Tarantula that won't eat, what have you done to get it to eat again.

Have you had a tarantula that was doing great for a number of years and than all the sudden he or she molts and stops eating for a year and a half. She or he is still alive but concern about dying. I have tried every different living creature that you can possibly think of, to give my female tarantula food to eat, crickets, mice, lizards, and rats, etc.
Earlier this year I lost my female Brachypelma smithi do to the same problem she would not eat after molting, after a year without eating she died.
Now I'm having the same problem with another species. And she has gone over a year and a half without eating. Before I tell you what species it is that I'm having issues with and how I got her to eat again. I want your input.
What I'm about to tell you on how I got her to eat some of you will be against it as I'm as well. But there is got to be areas on behind on why certain species refuse food and only will take a different type of food than you normally would.
I'm posting this for educational purposes not to get into arguments but to figure out the tarantulas behavior mentality that they have.
So please just post your opinions if this has happen to any of you, of your tarantula refusing food for along time and later finding your tarantula dead.
This has happen to me a few times through my years. So any information helps. Thanks.



Jose

I have a 4" N. chromatus that refuses to eat, but its missing both fangs, so its a different story.

I do have extensive experience with G. porteri, which is prone to what you describe as I have had many a long randon bout of fasting. For this species, I can usually snap her out of it with a big fat moth. Something about beating wings is just irresistible to them. I can't tell you how many long fasts have ended with a fat moth. I'll cut one or both wings and hold it above the t and let it flap wildly...the response is almost always quick IME.

I wish I had better luck raising larger moths so I could feed them on a consistent basis.

Interested to hear your "trick" Jose.

Personally, I've had specimens that fasted for several months. But not for a year or more.

I've not had a T. Fast that long.
But.... I disagree with feeding mice or rats to a T .

cold blood said:

I have a 4" N. chromatus that refuses to eat, but its missing both fangs, so its a different story.

I do have extensive experience with G. porteri, which is prone to what you describe as I have had many a long randon bout of fasting. For this species, I can usually snap her out of it with a big fat moth. Something about beating wings is just irresistible to them. I can't tell you how many long fasts have ended with a fat moth. I'll cut one or both wings and hold it above the t and let it flap wildly...the response is almost always quick IME.

I wish I had better luck raising larger moths so I could feed them on a consistent basis.

Interested to hear your "trick" Jose.

Click to expand...

Well it's not a trick but just trying to figure out on why the tarantula fast for such a long time. I have to go back and check my records and see exactly when she last molted. The questions I ask myself is:

1. Why did my tarantula stop eating after her last molt?
2. If you are a sick tarantula she would you not eat at all and refuse all types of food?
3. Why after so long on refusing food my tarantula decides to eat a certain type of food only?
4. Is my tarantula fasting cause she is fed up with the regular food that she has been eating?
5. Once my tarantula ate her first meal in over a year and still refusing other types of food do I still keep feeding my tarantula the same type of food that I offered her two weeks ago?
6. In the wild is this what you like to eat sometimes?
7. If it is how many of this type of food do I need to give my tarantula until she is back on track of eating crickets, roaches etc.

I have had tarantulas that do fast for months and than they start to eat again but going over a year is to excessive. I have to worry after four months without eating specially over a year.

So I had my female Brachypelma smith that died, and I have two others that won't eat except for what I just offered to them. Like I said some of you will get offended once I post but it was hard for me to decide what would be the next best meal to get my spider to eat. I'm not about to give up on them.


Jose

---------- Post added 05-21-2015 at 11:19 AM ----------

skar said:

I've not had a T. Fast that long.
But.... I disagree with feeding mice or rats to a T .

Click to expand...

I know that's hard to do also.


Jose

Your not feeding her baby homosapien's are you josethat might be illegal.but if you found something a spider has ate or do eat to survive, and she is doing good then keep it up ...

jose said:

I have tried every different living creature that you can possibly think of, to give my female tarantula food to eat, crickets, mice, lizards, and rats, etc.

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If its not any of those prey animals....

jose said:

So I had my female Brachypelma smith that died, and I have two others that won't eat except for what I just offered to them. Like I said some of you will get offended once I post but it was hard for me to decide what would be the next best meal to get my spider to eat. I'm not about to give up on them.

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...and you're seemingly hesitant to just post whatever it is, while saying some people will be offended....did you feed them other tarantulas?

I had problems getting my Euathlus sp.red slings to eat and found warming them up had an almost immediate effect. I know it sounds simple but it could be worth a shot if you don't already have her warm?

vespers said:

If its not any of those prey animals....


...and you're seemingly hesitant to just post whatever it is, while saying some people will be offended....did you feed them other tarantulas?

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No not hesitant, will post later. Right now I just would like other members to post if they have had the same problem and what was done to get their spider to eat after a year to a year and a half without food.

