Murphy's Law and the Molting Blues

WYSIWYG

SpiderLoco
Old Timer
Joined
Jun 18, 2003
Messages
489
You know what they say about boiling water.......
A watched pot never boils.

It seems that way with spiders molting. Molting season is
here and it's always exciting to see critters make it through their molts successfully, especially the larger ones. Here's where
Murphy's law comes in:

1. If you are examining your spiders on a daily basis, nobody will molt (except for the little guys who molt all the time anyway).

2. If a week or two has gone by between feedings and you haven't checked in on your critters on a daily basis, you'll find that not only have several of your critters molted, but that those molts are all dried and chewed up to the point where it is impossible to determine sex.

3. If you go out and buy dozens of crickets and a few pinkies with the hopes of getting them all fed off, eventually, you'll have to play "pass the food" from one critter to the next because someone is either molting now or about to molt and refusing food.
Then you end up with leftovers, which leads to lots of escaped crickets chirping all over the house.

4. If your critters haven't molted since April or May last year and you know they SHOULD be molting by now, you'll find they aren't ready to molt yet, especially when they are female and you want to get them some mature males to breed with them.

I'm sure there are more Murphy's spider laws, but I can't think of any more right now. ;)

Wysi
 

JacenBeers

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Sep 1, 2002
Messages
1,264
I especially agree with the first one. I am eagerly awaiting my Usumbara, L parahybana and A seemani a C brachycephalus pending molts. However, they never come. And my little spiderlings keep molting and molting.
 

MizM

Arachnoprincess
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 13, 2003
Messages
4,915
That's funny.... my Ts behave EXACTLY like yours!!=D
 

Mendi

Arachnowolf
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 19, 2002
Messages
1,385
Originally posted by WYSIWYG
<<snip>>
4. If your critters haven't molted since April or May last year and you know they SHOULD be molting by now, you'll find they aren't ready to molt yet, especially when they are female and you want to get them some mature males to breed with them.

I'm sure there are more Murphy's spider laws, but I can't think of any more right now. ;)

Wysi
Then there is law...
4a. If your female has molted, you can not find any mature males of that species while she is in prime condition...

And my Ts seem to adhere to most of these laws, most of the time too, but once I think I know them they go and change the rules again :p
 

MizM

Arachnoprincess
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 13, 2003
Messages
4,915
Re: Re: Murphy's Law and the Molting Blues

Originally posted by Mendi
Then there is law...
4a. If your female has molted, you can not find any mature males of that species while she is in prime condition...


... but there were 43 offers of prime males while she was in pre-molt!!=D
 

Maggie

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 6, 2003
Messages
114
Another law...
The one you think least likely to bite will be the first.
And..The one you think is the "slowest" will suddenly develope speed to rival light.:D
 

WYSIWYG

SpiderLoco
Old Timer
Joined
Jun 18, 2003
Messages
489
Re: Re: Murphy's Law and the Molting Blues

Originally posted by Mendi
Then there is law...
4a. If your female has molted, you can not find any mature males of that species while she is in prime condition...

And my Ts seem to adhere to most of these laws, most of the time too, but once I think I know them they go and change the rules again :p
OH SO TRUE! I put out an ad that I'm looking for a mature male B. smithi and V. platyomma and I haven't had a single reply. Maybe I'd have better lucky advertising for males for the females that aren't ready to go yet because they're waiting to molt? :p

Wysi
 
Top