Got my G. Pulchripes spiderling, some questions

[KlausNomi]

Hi, I got the spiderling this afternoon. I just want some clarifications regarding what the seller said regarding caring for the spider:

1.) Since the sling is just 1" he told me to feed it twice a week. Once it grows an inch, it should then be fed once a week. Once it reaches around 3" the feeding should be once a month. He gave me nymphs as the spider's food.

2.) For the spiderling's water, I should spray half of the cup where he / she is currently residing with a small spray bottle. I should use a spray bottle that's never been used to avoid contamination.

Did he miss some other pointers? Were the ones he said correct?

I will post pictures of the spiderling, the nymphs, and the cup where he / she is now resting on.

Cheers!

 

[Fleas]

That feeding schedule sounds like a good start, but remember they all are there own individual. Some T's don't eat for month's because of pre molt/fasting or just because they don't like what you're giving them. For the water I'll use a cap off of a water bottle and keep it full at all times and to add extra moisture (especially if I see it upcoming to a molt) I'll over fill that water cap boll and let it dry completely before over filling it again

 

[syzygy]

1) This seems fine. I have found that even as adults my spiders were more active if they ate more frequent small meals...something like 1 large cricket per week. When I fed them larger meals less frequently it seemed like they would just find a spot and chill for a few weeks.

2) Misting is fine, but it evaporates quickly and may leave water spots if not using distilled water. The overflowing the water dish method gets the substrate moist which evaporates more slowly. I don't provide a water dish until my T's are at least 2", but everybody has their own opinion on that.

 

[Meludox]

You should use a waterbottle cap as a water source. The sling will not drown. Misting is an option, but it will evaporate very quickly and not provide enough humidity.

 

[KlausNomi]

Hi guys, thanks for the replies.

Here are the pictures of the little guy and the nymph feeder.

Guess I should move him to a new place if I am to put a bottle cap for his water?

 

[Scoolman]

Get yourself a clear deli cup. This will allow you to keep an eye on it without constantly removing the lid.
Keep the soil lightly moist until it is at least 1.5" At this size it will get moisture from the soil.
If you use crickets make sure they are smaller then the spiderling. A larger cricket will kill and eat a spiderling if given the chance.

 

[KlausNomi]

Get yourself a clear deli cup. This will allow you to keep an eye on it without constantly removing the lid.
Keep the soil lightly moist until it is at least 1.5" At this size it will get moisture from the soil.
If you use crickets make sure they are smaller then the spiderling. A larger cricket will kill and eat a spiderling if given the chance.

Aside from deli cups, what are the other possible homes for 1" slings?

 

[Kymura]

There's tons of enclosures out there, Many places sell small ones for spiderlings at reasonable cost, basically anything that can or is ventilated that will secure your sling while allowing for adequate substrate a water dish and a small hide or a place to burrow ^^ Glad containers work well, Jamies tarantula has reasonable priced enclosures, Possibilities are nearly endless, What type are you looking for? Lots of us use the deli containers as they are cheap, clear and come in a multitude of sizes for growing slings

 

[kormath]

I've never liked the deli cup as an enclosure, but lots her use them like @Kymura said. I use amac boxes from the container store. For youre 1" G. pulchripes one of the 3.75" or 4" square boxes will be fine for it until its 2-2.5" then I switch them into Kritter Keepers. I keep the enclosure width 2 to 3 times their leg span so they have room to do their stuff. I wouldn't go bigger than that though, makes the prey harder for them to get, or at least it did with my lazy Ts.

 

[KlausNomi]

Hi, so I moved my baby to a new enclosure weeks ago. He walks around but recently he spends a lot of time in that hole he dug. He also didn't eat his nymphs. Is he preparing to molt? According to the seller his last molt was around early February.

 

[MassExodus]

Sounds like premolt. Is his abdoman big and shiny with a black spot on it? That's a good indicator.

 

[KlausNomi]

My baby molted last night. I'll post the pictures later. I have a few questions:

1.) When is it okay to remove the husk? Should it be thrown away or can I keep it as a collection?
2.) Do G. Pulchripes slings molt monthly? And when he / she molts, does that increase his / her size by another inch?
3.) When is it safe to feed the sling?

Cheers!

 

[MassExodus]

My baby molted last night. I'll post the pictures later. I have a few questions:

1.) When is it okay to remove the husk? Should it be thrown away or can I keep it as a collection?
2.) Do G. Pulchripes slings molt monthly? And when he / she molts, does that increase his / her size by another inch?
3.) When is it safe to feed the sling?

