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Is there anything wrong with sparingly offering food the same size or even bigger than your Ts abdomen?

Sorafromkh2

Member
Messages
31
Location
Usa
I generally stick to the rule that prey should
be a little smaller, or half smaller than your tarantulas abdomen, but what about feeding larger prey, then waiting a longer time to feed them than you usually do? Like say i fed my dwarf T thats 3”, and her abdomen’s about a little under a 1”, a 2.5”roach or a micro pinky mouse? Than didn’t offer food for a while? I’ve heard pinkies damage smaller T’s fangs, which sounds reasonable, is that true?
 

meridannight

Member
Messages
43
Location
Tropical den
I have a bad experience with that. I once fed my Cyriopagopus sp hati hati spiderling a cricket slightly larger than the spider ('s abdomen). That cricket ended up killing my little spiderling! Next day when I got home to check on him, the carcass was lying next to his burrow. I was really hoping it was just a molt, but unfortunately that was my dead spider. The cricket being none the worse for wear.

Now, I knew about not feeding prey larger than my tarantula, but I hadn't seen my spiderling in months. He built himself a cave near a piece of bark and just stayed in there. I never saw more than tips of his feet down in the hole. I just didn't know how big he was. Unfortunately as it turned out, that cricket was just a little larger than he. That's the worst thing that has happened to me during the time I've kept tarantulas. I'm never gonna feed any prey larger than a tarantula to mine.
 

DustyD

Well-Known Member
1,000+ Post Club
3 Year Member
Tarantula Club Member
Messages
1,182
Location
Maine
It is a hard/ sad lesson to learn.

As Blackdog mentioned, pre-killed can be an option. That is what I do when a T is in hiding or has refused food in the past.
 

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