G rosea in pre-molt, right?

xtianD

Arachnopeon
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Feb 1, 2012
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hey,

I've had my G rosea for three weeks now, and she still hasn't eaten.. I know G roses are known for
fasting suddenly, but I think she's in pre-molt. I'm not sure though.. and I know there are threads and
other stuff for this, but I'm just not sure..

Here are some pics:




Thanks a lot!! :)
 

Formerphobe

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I think you are correct, she does appear to be in pre-molt. Sometimes a change in environment will bring on a molt, or she could just be due. Allow her plenty of peace and quiet and no more prey items until a couple of weeks after she molts. Hope you can catch her in the act, it really is amazing to watch. Be sure to post pics of her in her new clothes. Enjoy! And don't fret over her too much. Spiders have been molting for millenia without our assistance. :)
 

xtianD

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Feb 1, 2012
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Yey! haha! Though I'm not sure if I should be excited or scared.. I mean I've read that there could be a lot of problems during a molt.. Can't wait, though! :)

And should I make a part of the substrate sort of flat so that she'll have a "bed", sorta?

Now that I think about it, I used to keep seeing her near her water bowl. Does that mean I should raise the humidity in her cage a bit?

Thanks! :)
 

Formerphobe

Arachnoking
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She's a rosea, no need to raise the humidity. Just be sure she has fresh water in her bowl at all times. As she gets closer to her molt she will construct a molting mat (most do, anyway). No need to make any adjustments to the substrate. Does she have a hide?
 

xtianD

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I give her fresh water everyday and overfill it once a week.. Is that right? Yeah, she does; it's just a half of a coconut shell, though. And I sort of placed it to look like a real burrow.. (like, I put it lower than the top of her substrate and covered it with the substrate)..
 

Formerphobe

Arachnoking
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Just don't overfill the water too much or too frequently. Roseas really abhor damp of any kind. Let the substrate dry out well between overfills.
As long as her hide is spacious enough for her to get in and out of, she will make her own adjustments to it as she sees fit, which may even mean closing it off. Some Ts rreeaalllly like their privacy for molting. Others, not so much.
 

xtianD

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Last week, she did go into her hide and close it off. She just came out a few days ago.

I'll just leave her alone, and hope I catch her in the act. Haha!

Thanks again!! :)
 

grayzone

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consider yourself lucky... ive had an adult rosie since may or june of last year that DOES NOTHING literally... it hasnt ate more than 8 crickets since summer (none since like august) and is showing no other sign of premolt... no balding, no black spot... looks like a statue in a tank! it WILL move an inch to the left or right every once in a while i guess
 

xtianD

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Well, mine hasn't even touched a piece of food at all since I've gotten her.. I've heard that roses really are "pet rocks". Hhaha! That's why I'm getting a B vagans this weekend. I think they're better with food and are a bit more "move-y" haha!
 

rockhopper

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Well, mine hasn't even touched a piece of food at all since I've gotten her.. I've heard that roses really are "pet rocks". Hhaha! That's why I'm getting a B vagans this weekend. I think they're better with food and are a bit more "move-y" haha!
Depends on the individual. I got two B vagans one of which never hid and the other dug a burrow and hasn't come out since the first week I got her. She might peak her head out every once in a while. I had to dig her out to rehouse her after a few molts. Luckily she has built her burrow down the back side of her enclosure this time so I can at least take a look and make sure she's still there. :) Unfortunately the little guy that didn't hide ended up not making it through.
 

xtianD

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Heavy pre molt!!.... in my opinion
It looks like she is in pre-molt. Soon she will have some new threads.
Can't wait for her to actually molt; I wanna see her do it. Is there, like, an average length of how long it takes for a rosea to stay in pre-molt?

Depends on the individual. I got two B vagans one of which never hid and the other dug a burrow and hasn't come out since the first week I got her. She might peak her head out every once in a while. I had to dig her out to rehouse her after a few molts. Luckily she has built her burrow down the back side of her enclosure this time so I can at least take a look and make sure she's still there. :) Unfortunately the little guy that didn't hide ended up not making it through.
Compared to roses, they are more active, though.. right?
...Oh, sorry about the little guy.. :(
 

Stan Schultz

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... I've had my G rosea for three weeks now, and she still hasn't eaten.. I know G roses are known for fasting suddenly, but I think she's in pre-molt. I'm not sure though.. and I know there are threads and other stuff for this, but I'm just not sure.

