New to tarantulas :)

[Isetta]

Hey everyone! My boyfriend and I just got our first tarantulas yesterday at Repticon in Charlotte NC. Two curly hair slings We went with intentions of getting a feel for local breeders to purchase a crested gecko from, but we both became fascinated with the tarantulas there. I have been afraid of spiders all my life, although I find them extremely interesting. After talking with a couple breeders for a few hours we decided to give them a go. I knew I wanted to get a breed that would be docile, I am working over a fear so I prefer to not be surprised with rearing and jumping. They told us to start with a baby so that I could get used to its size as it grows rather than starting out with a large spider. Also told us since they are so small to start out feeding them a few fruit flies every couple of days and put a couple drops of water on their substrate about once a week. Fed them for the first time about an hour ago, and mine (named him/her Isetta) ate them right up! His (named Altezza), didn't really show interest at first, but over time I've noticed a couple of the flies have disappeared. The breeder also told us that these containers would be fine for them for a while, but after poking around this forum for a while it looks like most of you are putting your slings in slightly larger habitats. What do you guys think? I know that they are terrestrial, so I want to make sure that they have room to roam. They have seemed to enjoy burrowing though. I think mine (left in the pic) is probably okay in this container for now as he/she is smaller, but his is a little larger and I was wondering if we should go ahead and move him/her to a larger home. We're using loose coconut fiber substrate. Sorry for the bad picture, this was the best one I've been able to get of them so far.

After doing some research on molting, going off of size it looks like we may be expecting a first molt soon from Altezza, unless he has already molted once before we got him. Is there a good way to tell by size? It seems like it really just varies spider to spider.
Also, at what size would you guys recommend switching to small crickets? I noticed that most people are using pinhead crickets, but the breeder had told us to start with fruit flies since they are so small.

Thank you so much for any info, we are really excited to raise these little guys!!

 

[MellowMatt]

Hi! I'm the boyfriend! I love Altezza and they are adorable! Looking forward to hearing from all of you on the site!

 

[Sabeth]

Hi, there, guys! Congrats on your new Ts!!

Your babies are probably fine in those containers for a little while longer, but by their next molt they will likely be ready to upgrade. A good rule of thumb to follow for caging babies is to allow a minimum of about 3x their diagonal leg span. So if they are say, an inch across, about 3 inches of floor space is ideal. You can go bigger, too, but avoid going too big. Caging can be very convenient and cheap...I used peanut butter jars for my slings, with some holes melted near the top. Just make sure they can't escape through the holes! I lost a baby this way.

Coco fiber is great substrate. Until the slings are 2+ inches long, it should be kept damp and tamped down. You can use water from a spray bottle to maintain this moisture, although it should never be so wet that you can wring water out of the sub. Yes, many slings love to burrow! Providing a little extra for this purpose isn't a bad idea. The feeding schedule you mentioned sounds good.

I think you'll find that this a great forum to be on! Glad to have you!

P.S. Isetta, is that your snake in your profile pic? He/she's beautiful!!! I love snakes.

 

[Isetta]

Sabeth, thank you so much for all the info! Very helpful! Altezza is probably ready to be moved to a little larger enclosure as he/she appears to have about half an inch leg span. Isetta doesnt appear to be cramped at all yet and seems to be having fun building tunnels tonight i love watching them!
And no, the snake in my pic is a friend's burmese python. She's pretty awesome! My boyfriend and I are actually planning on getting a python at the next repticon!

 

[Tongue Flicker]

Welcome Isetta and boyfriend! Lol

 

[Sabeth]

Sabeth, thank you so much for all the info! Very helpful! Altezza is probably ready to be moved to a little larger enclosure as he/she appears to have about half an inch leg span. Isetta doesnt appear to be cramped at all yet and seems to be having fun building tunnels tonight i love watching them!
And no, the snake in my pic is a friend's burmese python. She's pretty awesome! My boyfriend and I are actually planning on getting a python at the next repticon!

You're welcome.

How funny, the Burmese just happens to be my favorite species!!

 

[Isetta]

I found some little plastic containers from walmart for 88cents each and picked up two of them. They are about 2"x3" and 2" tall. Altezza is about .5" to .75" but Isetta is about .5" max. We would be filling them about 1/3 full of substrate so they have plenty of room to burrow. Sabeth, you said to have a minimum of 3x their diagonal length and not to go too big, but what is "too big" for these guys? Isetta is the one I would be afraid it is too big for.

We just fed them for the second time yesterday, Isetta eats the fruit flies almost instantly. Altezza on the other hand prefers to web them up and let them struggle for a little while before eating them. Its pretty entertaining. We're also making sure that the substrate stays a little bit moist but not "wet". They both seem to be happy

 

[Christell Erasmus]

Congrats on your new babies and welcome to the forum.

 

[Sabeth]

I found some little plastic containers from walmart for 88cents each and picked up two of them. They are about 2"x3" and 2" tall. Altezza is about .5" to .75" but Isetta is about .5" max. We would be filling them about 1/3 full of substrate so they have plenty of room to burrow. Sabeth, you said to have a minimum of 3x their diagonal length and not to go too big, but what is "too big" for these guys? Isetta is the one I would be afraid it is too big for.

We just fed them for the second time yesterday, Isetta eats the fruit flies almost instantly. Altezza on the other hand prefers to web them up and let them struggle for a little while before eating them. Its pretty entertaining. We're also making sure that the substrate stays a little bit moist but not "wet". They both seem to be happy

Basically you don't want it so big that they get lost in it, are unable to find their prey, etc. Just use your best judgement...you can tell when something is ridiculously oversized. You just want to avoid extremes.

Here's a photo of my Brazilian Giant Whiteknee baby (A. geniculata) in its cage...for its current size (which is about 2.25") this is the maximum cage size I'd go with. The upside of going a little bigger than is minimally required is that they don't need to be rehoused too soon. This little guy will be living in here for a while.

 

[Sabeth]

Also you might notice the sub is completely dry...once a baby reaches about 2 inches or a little larger it no longer requires wet sub and is ready for a water dish. Prior to that time, though, the damp sub is essential.

 

[Isetta]

Heres a picture of what we're moving then into: (wine bottle for comparison)

I gently laid their current enclosures on the side and they fit in there with the lid on so we were going to leave them in there so they can get used to the new home at their own pace. In the corner you can see the lid, there are four tiny holes at the corners and two in the middle. Made sure to make them small enough where the fruit flies couldnt escape. Should that be enough ventilation or more holes? Wanted to make sure there werent too many so that humidity would stay up. The substrate is moist and packed down.

 

[Sabeth]

The enclosures look perfect. If it were me I might add a few more holes...this will allow for a good exchange of air flow and the humidity still won't be impeded. Other than that you have a great setup there.

 

[Isetta]

Altezza molted yesterday! He/she did it over night, so we weren't able to watch the process, or know how long it took, but it was a great surprise to wake up to The molt is so tiny!

 

[CrystalRose]

Congrats on your new babies and the molt. Be warned though..they are addicting