Is my tarantula about to molt?

[pishcakes]

Hey all you Arachnid lovers! I had a quick question regarding my curly hair.

I normally feed her on Tuesdays and Saturdays. I've only had her a few weeks and she has eaten 3 times since I've had her. You know, I'll offer her up some food and if she doesn't eat it by the next day, I take it out.

Well, she didn't want to eat Saturday, and she didn't want to eat Tuesday. She's been not moving around too much, and had been laying web everywhere. Up on her hide, to the roof, she even covered the entrance to her hide so she can't even get in, lol.

Also, she has a bald spot ever since I got her. I know these are all signs of a molt coming, but is it possible there is something else going on?

My girlfriend and I really enjoy handling her, but if she's about to molt, I know it's best to just leave her be.

Thanks!

 

[Brewser]

Congrats on your Tliltocatl,
Sounds like She's Fed Up.
Suggest Not Handling Her.

 

[cold blood]

First off, refusal of food is a good indicator for a sling...but a bald spot absolutely is not a sign of anything but hair flicking.

Lastly, handling is an extremely poor practice with a host of potentially terrible issues and not a single positive for your t.

Post a pic of the sling....pre molt can be pretty obvious as the skin will blacken and get a stretched out shiny look to it.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

I would read this guide welcome to ab.

Tarantula Information for Beginners (and More)

Below are some helpful resources. (Rather than having half a dozen or more pinned threads, which clutter the top of the board, we are pinning this index.) While the focus is on beginners, there are other threads on health and more advanced species that may be useful to more experienced keepers...

arachnoboards.com

Why I don’t risk handling

A.geniculata bit me today .just asking did this happened to anyone else?

So today I was trying to take good photos of my A.geniculata sling whose size is nearly 1.5 inch . So during this my tarantula came up so I kept my mobile again and kept my finger in the edge of the encloser so that he can't escape and I thought I will do my first tarantula handling today . And...

arachnoboards.com

 

[Glorfindel]

Handling Puts You and the Tarantula Both at Risk of Injury.

 

[viper69]

Sure why not

 

[Poffypoffa]

It may also not be hungry because of how frequently it is being fed. I feed even my smallest slings once a week. Juveniles to adults may go 2-4 weeks, depending on circumstances. And if I have a T in pre-molt with a big fat abdomen, I don't feed until after they molt. I didn't feed my G. pulchra juvenile (under 2") for at least two months while it was in pre molt--it just molted this week with no issues.

Glad you're enjoying, they're cool Ts. I do agree with everything mentioned above about handling, and recommend you give real consideration to changing that part of your routine.

 

[darkness975]

Hey all you Arachnid lovers! I had a quick question regarding my curly hair.

I normally feed her on Tuesdays and Saturdays. I've only had her a few weeks and she has eaten 3 times since I've had her. You know, I'll offer her up some food and if she doesn't eat it by the next day, I take it out.

Well, she didn't want to eat Saturday, and she didn't want to eat Tuesday. She's been not moving around too much, and had been laying web everywhere. Up on her hide, to the roof, she even covered the entrance to her hide so she can't even get in, lol.

Also, she has a bald spot ever since I got her. I know these are all signs of a molt coming, but is it possible there is something else going on?

My girlfriend and I really enjoy handling her, but if she's about to molt, I know it's best to just leave her be.

Thanks!

It sounds overfed. Post a picture.

Handling is a bad practice.