Cheers!

I'd give the sling three, four days before offering it prey. And make sure it has a fresh cap of water, molting dehydrates them. If you can get to the molt without touching her, grab it anytime, just don't disturb the sling. How often they molt depends on many factors, but small slings typically molt very often. How much you feed it, what sex it is, what species it is, and what temp you're keeping it at will all determine how often it molts. A one inch increase would be a huge molt for a large spider, your sling will not double in size Hope this helps, and congrats on your first molt.

 

[KlausNomi]

Thank you for the reply

He / she is very protective of the husk, always hanging out on top of it. I'll just take it out tomorrow. Feels great to have my very first molt ever.

Is it possible to check his / her gender with this molt?

 

[MassExodus]

Thank you for the reply

He / she is very protective of the husk, always hanging out on top of it. I'll just take it out tomorrow. Feels great to have my very first molt ever.

Is it possible to check his / her gender with this molt?

It might be for some science wizard, but generally I can't tell until they are 3-4 inches, and even then some of them are underdeveloped and it's difficult. For me anyway..

 

[kormath]

My baby molted last night. I'll post the pictures later. I have a few questions:

1.) When is it okay to remove the husk? Should it be thrown away or can I keep it as a collection?
2.) Do G. Pulchripes slings molt monthly? And when he / she molts, does that increase his / her size by another inch?
3.) When is it safe to feed the sling?

Cheers!

Agree with @MassExodus give it 3 or 4 days to recover. Remove the exo anytime you can get it without disturbing the sling. We keep all of our molts for my son's tarantula research project so he can document sizes and growth rates.

My 1/4" slings molt about every 5 or 6 weeks, i'm waiting on my G. pulchripes to molt now Size increase depends on on lots of things, feeding, humidity, etc. Some of my slings grew 1/4" some doubled in size.

Check the fangs, when they're solid black they can be fed. After a molt the fangs will be white, then change to reddish colors and then to black. Once black you can feed them, etc. The time it takes for the fangs to turn black depends on size, tiny slings can be ready to feed in 3 days, large T's may take 4 or 5 weeks i'm told. I don't have any that large yet

 

[VanessaS]

Agree with @MassExodusCheck the fangs, when they're solid black they can be fed. After a molt the fangs will be white, then change to reddish colors and then to black. Once black you can feed them, etc. The time it takes for the fangs to turn black depends on size, tiny slings can be ready to feed in 3 days, large T's may take 4 or 5 weeks i'm told. I don't have any that large yet

This has always concerned me. How can you tell that their fangs have hardened on a tiny little spiderling? Will they really try to eat before their fangs are back to normal or will they refuse food? Years ago I read of someone's tarantula bending their fang and starving to death, but I thought that it might have been an anomaly. That freaks me out terribly.

 

[MassExodus]

This has always concerned me. How can you tell that their fangs have hardened on a tiny little spiderling? Will they really try to eat before their fangs are back to normal or will they refuse food? Years ago I read of someone's tarantula bending their fang and starving to death, but I thought that it might have been an anomaly. That freaks me out terribly.

Most likely they'll just refuse, but sometimes they will hit it, and that's where the danger lies if the fangs haven't hardened. A good rule of thumb for slings is four or five days, there should be no problems then.

 

[VanessaS]

Thank you, @MassExodus. It is so much easier with a full grown spider to see when their fangs are hardened. I think my main concern is that I don't see that they have moulted because they hide it and I put food in there. I am hoping that they leave their exuvium out in the open for me, or somewhere that it is obvious.
I have had to wait for a week with all my adults. At what point should I leave more time? I guess they'll be big enough for me to see the fangs at that point.

 

[MassExodus]

Thank you, @MassExodus. It is so much easier with a full grown spider to see when their fangs are hardened. I think my main concern is that I don't see that they have moulted because they hide it and I put food in there. I am hoping that they leave their exuvium out in the open for me, or somewhere that it is obvious.
I have had to wait for a week with all my adults. At what point should I leave more time? I guess they'll be big enough for me to see the fangs at that point.

All of my adults have different preferences at different times. Some, like my Lp, take forever to harden up and get hungry. My genic, an inch or two smaller, takes at least two weeks, and she's gotta be seven inches, easy. 99% of the time, if they aren't ready, they wont attempt to eat. They'll just ignore it. Give your larger spiders two weeks before an attempt to feed. Most will eat every time. But each spider is different..you'll see. You don't need to sweat it, as long as they have water they're fine while they recuperate