Here are some pics: ...
First, read Stan's Rant. It has little to do with Chilean roses but a lot to do with novices. It'll help you get off on the right foot.

Then, read Care and Husbandry of the Chilean Rose Tarantula.

Because you say that you've only had it a few weeks, and you're asking a rather basic question, I am assuming you're relatively new to tarantulas. That's why I urge you to read Stan's Rant.

Because you say that you've only had it a few weeks, I'm assuming that it's a wild caught individual that's been recently imported, and it has a big adjustment to make within the next few months. Be patient with it.

In Chile, the tarantulas are very near the end of their molting season. If it doesn't molt within the next 2 weeks, it may not do so for the next 2 *YEARS!*

But wait! There's more! If it's a female that was bred in Chile before it was exported to wherever you live, it may be preparing to lay eggs! Again, we're at the very end of the egg laying season in Chile, and if it doesn't do so within the next 2 weeks, you're out of the woods.

If it does produce an eggsac, get back to us ASAP!

Best of luck.
 
Last edited:

InvertFix

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But wait! There's more! If it's a female that was bred in Chile before it was exported to wherever you live, it may be preparing to lay eggs! Again, we're at the very end of the egg laying season in Chile, and if it doesn't do so within the next 2 weeks, you're out of the woods.

If it does produce and eggsac, get back to us ASAP!

Best of luck.
What Pikaia said. :)
 

Thobby1982

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Sep 25, 2011
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My first G.rosea went into its hide and barricadded the entrance and did not come out for a little over 3 months and when she finally did come out there was spare spider in her hide.
 

jakykong

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452
consider yourself lucky... ive had an adult rosie since may or june of last year that DOES NOTHING literally... it hasnt ate more than 8 crickets since summer (none since like august) and is showing no other sign of premolt... no balding, no black spot... looks like a statue in a tank! it WILL move an inch to the left or right every once in a while i guess
I'm pretty sure balding is NOT a sign of premolt, it's caused by the T kicking hairs. But, it does help to determine if the T is molting (if the bald spot turrns dark).
 

xtianD

Arachnopeon
Joined
Feb 1, 2012
Messages
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First, read Stan's Rant. It has little to do with Chilean roses but a lot to do with novices. It'll help you get off on the right foot.

Then, read Care and Husbandry of the Chilean Rose Tarantula.

Because you say that you've only had it a few weeks, and you're asking a rather basic question, I am assuming you're relatively new to tarantulas. That's why I urge you to read Stan's Rant.
Those links were really helpful! Thanks! :) Though I have read the care and husbandry before, I think it was before it's update, so I did get to read some new stuff. I also bought The Tarantula Keeper's Guide. So, that was really helpful in determining if it was in pre-molt or not..

Because you say that you've only had it a few weeks, I'm assuming that it's a wild caught individual that's been recently imported, and it has a big adjustment to make within the next few months. Be patient with it.
I bought her from a pet store (yeah, i know...). Do all pet store's get their Ts from imports, or do some of them breed their own?

In Chile, the tarantulas are very near the end of their molting season. If it doesn't molt within the next 2 weeks, it may not do so for the next 2 *YEARS!*

But wait! There's more! If it's a female that was bred in Chile before it was exported to wherever you live, it may be preparing to lay eggs! Again, we're at the very end of the egg laying season in Chile, and if it doesn't do so within the next 2 weeks, you're out of the woods.

If it does produce an eggsac, get back to us ASAP!
I think (more like hope) that she will molt within the two weeks because she's pretty small; she's only ~2.5" legspan..

Well.. I just hope she won't lay an eggsac. I don't think I'm ready for that. I don't even know what to do if that does happen....
 

Quazgar

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May 11, 2011
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Do all pet store's get their Ts from imports, or do some of them breed their own?
Extremely few, if any, petstores will breed their own T's, but some will buy captive bred T's from breeders or dealers. The problems with roseas, and why they're almost exclusively wild caught in pet stores, is that they are SUCH SLOW GROWERS that it is significantly cheaper to import than to raise it for a few years to get to a decent size. While there's no way of knowing how old your rosea is, even at a small-ish 2.5" legspan, it could have taken years to get that size. If it was CB, you'd have to factor in the cost of feeding and caring for it for all that time, which results in more expensive spiders.
 
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