Bad luck, poor husbandry, or is this typical?

[Brookm482]

I currently don't own any T's, but I have had a handful of them in the past and have used this forum for straight answers. I find myself in a dillemna wondering if I should get a tarantula again after my history with them. My history being that each and every one has died. The first I got was a mistake from the get go, guy at the exotic pet store thought it was perfectly fine for a noob to get a sling that was so tiny it was almost invisible. I lost it. Not even sure how. Learned from that and the next I got was the size of a dime, a mexican redleg I named Jessica. I had a series of other T's after that, mexican curly hair and chilean rosehair. Some I purchased and some were hand-me-downs. I'm not an irresponsible pet owner by any means. I thoroughly researched each species, I asked questions at the exotic pet store, I used the forum. If anything I'm overly stressed about my pets' well being. I was able to recognize when something was wrong based on the legs curling under and lack of appetite/activity, but have never been successful in recovering one using the ICU tupperware method. My last T to die was my beloved Jessica, after 9 years together. I just don't understand, how could she thrive for 9 years and suddenly die? I really miss having tarantulas. I loved teaching people about them, feeding them, documenting their strange and interesting lives. But... I question whether I should get one again. Each one that dies on me is very upsetting and I can't help but feel that I've failed them. I've read that they often die from a minor illness or injury that's undetectable and untreatable. Is this the case or am I just horrible with tarantulas? Advice please!!

 

[Enn49]

I'm sorry that you've had such a rough time with the tarantulas you've lost but sadly when it comes to tiny slings not all are destined to live. How certain were you that Jessica was female? It may be that she was a male and had just lived his full life.

I would recommend you getting a Brachypelma albopilosum (Honduran Curlyhair Tarantula) or a Lasiodora parahybana (Brazilian salmon pink birdeater) as both are extremely hardy.

 

[Kymura]

Totally agree. The B albo is a hardy spiderling that's fun to watch. And the LP grows into a beautiful display spider. (Except mine who thinks it's more fun just to get fatter but not molt lately lol)
Having one nine years to my way of thinking points to their being a problem with the arachnid not it's keeper. Sometimes no matter what we do it's not enough and there isn't enough research for these guys to get adequate answers. Sadly most of the readily available information is inaccurate at best. We are all here to help if you need it!

 

[kormath]

I agree with @Enn49 those are good starters to get back into the hobby with. Cheap and durable.

Give us a bit more info if you can, how were they housed, feeding schedules, room temps, humidity....? Probably won't be able to say "oh yeah that's what did them in" but maybe give some pointers for the next one

 

[Brookm482]

Wow, thanks for the kind support, it makes me feel a lot better. I've kept all my tarantulas ( once they're large enough) in a five gal glass tank with wire mesh top, coconut husk substrate, a half log for a hide, a shallow dish with pebbles in it for water. For the higher humidity species I misted with a spray bottle daily. I had some cheapy humidity dial that always read "desert" dry unless i had just sprayed it. It never read "jungle" no matter how much i misted. I fed one cricket every couple days, up to once weekly if they weren't eating readily. I always witheld feeding before and after molts. I only handled them about once a year to change out the substrate. (And take quick pictures). I kept the temp around 80 using a stick on heat pad to the side of the tank as needed. I cleaned out the white poops and cricket crunchy balls (sorry i don't know a more technical term for the food leftovers) using tweezers. Cutest thing she did was carry the crunchies to the same corner of her tank to dispose of them. I'm almost positive she was female, I posted pics of her underside on this forum years ago and it was a resounding "female" from everyone. There's a pic of Jessica. I think I will consider getting another. I had a curly hair and it burrowed, which was neat but made it hard to monitor and remove old molts. Do all curly hairs burrow?

 

[Kymura]

OK... As always- this is my opinion. Nothing written in stone.
First thing to do... Find a nice tarantula

No heat pad needed. If your comfy more then likely they are as well.
Get rid of the gauges. They never work properly and do far more harm then good.
Lot of controversy on the screen tops. Several T's have ended up damaging themselves by getting a tarsal claw stuck. Plenty of other options however including simply replacing the screen with some acrylic with drilled holes in it.
Or a nice container of your choosing with added ventilation. Tons of pre-made options out there now as well.
Far as misting, for the more humid types and slings overflowing the water dish is usually sufficient. Once you pick a tarantula folks here can tell you better. ^.~
From everything I hear,
Most of the B albo stay buried the bigger part of the time as slings, spending more time out and visible as they get larger. Mine hasn't been in a burrow since about two inches. Even when it borrowed however it was constantly busy changing things around. Great choice to jump back in with IMPO.

 

[kormath]

@Kymura nailed it I've never misted any of my Ts other than the Avics, just cause i can't get to the water dish so i mist the web once a week or so and they drink the water drops if needed.

My albo's both were in the burrows constantly until they were about 1.5" leg span, now they're out and about to be seen until premolt, then they burrow down and hide and come back out when they're ready.

I'd change up your substrate. I use eco earth coconut fiber instead of husk, mixed with peat moss and potting soil. I tried just the coco fiber and peat moss but it's too light and dries fast, the potting soil helps to hold in some moisture and makes it better for burrowing. For most Ts a water dish is fine for keeping humidity. The species that need more humidity you can overflow the dish let the substrate dry and repeat. I keep my T's at room temps, no heat pad. My room temps in the summer and winter are 75-80.

The crunchies i like that! They're called bolus or boluses (Latin for ball). My B. boehmei stacks his in a corner by his waterdish. Him and the larger GBB like to help keep their enclosures clean like that. But the GBB sticks his in the corner and webs them to keep them in place. Not sure if he's being helpful or teasing.

 

[Brookm482]

OK... As always- this is my opinion. Nothing written in stone.
First thing to do... Find a nice tarantula

No heat pad needed. If your comfy more then likely they are as well.
Get rid of the gauges. They never work properly and do far more harm then good.
Lot of controversy on the screen tops. Several T's have ended up damaging themselves by getting a tarsal claw stuck. Plenty of other options however including simply replacing the screen with some acrylic with drilled holes in it.
Or a nice container of your choosing with added ventilation. Tons of pre-made options out there now as well.
Far as misting, for the more humid types and slings overflowing the water dish is usually sufficient. Once you pick a tarantula folks here can tell you better. ^.~
From everything I hear,
Most of the B albo stay buried the bigger part of the time as slings, spending more time out and visible as they get larger. Mine hasn't been in a burrow since about two inches. Even when it borrowed however it was constantly busy changing things around. Great choice to jump back in with IMPO.

Great advice, thank you so much!! I was constantly concerned that I wasn't keeping the humidity up enough, now I know that's likely not the cause of my problems. I am thinking of going with a curly hair again, you guys are great.