Jose

---------- Post added 05-21-2015 at 01:31 PM ----------

Belle Fury said:

I had problems getting my Euathlus sp.red slings to eat and found warming them up had an almost immediate effect. I know it sounds simple but it could be worth a shot if you don't already have her warm?

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I tried raising the temperature that did not work either. Last summer I had my friend take care of her and see if he could get her to eat and give her a new set up, nothing worked for him either. My friend just barely gave her back to me about three weeks ago. When I get home I will check the exact date when she last molted.


Jose

You feeding fish?

You yell at them. Usually works.

BobGrill said:

You yell at them. Usually works.

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I tried yelling but it didn't do any good.


Jose

---------- Post added 05-21-2015 at 04:35 PM ----------

cold blood said:

You feeding fish?

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I actually did try a fish and it did not work either.



Jose

This thread should be renamed "Guess what I fed my T".

theconmacieist said:

This thread should be renamed "Guess what I fed my T".

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No not exactly, I know that there's got to be some of you that have had this problem before. The main purpose of this thread for starters is, educate people, of what you might have to do when this sort of thing happens to you.
Once I post I expect criticism but if that is the way it's going to be so be it. I'm against feeding what I fed her, but I had to do make a decision for her sake. I'm talking about one of my spiders that has not eaten over a year, and I'm worried. I lost one earlier this year due that it seems to be the same problem. Somehow I needed to correct what ever the issue the spider has of not eating.

Since no one else has nothing similar to discuss I will post in a bit.


Jose

If it's nothing that's already been mentioned, what are you feeding them, kittens?:sarcasm:

I generally have no issues with people feeding whatever it takes to get their pets eating again. There's a lot of criticism in some snake communities when people feed snakes to other snakes that would naturally eat snakes in the wild, but I have no issue with stuff like that. I'm more interested in what it could be about whatever it is you're offering that is making them eat and if there's any way you could get those qualities with what would be considered a more 'acceptable' feeder.

jose said:

No not exactly, I know that there's got to be some of you that have had this problem before. The main purpose of this thread for starters is, educate people, of what you might have to do when this sort of thing happens to you.
Once I post I expect criticism but if that is the way it's going to be so be it. I'm against feeding what I fed her, but I had to do make a decision for her sake. I'm talking about one of my spiders that has not eaten over a year, and I'm worried. I lost one earlier this year due that it seems to be the same problem. Somehow I needed to correct what ever the issue the spider has of not eating.

Since no one else has nothing similar to discuss I will post in a bit.


Jose

Click to expand...

I understand what you are saying. I apologize if I was being too blunt. It just seems like the burning question.

Brachypelma baumgarteni finally ate after 1 year and 8 months

As some of you know I have been in the hobby since 1989. During my first years I have lost quite a few tarantulas do to poor judgement on my part and also poor research not available. The one thing I do remember when I was reading a book back in the early 90's is that tarantulas can live up to two years without eating as long as the tarantula has water. That was almost the case with my Brachypelma baumgarteni, until I provided a food source for her that she felt was needed wether out of being threaten by another tarantula.

My Brachypelma baumgarteni molted in 09/02/2013. On May 12, 2015 when she finally ate her first meal since she molted in 2013. During this long fasting that she went through I have tried and tried as well as my friend has tried to feed her different types of food. she would not eat what was offered to her, her abdomen was getting thinner and thinner. Some time last year before the summer I asked my friend to take care of her while I went through my divorce, and also if he could get her to eat. In his care she would not eat either, finally about three weeks ago I told my friend to bring her back to me.
Earlier this year I lost my Brachypelma smithi that seems to have had the same problem as my baumgarteni. Since of my smithi death I was determine not to loose my baumgarteni.

On May 12, 2015 I finally decided to feed her a tarantula, my baumgarteni did not hesitate at all she went after the tarantula and had the tarantula for a meal, it took her two days to eat the tarantula. I waited until May 19, 2015 to feed her again this time I was hoping to at least get her appetite restore with some crickets, but she would not eat the crickets. I gave her another tarantula and again she did not hesitate to have another tarantula as a meal. Here is a photo of her today after two meals without any eating any food for a year and 8 months.

Brachypelma baumgarteni Female


I know that I took a chance of loosing my baumgarteni on a fight but it had to be done after nearly two years without food. I was not going to post this thread at all but I felt that it needs to be posted for educational reasons and possibly research. Also I am against feeding a tarantula to another tarantula so it was really hard for me to have to give her a tarantula as a food source for her.

I will take the criticism like a man if some of you want to go that route. Or we can learn from this thread I posted. I wish I took a photo of her before she ate, the thought was not in my mind at the time since I was not thinking of posting.

The problem now is, is she going to eat her regular food or do I have to give her another tarantula to keep up on her weight.


-J

She is a dandy. Glad she is going be with you for good while longer

Just out of curiosity, what species was fed? How big was the "meal spider".

Dang thing looks nice and plump now, so I'm guessing the fed spider was an adult or close.

I heard it was a P metallica