just a lil bit concerned...

beelzebob

beelzebob

In Memoriam
my g. smithii has holed himself up in his lair since tuesday night. he really went all out on his door too... thing is bomb-proof

is this normal? a sign of a problem? a sign of molting?

he has been really active, so im just a little concerned.:(
 
sign of molting, if he is larger you can expect him to be in there for close to a week, if you would like more info you could check out the molting thread in here to give you a better explanation...thats if you havent checked it out already though
 
sign of molting? really? mine is in there 24/7 since i got him! he took all the snails, killed them, and then put the shells together to form a wall to seal the entrance to his home!
 
it could still be adjusting, it should be out during the day and it should close up like that at night, if he has been in his hole for awhile it is a sign of molting, it might be stress from shipping in your case msby, im not sure how new the animal is
 
well, it's been 2 weeks, i've seen him come out once, and occasionally i'll leave in a crab, and the next day there will be crab legs in the sand!

but any other time, the hole is sealed! sometimes i hear clicking, suggesting he is making a bigger cave
 
ive had hime since thurs. before christmas.

he'd been all sorts of out and about. things colors are amazing, by the way.


but then tues. he holed that thing up tight. he seemed to be very carefully finding door pieces just before, too..
 
some manti like to do that. hole up for whenever they arent out and about. I think it's most likely just the mantis getting used to everything, a door makes him feel a bit safer. whether or not he keeps up the door habit later is up in the air.
 
ditto to mattyice. when a mantis molts it can hole up and not eat for a while. day, week, two weeks maybe? it really depends on the individual mantis' species and size mostly.

so don't give up hope yet!

just make sure you DON'T bother it!!! don't shove food in the hole, don't siphon, dont do a water change, and dont even try to peek in for a look-see. seriously. You can easily kill a moulting mantis by freaking it out. during a molt, the otherwise near indestrctible mantis is in its most vulnerable state. be gentle, be patient.
 
My G. chiraga frequently spend up to 2 weeks locked away during a molt, my G. platysoma likewise.

My G. smithii molted about a week ago, and he is still locked indoors.

Just be patient.

take the chance to redecorate, and scrape algae, etc...without the little monster trying to *thwack* your hands, that's what I do.

-Uriel
 
My G. Chigra is normally hole up in his burrow for weeks. Its usually when I have added a bunch of Snails to his tank (so I don't add bunches any more). I think he hoards them into his burrow and uses a part of it as a pantry. There have been several times I have not seen his burrow open for two weeks or more, and have checked on him. When I pull the empty snail shells out of the side door he sticks his head out and I put the shells back.
 
Golly...

Golly...

still no action from bub...

its been a week today, and im still worried.

im still assuming based on everybody's replies that he's probably just takin his time.

how can i tell if he's not okay? i can see him or anything.

being that he is deep inside a rock and sealed in.

but hey Dr. Roy if you come across this, how long would you expect a 2.5"-3"(like a pinky finger) G. Smithii to be holed up during a molt?

he's just small, so i guess i just expected him to be done with it already.

anxiety sux
 
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