long as the abdomen is plump all is good...pics would be good

 

[Bast]

I'm pretty sure that it would be very odd for any G.rosea to moult every 2 months. They are a VERY slow growing species.

 

[yellow_boots]

hello and welcome to TF... how do you know the age ?what size is it's legspan?....rosies like it bone dry unless it's a sling...sub is good but they don't need moss or humidifiers overflow the waterdish once in a while no need to mist ... they are know for fasting and taking forever to grow ...as T's get older the time between molts gets longer ....as long as the abdomen is plump all is good...pics would be good

thanks- im estimating the longest legs are maybe almost two inches long each. the pet store people said xie was about 3 months old when we bought hir, so that actually puts Snoopy at about 8 months if they are correct.

 

[DalilahBlue]

Don't sweat the lack of molts. As long as she looks healthy all is well.

 

[DalilahBlue]

What temp are you keeping her at?

 

[yellow_boots]

75 f

 

[yellow_boots]

also, the tank is due for a cleaning (it's been a little over a month) - should i clean, or refrain from disturbing and wait til the molt occurs?

 

[DalilahBlue]

I just spot clean mine, removing the poops and used boluses. Just disturb her as little as possible, since these items can cause mold, which can harm your T.

 

[Tguy]

thanks- im estimating the longest legs are maybe almost two inches long each. the pet store people said xie was about 3 months old when we bought hir, so that actually puts Snoopy at about 8 months if they are correct.

legspan is diagonal from the tip of leg 1(top feft) to the tip of leg 4 bottom right ....most pet store people don't know much if anything when it comes to T's ...unless you know the hatch date you can never tell the true age just by looking it's always a guess ..do you have a pic ??your temp is good as far as cleaning just do what Dalilah said..they don't like being cleaned out to often as long as you spot clean it should be fine

 

[Bast]

Yup, don't sweat the lack of moulting. We got our A.avic in November and the guy we got her from said she hadn't moulted in the 4 months he had her, and she still hasn't moulted with us either. She's good and healthy though, so she will moult when she's ready

As for cleaning, everyone else has offered good advice. As long as you're keeping feeder carcasses and bolus' cleared out of the tank and there's no mold or parasites, then spot cleaning is all you really need to do