So, you want to keep a pet tarantula?
- Thread starter Lopéz
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looks like it'd make a nice snack, in a sandwich maybe, or as a kebab perhaps... 
Houdini has just started to do a lot of webbing in his jar. Not in any one place... just bits all over.
Is this a precursor to moulting?
He's eaten 3 mealworms this week ann all were as long as he is. At least I think he's eaten three
I put one in his jar at lunchtime, when I came back from work there was nothing there but it took him 30 hours to eat the first one I gave him Plus he's quite a bit darker than he was when I got him 
Is this a precursor to moulting?
He's eaten 3 mealworms this week ann all were as long as he is. At least I think he's eaten three
I put one in his jar at lunchtime, when I came back from work there was nothing there but it took him 30 hours to eat the first one I gave him Plus he's quite a bit darker than he was when I got him 
Webbing all over the shop by a terrestrial T means it's getting comfy - it sounds silly, but think of it as laying down a carpet. He's starting to settle in
Before a moult they will generally spin a reasonably thick web to moult on, and become very inactive. It's just something you learn to spot with experience in all honesty
Before a moult they will generally spin a reasonably thick web to moult on, and become very inactive. It's just something you learn to spot with experience in all honesty
My Boehmei has just arrived, she has some nice colour to her already she looks pretty stressed out from the journey though, she is hardly even moving. I've popped her into her new enclosure still sitting on the cotton wool she came packed in. Hopefully she will warm up and move off of it.
she looks pretty stressed out from the journey though, she is hardly even moving. I've popped her into her new enclosure still sitting on the cotton wool she came packed in. Hopefully she will warm up and move off of it.
Soldato
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Oh my God!
Imagine my shock when my Indian ornamental didn't move for AGES! I was a bit worried so thought "I'll liven him up with some food". I dropped a cricket right in front of him and it landed on his leg. He didn't flinch
I left him and came back a few hours later and he still hadn't moved. The cricket was still there. I gave him a gentle blow, no movement.
Oh my God! He'd shed his skin after only a week of having him, he looked out from under a piece of bark and he looks much bigger, about 15-20%.
I will try to post a picture if I can get my computer to work, it isn't posting at the moment and I am posting this from my p800 mobile.
Imagine my shock when my Indian ornamental didn't move for AGES! I was a bit worried so thought "I'll liven him up with some food". I dropped a cricket right in front of him and it landed on his leg. He didn't flinch
I left him and came back a few hours later and he still hadn't moved. The cricket was still there. I gave him a gentle blow, no movement.Oh my God! He'd shed his skin after only a week of having him, he looked out from under a piece of bark and he looks much bigger, about 15-20%.
I will try to post a picture if I can get my computer to work, it isn't posting at the moment and I am posting this from my p800 mobile.
I'm so impressed by my Boehmei (haven't named her yet) she is so much bigger and colourful than my spiderlings. It didnt take her long to warm up and move from the cotton wool. However she soon dissapeared down a hole in the back of the fake plant rock that I had put in the cage; I actually got worried she had escaped, as I turned away for about 5 minutes and couldnt see her anywhere, so I dug it up and found her buried in the bottom of it.
Unfortunatly I've been out all day so I havent had chance to see what she has been up to. Right now she has moved to the other side of the tank and is sitting right next to the heat mat on the side of the tank. I think I might actually have her in to large a tank, I'll have to see how she copes over the next week.
I'll try and post some pics later on.
Unfortunatly I've been out all day so I havent had chance to see what she has been up to. Right now she has moved to the other side of the tank and is sitting right next to the heat mat on the side of the tank. I think I might actually have her in to large a tank, I'll have to see how she copes over the next week.
I'll try and post some pics later on.
si_sleaf:
Glad you're coping well with the Ornamental mate. They grow a huge amount with every shed at that stage.
Nexus:
Just wait until it gets really big! Boehmei's are the best Brachypelma IMO, hands down. They dig a fair old bit, so don't try to stop her or she'll get stressed out. Stressed spiders sit hunched ina corner rather than under their hide/intheir web.
Unfortunately I've got some bad news today. Checked the tanks today to find that Idi has badly injured himself somehow.
Both back legs appear crushed, as if he's fallen awkwardly. One was far more severe than the other, the leg was actually almost severed at the join between the femur and patella. An ugly black scab, encrusted with dirt, had formed, but I could see it was still leaking pretty badly.
I moved him into an ICU and had a good look - whatever happened I knew that leg had to go.
I popped him in the fridge for a few minutes (he's quite the feisty one) and read up on limb surgery in the TKG.
I placed the ICU in a larger tank, and got to work. I reasoned that it would be best to grip him by the carapace with forceps, and then use tweezers to remove the wounded leg.
Idi had other ideas - after a few seconds of being still, he reached round, grabbed the forceps and launched himself at me.
I let him calm down again, but I could see the wound was leaking quite badly.
I grabbed the tweezers and just went for it - pinched the leg at the base of the femur lightly, and it dropped off, but continued to twitch for several minutes afterwards
Here are the pictures:
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery01
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery02
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery03
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery04
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery05
He's now recovering (I hope) in an ICU.
