Inexperienced keeper foolish purchase

[d.foxyb68]

Hey guys firstly Ive been a reader of the forum for a few months and it's taught me so much, even tho evidently my impulsive overrides common sense every now and again! I had my first T sling about 4 months ago, just a curly, I only really ended up with him because it was a freebie before that I wouldn't of ever bought a spider. Anyway he died 4 days ago and in those few months I had him I got really attached and fascinated watching and learning about the hobby in general. Well my curlie died after moulting I think thru my fault sadly, I think he became dehydrated after moulting. I went out two days ago and bought a salmon pink sling which I'm comfortable with but I also ended up buying a Vietnam blue which I think was a mistake. Can somebody with experience of this species tell me from there experience what temperament are they, are they as aggressive as they sound? I'll post pics later but I'm going to do my best to provide care for them and I'm confident I'll manage the Vietnam with some help from you guys. I'll post pics soon

 

[Enn49]

I wouldn't panic. The one I had gave me no trouble and I have 4 other species of Chilobrachys and none of them are what I'd call aggressive, one of them will on occasion dab at the water as I fill her bowl.
As with any T, move slowly so you don't startle them and use tongs to do maintenance and you'll be fine.

 

[ilovebrachys]

I agree with @Enn49 says good advice - how big is the chilobrachys I'm guessing it's a sling?

 

[m0lsx]

I also ended up buying a Vietnam blue which I think was a mistake.

Vietnam Blue!! When my Chilobrachys sp. blue, was younger it was more Australian than Vietnamese. The stupid thing was always going off on a walk about. In fact there were times when I hated taking the lid off it's enclosure, as at every opportunity it was onto my hand. Dropping a mealworm in could take 5 minutes, as they are fast & getting them back into an enclosure is not easy.

Personally if your sp blus, is anything like mine, I would say stop worrying & get use to a pet enclosure, as you will either have a sling that is eager to walk all over you at every opportunity or a sling that is never seen. And forget the pet hole concept, as until your sp blue is larger, you will not even see the hole.

 

[Arachnoclown]

Just keep your hands out of the enclosure...that's their space. The entire enclosure is theirs and they will defend it. As long as you keep that in mind you will be fine.

 

[d.foxyb68]

Hey thanks for the friendly advice everyone, I was half expecting lots of criticism which as long as constructive wouldn't bother me at all. Yeah thete both slings I managed to get a good picture of the SP there both similar in size. Would it be worth taking the lid completely off the blue to try get a pic, so far I've just had it slightly off to mist. How likely would it be for the blue to bolt, I don't want to risk his safety just for a pic if he's probably going to escape at every first chance. I'm happy I bought him as he's a beautiful specimen and the last few months I've hardly done anything then read about turantulas in general and the best husbandry knowledge I can find

 

[Konstantin]

Hi
Its very likely to startle the sling by spraying the enclosure.They are very sensitive to vibration and the air shot out of the spray bottle is sth they dont enjoy.Try agging water with dropper or syringe while is in the tyni enclosure.
Regards Konstantin

 

[d.foxyb68]

OK I finally manned up and opened the Vietnam blue lol, it s not a great picture but he's stunning, I wish my picture did him justice.

Do you guys think I'll be OK and more important the T will be OK if I decide to handle the salmon pink?

One more question as you can see I put half a mealworm into there enclosures so far they haven't touched it, is it best to feed them at night? And do you think I should remove the mealworms and put fresh in tonight? They've only been in a hour. The guy I bought them off says they accept mealworms

 

[Stat]

Might want to try chopping up the meal worm so it's around the size of their abdomen max. They look bigger than your T's also nymphs or pinheads are good live foods for slings if you want to see them hunt just make sure you remove uneaten foods after 24hours.

 

[d.foxyb68]

Thanks stat, I got a colony of brown crickets currwbtly laying eggs so I'll have pinheads soon hopefully

 

[octanejunkie]

A superworm that large could potentially injure a sling that size, be careful those worms are bitey

if you want you can freeze a few worms and chop them into 1/8" chunks once froze and drop a chunk in with your sling for 24 hours. Remove the chunk if it's still visible after 24 hrs, whether the sling has eaten from it or now.

Like as been said, the right size live prey will be no larger than the T's abdomen, as a rule of thumb. Some species/slings will take larger food items and some will run from too large a food item. You can't go wrong with smaller vs larger.

Good luck and don't be scared of your T slings. Be mindful of their speed and agility. When they get older/larger, it's a different kind of mindful, but should never be fear.

 

[d.foxyb68]

Thanks OJ, they refused food again last night so I'm going to wait a week. The breeder thought my pink salmon was about to moult and the blue has also made a Web so hoping they'll both moult soon, got some cool pics

 

[d.foxyb68]

Ps octane it was a regular mealworm not a super I keep a lookout but I think mealworm don't pack the sting and bite of super worms

 

[menavodi]

Thanks OJ, they refused food again last night so I'm going to wait a week. The breeder thought my pink salmon was about to moult and the blue has also made a Web so hoping they'll both moult soon, got some cool pics

Looks like you will get one or more molts soon!

 

[d.foxyb68]

Looks like you will get one or more molts soon!

Thanks bro, was hoping to wake up and find one of them had moulted but not yet, the pink salmon is almost bald today so I think soon, I'll try feeding them tonight. I'm hopefully getting my 4th T this week, either a OBT or a king baboon or a mustard baboon. Would you recommend any of those in particular? I was a bit hesitant with the Vietnam blue at first reading some sites had me believing he'd attack at every possible opportunity, so far I've only found him shy and a bit timid, maybe it's a docile specimen but I'm starting to think perhaps a lot of people get bit because of human error more then T aggression. I'm still surprised how fascinating I'm finding them, I've had reptiles for years and would walk past the turantulas without even looking at them, I'm so great full for the shop who gave my my first t freebie or I'd never have gotten into the hobby

 

[menavodi]

I would wait with feeding, just in case they are molting. Some of the species you mentioned may be more aggressive...but really it is like this: you can have a Chilobrachys that is fast and aggressive and her brother or sister is very slow and careful. You only know when you have one...

 

[d.foxyb68]

I would wait with feeding, just in case they are molting. Some of the species you mentioned may be more aggres
sive...but really it is like this: you can have a Chilobrachys that is fast and aggressive and her brother or sister is very slow and careful. You only know when you have one...

Thanks for the advice, would you say they are a lot more aggressive then the Vietnam blue? I'm kind of thinking as im buying slings I can gain experience of them while there too small to do serious harm

 

[menavodi]

Thanks for the advice, would you say they are a lot more aggressive then the Vietnam blue? I'm kind of thinking as im buying slings I can gain experience of them while there too small to do serious harm

You really can not tell. Some are and others not so much. I always like to buy spiderlings and learn with them growing up. If they stand up to you...you will be cautious automatically. Again, it is easier to catch a fast spider when it is young...LOL

 

[d.foxyb68]

The LP has got really fat and shiny dark abdomen. Still not eat and he's lethargic so hoping soon!

 

[octanejunkie]

The LP has got really fat and shiny dark abdomen. Still not eat and he's lethargic so hoping soon!

That is classic premolt behavior