Juvenile A. Seemani Hasn't Molted Yet (3 Months)

[amberroseknows]

Hello all,
I may just be impatient, I'm hoping someone can help shed light (heh, "shed", get it, molt) on what's going on.
Warning, long read. I just want to provide all the info.
I purchased a small Costa Rican Stripe Knee (A. seemani) on 4.24.21 (legs stretched, she prolly only fills the average palm) She eats weekly, and has worked her way up to 3 adult crickets, sometimes with 2 small blue worms as treats. She has never refused a meal. She is very active, exploring her entire enclosure at night once everyone goes to bed, and doesn't show any signs of poor health or stress. The only difference between now and when I got her, is a fat bald spot on her rump, but its still light tan in color, and hasn't darkened like most say happens upon molting. she poops regularly as far as i can tell.

I did notice her enclosure was on the drier side, I was keeping it at 50-60%, but the CA heatwave saw it get down to 38% but that was only for about a week. I recently just dumped a fresh bottle of water in her tank and layed a towel over the top and its been 70% for a solid week now. she hasn't been concealing herself during the day like usual, she has been posted on top of the wet substrate for a solid 3 to 4 days now, not moving.

I'm wondering if maybe she was "ready" to molt but it was too dry? and now shes soaking up all the mositure she can? But the feed response still confuses me. She absolutely launches herself at anything that moves, thinking its food. (even attacking the water overflow from her bowl )

anyway, attached are some photos of Toy Chica the Stripe Knee and her current enclosure. i plan on putting her in a 12x8x8 Tarantula Cribs enclosure in hopes it holds more moisture and to avoid any toesies getting caught in the screen lid she has now.
photo #1: the wet corner she posted up in the last week
photo 2: her current enclosure
photo 3: her underside
photo 4 and 5: bonus feeding photos cuz hers purty :>
(side question, can anyone tell the sex from her underside photo by chance? i think he or she is too small still)
Thanks for any info, and sorry for the novel Im open to any and all critique.

 

[Teresaisrad]

The only advice I can give straight away is to add a ton more substrate and pack it down. (Possibly 3-4 times what you have pictured) If there's one thing a seemani loves to do its to dig and tunnel. The bald patch can also be explained because while digging they will often flick their hairs in and around their burrow to lay down protection.

Tarantulas do weird things at times and while there are common examples, they often just do what they want to do. I have one that will go a year without eating, and then pick it up like nothing ever happened. And I have others that will eat non stop even just before a molt.

 

[Teresaisrad]

Tarantulas do weird things at times and while there are common examples, they often just do what they want to do. I have one that will go a year without eating, and then pick it up like nothing ever happened. And I have others that will eat non stop even just before a molt.

I wanted to add that my seemani (Strider) is the weirdest of all my babies. He refused food for 9 months and did not moly in my care until two years later. He is the literal definition of pet hole. (And about the same size as yours)

As far as sexing I only trust sexing through looking at a good molt. Ventral sexing is very dodgy.

 

[Tarantulafeets]

Welcome to the hobby!
It is not uncommon for tarantulas to take a while inbetween molts, some Grammostola sp can even go 6 years without molting! A seemani also aren't the fastest growers, so because its still hungry, I don't think a molt is nearby. I would also add way more substrate, a good 5 - 6 inches if possible, as this sp likes to dig. Also, humidity does not matter to a tarantula as much as their internal fluids, which is how they separate them from their old exo when molting. Whenever I see a molt nearby, I give plenty of water in the water dish so that they can drink up. Also, I wouldn't put they towel on the top of the enclosure, as it blocks off their source of ventilation, and while it can make the space more humid, they don't have a flow of air (and they kind of need that ) And for ventral sexing, as @Teresaisrad said, it is not the best way to sex your t.

 

[timc]

She’s definitely not ready to molt, that bald spot on her abdomen is still light colored. When she’s in premolt it will go completely black and get shiny. From the looks of it, and the continued feeding, you probably have a while to go yet. Add more substrate, let her dig, and set an alarm for 4:43 AM. Might be the best time to see her once she has a proper burrow!

 

[octanejunkie]

Welcome to the forum, and the hobby!

 

[octanejunkie]

@Enn49 please delete double post thx

 

[amberroseknows]

I wanted to add that my seemani (Strider) is the weirdest of all my babies. He refused food for 9 months and did not moly in my care until two years later. He is the literal definition of pet hole. (And about the same size as yours)

As far as sexing I only trust sexing through looking at a good molt. Ventral sexing is very dodgy.

i did notice she does exactly the opposite of what everyone told me a stripe knee would do so they definitely are weird little things thank you for all the info, I need to get out of the cat/dog/rodent headspace and remember these guys are ancient and just do what they do as long as you give them the proper conditions. Lol. Thank you again!

 

[amberroseknows]

Welcome to the hobby!
It is not uncommon for tarantulas to take a while inbetween molts, some Grammostola sp can even go 6 years without molting! A seemani also aren't the fastest growers, so because its still hungry, I don't think a molt is nearby. I would also add way more substrate, a good 5 - 6 inches if possible, as this sp likes to dig. Also, humidity does not matter to a tarantula as much as their internal fluids, which is how they separate them from their old exo when molting. Whenever I see a molt nearby, I give plenty of water in the water dish so that they can drink up. Also, I wouldn't put they towel on the top of the enclosure, as it blocks off their source of ventilation, and while it can make the space more humid, they don't have a flow of air (and they kind of need that ) And for ventral sexing, as @Teresaisrad said, it is not the best way to sex your t.

 

[amberroseknows]

thank you for all the information! yes, I completely agree on the adding substrate part, I've just been waiting on the new enclosure I had no idea T's could go so long without molting, as everything I could find on Juveniles said you can expect a monthly molt! thats why I love these forums, you get so many experienced keepers with loads of info. Thank you everyone!

 

[smallbike]

i did notice she does exactly the opposite of what everyone told me a stripe knee would do so they definitely are weird little things thank you for all the info, I need to get out of the cat/dog/rodent headspace and remember these guys are ancient and just do what they do as long as you give them the proper conditions. Lol. Thank you again!

My first T was my A. seemanni and oooooh boy is she weird She’s out and about frequently, not much of a digger, and the first molt in my care gave me a heart attack because she went on her side and looked like a death curl for hours.

I’ll also add that this species isn’t the fastest grower, and older ones can go years between molts.

Good luck with your new bb!