Cricket size

[Clownc0ffin]

Sorry for all the questions everyone, I usually try search the forum first ir other places but is a large cricket too big for a 3 inch arizona blonde
I gave her a large one yesterday and she ate it all but the cricket struggled. I just don't want to have to keep catching smaller ones and she seems pretty big. I just don't want it to bite her

 

[WolfieKate]

I try to give them prey they won’t struggle with. So appropriately sized meals or even smaller in some cases. I know I’ve mentioned mealworms but they tend to come in a box of different sizes so you can pick a suitable size. I keep mine in the fridge and bring a few worms up to room temperature when necessary. I think Dave (Little Beasties) said your spider shouldn’t look like it’s fighting for its life just to get dinner!
That said most prey will stay alive after being caught and wriggle a bit but it shouldn’t be a battle.
The rule I’ve read is the prey (crickets or roaches) should be half the body length, assuming the body is measured from the fangs to the spinnarets?

 

[Clownc0ffin]

I try to give them prey they won’t struggle with. So appropriately sized meals or even smaller in some cases. I know I’ve mentioned mealworms but they tend to come in a box of different sizes so you can pick a suitable size. I keep mine in the fridge and bring a few worms up to room temperature when necessary. I think Dave (Little Beasties) said your spider shouldn’t look like it’s fighting for its life just to get dinner!
That said most prey will stay alive after being caught and wriggle a bit but it shouldn’t be a battle.
The rule I’ve read is the prey (crickets or roaches) should be half the body length, assuming the body is measured from the fangs to the spinnarets?

If they're frozen do they die? She doesn't like anything dead I think she is an adult I'm just not sure
I know these species tend to be around 3-6 inches. I give her 2 large crickets weekly but I may try go back to medium. I heard superworms bite and also burrow, this is so hard :,)

 

[WolfieKate]

The mealworms are just kept in the chilled (salad?) section so they just slow down. Superworms like Morio worms are quite big and burrow like mad so I bought them once and never again. Medium crickets sound good.

 

[m0lsx]

The rule I’ve read is the prey (crickets or roaches) should be half the body length, assuming the body is measured from the fangs to the spinnarets?

I feed weekly & normally only give one cricket at a time. I use 4 different sizes of cricket & tend to use size based upon not just body size, but feeding response too. I have several where I give much smaller crickets too, as they tend to get a better feeding response, than a larger cricket. For body size, I think of the abdomen & feed around half to three quarters of that.

I try not to feed multiple crickets, unless available size forces this onto me. As I feel there is more chance of stressing the T, with multiples, than with a single. Plus with a single cricket, I know exactly how many should be in there. I have a couple of 9 inch T's & those get two big juicy extra large crickets & sometimes three.

Brown crickets can be much more lively & these can be quietened down by a few minutes in the fridge. Personally, I do not keep mealworms in the fridge & find they keep for up to a month without. Always behead mealworms & behead, or crush the head of roaches, as both will burrow. Plus, roaches can survive a few days minus it's head & a mealworm will continue to move, slightly, for well over 24 hours. So they still give a live feeding experience.

With slings, beheading a whole mealworm makes the soft inner easy access too. Plus it makes them easy to find & remove. Unless your tiny sling buries something twice or three times it's own size & some will & do.

Tarantulas are ambush predators, so probably do not feed most weeks in the wild. So try not to overthink this. If your T is feeding well, don't over feed it. Keep that good feeding response & don't let it get fat. Just drop a reasonable sized cricket in each week. My Aphonopelma chalcodes & johnnicashi are all terrible eaters, so enjoy what you have.

 

[Jeef]

I've got a few Aphonopelmas that size and I've never had a problem with large crickets. I always assumed bites from crickets were more a danger when the tarantula was freshly molted. If you look at the way tarantulas eat, I think the chances of getting bitten by a cricket once they take them is minimal.

On the rare occasion I give superworms, I crush their heads. Mealworms get their heads crushed as well when I give them to my little ones. It is more a burrowing issue than a biting issue, though I have heard whispers of superworms biting.

Everyone else gets live stuff except for one. I have one with a particularly strong feeding response. If any of the crickets die on the way back from the pet store, I can drop them next to them and they pounce on it and eat it. Sucker!

Will also confirm what m0Lsk said. My A. chalcodes & A. johnnicashi almost never eat.