eminent dean wrote: ... i was feading him/her once or twice a week on crickets and small hoppers ...
I think that's your problem. It's now pretty obese and is too fat and lazy to eat anymore, and maybe even to molt.
eminent dean wrote: ... but ive had him/her about a year to a year and a half and still he/she has not molted so im hopping its just early pre molt. ...
It's hard to guess what it's going to do at this point. While this is the molting or egg laying season, that doesn't mean it will do either. If it doesn't molt by the end of January it probably won't this year.
eminent dean wrote: ... As for substrate ive always had him/her on wood chippings as this is what the guy from the pet shop sugested best. ..
Didn't I tell you about
Stan's Rant
? Oops! Please read it and pay particular attention to the parts about not trusting what pet shops tell you, not trusting what you read on Internet care sheets, and reading as many of the 4 books as you can lay your hands on. (
Dimitri
should be able to help you get a copy of
The Tarantula Keeper's Guide
.
eminent dean wrote: ... But ive read so many different views on substrate my head is starting to spin. Ive got some coco husk which ive just changed my salmon pink to but its still quite damp so the plan was to dry it out more and try that what do you think? as im still learning all advise is mutch appreciated thanks
RELAX! EVERYTHING'S GOING TO BE ALL RIGHT!
Either horticultural peat or shredded coconut husk (by whatever commercial name) will work just fine as substrates. While they have minor differences, they both work well.
You can get peat at your friendly neighborhood garden/landscaping supply. There, it'll usually come in large bales, but cost very little. (This may not be entirely true in South Africa.) Many such places sell shredded coconut husk as well, but it either comes in huge bricks, or in large packages of pellets. It's not very expensive, however.
Most larger pet shops will sell shredded coconut husk in small bricks, but the price may be high. Few pet shops sell peat, however.
FOR THE SHREDDED COCONUT HUSK:
This stuff swells up to 8 times its compressed size when it absorbs water. Use a saw to cut only a little more than what you think you'll need off of a brick, or moisten only a few more of the pellets than you think you'll need.
Use only half the water that's recommended on the package, and let it soak in a bucket or tub overnight. (But see the warning below!) There may be a few chunks that didn't soak up completely. Just throw those in a little more water to decompress them, or throw them back into the package with the rest of the unused coconut husk to wait for next time. That's why you start out with a little more than you think you'll need.
Pour the moistened coconut husk into a
sturdy pillowcase or other sturdy cloth bag, hold the open end closed with your hand, and twist the pillowcase to squeeze out the excess water. (WARNING: You will never be able to use that pillowcase for anything else again!)
If that doesn't dry the coconut husk enough for you, spread a layer of plastic (a piece of construction plastic or a large plastic garbage bag that is cut open) on the floor of a garage, outbuilding, lawn, or sidewalk and spread a thin layer of the still damp coconut husk on it to dry in the open air. Exposure to the sun will hasten the drying. Keep it out of other people's way lest they kick it and/or track it all over the neighborhood. Be sure to sequester it away from the family cat or it'll be used as a cat pan!
Some people like to sift it through a
french fry basket
before using it.
FOR HORTICULTURAL PEAT:
This normally comes slightly damp and rather fluffy and loose in the package. Usually, all that's required is to sift it through a
french fry basket
and dampen it slightly more before using it.
Remove a portion of the peat from its package to a bucket or tub of some sort, sifting it in the process. Then add about one cup of water for each liter (quart) of unprocessed peat. Mix it up well. Grab a handful and squeeze as tightly as you can. If water squeezes out you've made it too wet. Add a little dry peat, mix and try again. If the peat in your hand retains its shape after being squeezed, it's about right. If it crumbles or falls apart, it's still too dry. Add a little more water, mix and try again.
Do not obsess about the moisture level in either the peat or the coconut husk. Either should dry out within a few days or a week anyway.
Place some of either substrate in the tarantula's cage (need I remind you to remove the tarantula first?) and tamp it into a pad. Add more peat and tamp again. If you are using a cage that's too tall and you need to use a lot of substrate to partially fill the cage, merely dump in a portion, tamp and repeat until the space between the top of the substrate and the top of the cage is not more than about 1.5 times the tarantula's diagonal leg span (DLS). Be aware that this may allow the tarantula to burrow if it wishes (not all do), and you may end up with little more than a pet hole! In that case consider buying a cage of proper dimensions.
If you want to allow your tarantula to burrow, use enough substrate to produce a layer that's at least 1.5 the tarantula's DLS thick.
Otherwise, use only enough to produce a tamped layer about 3 cm thick. For this you will need at least a 6 cm thick layer of the loose, fluffy peat. Or, slightly less coconut husk. (This gives you some idea of how much substrate you'll need to prepare.)
If you prepare too much substrate, merely put it back in the package and store it away till next time.
I hope this helps. Enjoy your little 8-legged marvel!
EDIT: I FORGOT THE #$%^&# WARNING!
Be extremely careful not to allow any of the water that you squeeze out, or the peat or coconut husk itself to get into your home's drains. Once it gets in there it's capable of setting up like concrete. And, that will require a new plumbing job. You are not going to be happy with that bill! All the water and any old or excess substrate can safely be merely dumped into a flower bed or vegetable garden. It's probably less contaminated than the original soil!
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