expert advice on chile moult

[marc boyer]

ok im hoping he's going into a molt hence him blocking up his hide but could someone on the expert side confirm what he's doing lol. ive just checked inside his hide and he's not on his back he's just standing there as norm.

[Kurt Baird]

Quite possibly a molt.

A tarantula will block itself up in its hide if it feels the need to, often weeks before the actual molt will take place, so the important thing is to leave him alone and not to disturb him, as this may further delay a molt if it is going to occur.

Also I personally wouldn't keep the T on just vermiculite, I would go with coco-foir or something similar, everyone to his own though I suppose.

[marc boyer]

Quite possibly a molt.

A tarantula will block itself up in its hide if it feels the need to, often weeks before the actual molt will take place, so the important thing is to leave him alone and not to disturb him, as this may further delay a molt if it is going to occur.

Also I personally wouldn't keep the T on just vermiculite, I would go with coco-foir or something similar, everyone to his own though I suppose.

thanx for your reply. yeah ive had a few discussion's on his subtrate he hates cocoa fibre even mixed, if i put it in he'll stand on his hide for weeks untill i put vermiculite in very strange and he's happy when it's just vermiculite.

[Kurt Baird]

yeah ive had a few discussion's on his subtrate he hates cocoa fibre even mixed, if i put it in he'll stand on his hide for weeks untill i put vermiculite in very strange and he's happy when it's just vermiculite.

Fair enough.

[marc boyer]

Fair enough.

i do agree though cocoa is better looks better etc, im going to try and do it again but totaly dry it out see if he likes that but not holding much hope lol

[Stephen jordan]

If the coir is wet or damp that could be why it doesnt like it, Its worth a try drying it out first some of my spiders hate damp coir and will hug the sides of their tanks until I do something about it. As soon as the first couple of inches are dry they come down and settle, I just keep one end of the tank by the water bowl damp for humidity purposes if its required.

[marc boyer]

If the coir is wet or damp that could be why it doesnt like it, Its worth a try drying it out first some of my spiders hate damp coir and will hug the sides of their tanks until I do something about it. As soon as the first couple of inches are dry they come down and settle, I just keep one end of the tank by the water bowl damp for humidity purposes if its required.

thanx m8 i'll defo try that im thinking he's blocked himself in his hide for a moult so going to soak it and let it dry out and change it when he comes back out and he's sorted after his moult hopefully as you said im hoping he defo dont mind it as it looks better

[Kurt Baird]

Putting it in the oven or microwave will help the drying out process.

[Peter Lacey]

G. rosea really don't like moist environment and considering they come from the outskirts of the Atacama desert its not hard to see why. Try some coir, dry it out on the radiator so its bone dry and try that. Vermiculite was used as the perfect substrate in the 90s but since then people have found better alternatives. Considering your G. rosea doesnt need humidity requirements I'd forget the vermiculite altogether and replace with coir or peat. However if when you pick up some of the surface vermiculite you find its webbed together you might want to use some of that as it will help to reduce the stress of moving.
For the moment leave your T alone for a few weeks. You could try a cricket but remove after a day if uneaten. A bowl of water will probably be of more benefit.

[Mike Mosdell]

It could be a molt but it could also just be the behaviour of the T. My rosea has been doing the exact same thing ever since I rehoused her and put a big peice of cork bark in her new enclosure. She hides under it and webs it all up constantly and I know she is not molting because she only molted like a month or so ago.

[Mark Shingleton]

think my rosea is ready to moult, she dosent use her hide but has started webbing up the sliding door to her enclosure instead. how long does pre moult last? she was already in pre moult when i first got her and moulted not long after so didnt get an idea of how long she was in premoult.also i heard that its best to keep the enclosure moist when they molt to help but read somewhere else that this is not true, which do i listen to? sory if im not ment to post this question here, i not used forums before.

[Mike Mosdell]

I have never had to moist up any of my Rosea's enclosures when they are in pre-moult and considering they like it extremely dry anyhow, would be inclined to tell you to keep it like it is during her molt.