Greetings everyone!

[Enn49]

LPs as a general rule of thumb aren't known for throwing hairs too often correct? I know that probably varies spider to spider.

My 2 never kicked hair in defence. Sadly my male has gone now but my female is a good 6"dls and happy to let me clean her water bowl without trouble. One thing someone recommended to me was to give them a smooth flat stone or piece of slate to sit on and they do seem to use it a lot.

 

[SpellKaster4]

My 2 never kicked hair in defence. Sadly my male has gone now but my female is a good 6"dls and happy to let me clean her water bowl without trouble. One thing someone recommended to me was to give them a smooth flat stone or piece of slate to sit on and they do seem to use it a lot.

Have you seen any of the videos of the tarantulas playing with ping pong balls? What are your thoughts on that?

 

[Enn49]

Have you seen any of the videos of the tarantulas playing with ping pong balls? What are your thoughts on that?

I have seen the videos but never tried it myself. I have heard people say that theirs will play with them others whose Ts ignore them. I have a G. rosea about 1" dls who plays with its water bowl, tipping it on its side and rolling it around then it will put it the right way up and sit in it as though to say "Hey, mom, there's no water in here".

 

[SpellKaster4]

I have seen the videos but never tried it myself. I have heard people say that theirs will play with them others whose Ts ignore them. I have a G. rosea about 1" dls who plays with its water bowl, tipping it on its side and rolling it around then it will put it the right way up and sit in it as though to say "Hey, mom, there's no water in here".

That's adorable.

 

[Whitelightning777]

I placed one of those in my L klugi's enclosure. She pushed it around about 2 or 3 times and blocked off one of her hide entrances.

After that, she panicked when I misted the frog moss because she was too chubby to get inside to avoid the "rain" fall.

I fed her an Earthworm later to keep her fangs occupied and then pulled it out quickly. Given the choice between dropping the worm and biting me or worm retention, I knew I was in no danger!!

She showed no signs of disappointment in it's loss.

Both my L klugi (Justina) and my P sp machala (Persephone) appreciate frog moss moistened once a week and 2 or 3 times a week respectively and tend to just chill out on it in plain sight. I feel that enriches the environment far more then any toys do.

My Lasiodora especially takes a very strong liking to it & I wouldn't be too surprised to find out that closely related species do as well.

I'd say she spends a minimum of 80% of her time dead center of the cage just laid out like a cat in the sunshine.

 

[SpellKaster4]

That's a neat idea. I'll have to give that a try with my LP Peter. I imagine that moss helps keep the humidity right where it needs to be too.

 

[PanzoN88]

That's a neat idea. I'll have to give that a try with my LP Peter. I imagine that moss helps keep the humidity right where it needs to be too.

Its been a while since my male LP passed, but with all tarantulas humidity numbers aren't important. Humidity gauges should be buried at the blttom of the nearest lake along with sponges and heat lamps.

 

[SpellKaster4]

Based off what I've read it seemed like you didn't need to keep the humidity at exact level like you do with stuff like frogs or what have you but it was my understanding that certain breeds of tarantulas do need to have at least some humidity. The advice I was given for my LP was just to lightly mist one side of the enclosure from time to time and he would be fine.

 

[Whitelightning777]

Its been a while since my male LP passed, but with all tarantulas humidity numbers aren't important. Humidity gauges should be buried at the blttom of the nearest lake along with sponges and heat lamps.

That depends on the species. High humidity is fatal to Avics. Others like my rescue T stirmi require it among with actually keeping the substrate moist.

Ts can't drink from a sponge obviously and won't drown either.

The heating should be approached very carefully. If you only use a 25 watt bulb or less & keep it 8" or greater distance from anywhere the T can go, you'll probably be ok. You must check for any hot spots prior to placing the tarantula into that situation.

What actually does the damage is the creation of a hot spot that would burn even human hands in most cases or actually putting it into or on top of the enclosure.

Water dishes need to be checked and kept filled TWICE daily. You'll also need a rheostat switch / voltage controller to get the the exact temps you want.

I have a video that I'll PM you about it. Don't fast forward through the drawbacks.

 

[Dave Jay]

Based off what I've read it seemed like you didn't need to keep the humidity at exact level like you do with stuff like frogs or what have you but it was my understanding that certain breeds of tarantulas do need to have at least some humidity. The advice I was given for my LP was just to lightly mist one side of the enclosure from time to time and he would be fine.

Yes, by keeping moisture to one end of the enclosure you are providing a lateral moisture/humidity gradient, the spider (or any animal) can regulate its own moisture/humidity by moving to different locations in the enclosure. Add a false bottom or at least a method of applying water to the bottom of the substrate (a tube or two added when the substrate was added) and you have a horizontal moisture gradient too which an animal can take advantage of by following its instinct to burrow to find its preferred moisture level. With these two gradients in place you never need to worry about humidity or moisture levels again, and more than once these methods have saved the life of a pet when their enclosure has dried out faster than I anticipated.

 

[SpellKaster4]

Yes, by keeping moisture to one end of the enclosure you are providing a lateral moisture/humidity gradient, the spider (or any animal) can regulate its own moisture/humidity by moving to different locations in the enclosure. Add a false bottom or at least a method of applying water to the bottom of the substrate (a tube or two added when the substrate was added) and you have a horizontal moisture gradient too which an animal can take advantage of by following its instinct to burrow to find its preferred moisture level. With these two gradients in place you never need to worry about humidity or moisture levels again, and more than once these methods have saved the life of a pet when their enclosure has dried out faster than I anticipated.

I never thought of using tubes to help the water get lower in the substrate. I'll have to add that in when I redo Peter's enclosure.

 

[Whitelightning777]

That's true but Lasiodora species are fairly tolerant of a wide range of humidity levels. As long as they have access to water at all times, it's all good. A little extra moisture is appreciated but not required.

 

[SpellKaster4]

That's good to hear. So far Peter certainly seems happy with what I've been doing.