Pains in the rear

[SpellKaster4]

Anyone who as interacted with me knows I'm new to all this. Because of that I'm obviously still learning, which I love doing. So I decided I wanted to ask what I feel could be an interesting question to the more seasoned tarantula owners out there. In your experience what species of tarantula is the biggest pain in the butt to care for or deal with and why? Based on my eleven days of experience I would say that LPs like mine seem fairly easy all in all but maybe on day twelve I'll change my mind lol.

 

[Arachnoclown]

Arboreals....always pooping on the glass moments after I just cleaned it!!!!! Really the care is the same for all...nothing really bothers me about any one certain species.

 

[Arachnoclown]

After thinking a while about it one Tarantula of mine does come to mind...Pelinobius muticus "King baboon". I personally haven't seen mine in almost 2 years. I have her in a large sterilite tub full of substrate. At first I could see her through the sides in her tunnels, but over time her webbing has made it hard to see her. I just see slight movements from time to time. Substrate change is due so this may possibly be my biggest pain in the rear getting her out.

 

[MassExodus]

After awhile its all gravy. Its a learning process though. New hobbyists should be careful with small, fast slings. Any fast or jumpy spiders, really..

 

[Metalman2004]

After thinking a while about it one Tarantula of mine does come to mind...Pelinobius muticus "King baboon". I personally haven't seen mine in almost 2 years. I have her in a large sterilite tub full of substrate. At first I could see her through the sides in her tunnels, but over time her webbing has made it hard to see her. I just see slight movements from time to time. Substrate change is due so this may possibly be my biggest pain in the rear getting her out.

This makes me very much look forward to seeing my sling grow...

 

[Metalman2004]

Not too mich stands out to me, but I am certainly a bit more cautious with old worlds.

 

[SpellKaster4]

Arboreals....always pooping on the glass moments after I just cleaned it!!!!! Really the care is the same for all...nothing really bothers me about any one certain species.

I'm pretty sure it's mandatory for all types of pets to immediately poop on just cleaned things lol.

 

[SpellKaster4]

After thinking a while about it one Tarantula of mine does come to mind...Pelinobius muticus "King baboon". I personally haven't seen mine in almost 2 years. I have her in a large sterilite tub full of substrate. At first I could see her through the sides in her tunnels, but over time her webbing has made it hard to see her. I just see slight movements from time to time. Substrate change is due so this may possibly be my biggest pain in the rear getting her out.

That's kinda crazy that you haven't seen her in so long! Does her food just vanish or do you watch it walk down the tunnels, never to be seen again?

 

[Whitelightning777]

My T stirmi has proven to be a challenge. I have to stay on top of the conditions 2X per day which isn't that bad by itself but moving him out to modify the enclosure leads to literal hissy fit, easier to do when he's inside.

It's always interesting trying to wipe out the water dish and refill it. Now he's torn part of the enclosure up, hopefully chasing the feeders that are in there.

It's hard to believe that something that big can be so delicate but it is. Still, I don't regret a thing getting him.

Here's a few pics, was looking for hooks etc but nothing I can see so far. The big guy is just a juvenile!!

 

[SpellKaster4]

I can't wait until my LP starts getting around that size. He's cool now at normal spider size so I can't wait for him to be supersized.

 

[Whitelightning777]

Just feed him or her 2 or 3 times per week and keep at 80 degrees if you feel like it. (optional but promotes super fast growth)

Either way, start thinking about a larger cage!!

 

[SpellKaster4]

I've been looking into terrariums for when he/she is full grown. I'm thinking about doing one that is fifteen or twenty gallons. I want to try and do something cool with it too. Something more than just the usual substrate and whatnot. I'm probably gonna spend more money than I need to on enclosures as he grows. Even if he'll just out grow it in a few months I want each home to be fancy lol.

 

[Whitelightning777]

They only get to about 9" at the most. Either a 5 or 10 gallon tank will suffice. Terra blue professional enclosures with the reptilock is as close to perfect of a cage you can find in my opinion. Lasiodora species generally do not exceed 9 or 10 inches. They are NOT as big as T stirmi or similar ones like that.

They are still plenty large enough however!! The whole 1 foot 14 inches stuff is pure nonsense. Having said that, 8" is an enormous spider and will command plenty of attention when they hang out in plain sight, which is what sub adults and adults mostly do.

 

[SpellKaster4]

Would a larger tank just be wasted space or would it actually be stressful for the spider? I know when it comes to reptiles if you put them in too large a tank it will stress them out really badly and damage their health. Does that apply to tarantulas too?

 

[Whitelightning777]

No. It probably won't hurt anything. They have enough speed and food drive to run down anything within a 15 or 20 gallon tank. Just be sure and provide a hide. The biggest problem with over sized cages you'll run into is the T not eating and just staying in one place. Just keep the layout simple, one hide and not to much other decor for feeders to hide around when the spider goes out hunting. We want to make it easy for them. Using only one hide also gives the feeders a focal point. When they head over there, gotcha!!

Lasiodora species also like frog moss to hang out on, kept a little bit moist of course..

 

[SpellKaster4]

I've seen that in other habitats and was planning on using it. I think it adds to the tank appearance as well as having a practical use. I was just doing a little looking around and found some terrariums from Exo Terra that I like the look of. One is 24x18x18 that I think might be really nice for my LP once he's full size. It's probably still a little big but I think it'll make a nice show piece in my living room.
http://www.exo-terra.com/en/products/natural_terrarium_medium.php

 

[Whitelightning777]

Just don't use any of the heating as it's designed for reptiles. Tarantulas don't require heating & there's some special tactics you need to do so successfully. You also want to get the substrate high enough to prevent a fall hazard which means probably sloping it to the rear.

If you haven't already purchased the ExoTerra, consider a Terra Blue professional one. It opens from the top and getting the substrate level where you need it to be is much easier.

I can PM you a video on heating if you want to get into that.

 

[SpellKaster4]

I haven't bought anything yet. My LP is still just a sling so I have a long time before I'll need anything really big. I'll definitely have to look into those Terra Blue. I hadn't planned on using the heating. I work in a pet store so I'm familiar with the ExoTerra brand so that's why I looked at them first, plus I like their designs usually. I'd love to check out that video. I don't think I'll mess with heating but I'm always up to learning new stuff.

 

[Arachnoclown]

Would a larger tank just be wasted space or would it actually be stressful for the spider? I know when it comes to reptiles if you put them in too large a tank it will stress them out really badly and damage their health. Does that apply to tarantulas too?

Tarantulas don't stress from being in a large enclosure. They don't stress in the wild... It's just better to keep sling's in small enclosures so they can hunt easier.

 

[Arachnoclown]

My T stirmi has proven to be a challenge. I have to stay on top of the conditions 2X per day which isn't that bad by itself but moving him out to modify the enclosure leads to literal hissy fit, easier to do when he's inside.

It's always interesting trying to wipe out the water dish and refill it. Now he's torn part of the enclosure up, hopefully chasing the feeders that are in there.

It's hard to believe that something that big can be so delicate but it is. Still, I don't regret a thing getting him.

Here's a few pics, was looking for hooks etc but nothing I can see so far. The big guy is just a juvenile!!


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Male Theraphosa stirmi's don't get hooks when maturing.