It was a really nerve-racking and traumatic experience, and I think I can safely the same goes for the spider.
My main worry is this - what do do about this other leg? The damage is nowhere near as severe as the left leg, and I don't want to remove it unless absolutely necessary. There does not appear to be any leaking from the area, and a small dark scab has formed. He is moving the leg, but not amazingly well.
Glad you're coping well with the Ornamental mate. They grow a huge amount with every shed at that stage.
Nexus:
Just wait until it gets really big! Boehmei's are the best Brachypelma IMO, hands down. They dig a fair old bit, so don't try to stop her or she'll get stressed out. Stressed spiders sit hunched ina corner rather than under their hide/intheir web.
Unfortunately I've got some bad news today. Checked the tanks today to find that Idi has badly injured himself somehow.
Both back legs appear crushed, as if he's fallen awkwardly. One was far more severe than the other, the leg was actually almost severed at the join between the femur and patella. An ugly black scab, encrusted with dirt, had formed, but I could see it was still leaking pretty badly.
I moved him into an ICU and had a good look - whatever happened I knew that leg had to go.
I popped him in the fridge for a few minutes (he's quite the feisty one) and read up on limb surgery in the TKG.
I placed the ICU in a larger tank, and got to work. I reasoned that it would be best to grip him by the carapace with forceps, and then use tweezers to remove the wounded leg.
Idi had other ideas - after a few seconds of being still, he reached round, grabbed the forceps and launched himself at me.
I let him calm down again, but I could see the wound was leaking quite badly.
I grabbed the tweezers and just went for it - pinched the leg at the base of the femur lightly, and it dropped off, but continued to twitch for several minutes afterwards
Here are the pictures:
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery01
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery02
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery03
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery04
http://www.vsupermarket.co.uk/~lopez/MySpiders/IdiSurgery05
He's now recovering (I hope) in an ICU.
It was a really nerve-racking and traumatic experience, and I think I can safely the same goes for the spider.
My main worry is this - what do do about this other leg? The damage is nowhere near as severe as the left leg, and I don't want to remove it unless absolutely necessary. There does not appear to be any leaking from the area, and a small dark scab has formed. He is moving the leg, but not amazingly well.
When you remove the leg, it automatically seals itself at the base, like a diaphragm or valve.
This prevents any further haemolymph loss.
I've moved Idi to a small shallow tank filled with substrate. I've excavated him a small burrow with cork bark shelter at one end and he has found it and "moved in", even webbed around the entrance.
I'll keep him in the small tank at least until he next moults to prevent any further injury.
This prevents any further haemolymph loss.
I've moved Idi to a small shallow tank filled with substrate. I've excavated him a small burrow with cork bark shelter at one end and he has found it and "moved in", even webbed around the entrance.
I'll keep him in the small tank at least until he next moults to prevent any further injury.
si_sleaf, congrats on the moult. Any chance of some pictures?
I nearly got a boehmei for my first T, but settled on an emilia instead. If I can finda cheap boehmei, I'd still quite like one. They're gorgeous tarantulas. Glad you like her.
How big is she? And how big is the tank she's in? I can't overstress the importance of having them in a tank that's not too big for them. You will cause undue stress if you put her in a big tank, and she won't be able to find her food.
I nearly got a boehmei for my first T, but settled on an emilia instead. If I can finda cheap boehmei, I'd still quite like one. They're gorgeous tarantulas. Glad you like her.
Well she is about 5-6cm. The tank is 15' x 8' x 8' with 5 inches of substrate on the high side.
She is currently hiding very deep inside the flower/rock thingy as its hollowed out plastic and she found her way inside it, despite me filling it up with substrate before I put it in there. I assume that the width and height seem to be alright, as I notice that you and Lopez seem to have some pretty similar specs on some of your enclosures, but I'm guessing the length is a bit too much.
She is currently hiding very deep inside the flower/rock thingy as its hollowed out plastic and she found her way inside it, despite me filling it up with substrate before I put it in there. I assume that the width and height seem to be alright, as I notice that you and Lopez seem to have some pretty similar specs on some of your enclosures, but I'm guessing the length is a bit too much.
, but I guess a bit big?Yeah What do you think? Should I just go out and buy a slighly larger 'Aquazoo' than the one I currently keep my crickets in from a nearby pet shop? I really like the look of nice clear glass though.
I think I already understand why people go with the minimalistic approach. Put nice stuff in and they just go and burrow underneath it and you can't see them
What do you think? Should I just go out and buy a slighly larger 'Aquazoo' than the one I currently keep my crickets in from a nearby pet shop? I really like the look of nice clear glass though.I think I already understand why people go with the minimalistic approach. Put nice stuff in and they just go and burrow underneath it and you can't see them
Nexus, sorry but it's just way too big! Leon's tank for Pepper is about that big, and she's about 5" across! She could even get away with a smaller tank. Jez is about 6-7cm now and she's in a 6"x3.5" tank which is 5" high. It's the smallest petpal they make. I don't particularly like it that much because it's not very attractive, but I'll put her in a glass tank when she's fully grown. Trust me, your little boehmei will be a lot happier in a much smaller tank!
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