Shiz happens...

[Wg25]

Same here! I've been dying to go to one. We have a reptile expo once a year and that's about it. But it's probably for the best. I can't even drive by a petshop without stopping and buying something ......a hole expo full of tarantulas and accessories.....oh god it will ruin my bank account! Hahaha

 

[Fuzzball79]

I've lost 2 (well 2nd one was nearly DOA and a freebie).
My P. Metallica sling hit the hardest out of the 2. It seemed fine until after its last molt. I tried everything to keep it alive, but it just wasted away. It was a bit of a runt, never a great eater and never grew much with each molt. Maybe it just had been doomed? Apart from it obviously not having been a cheap spider, I hate seeing any of my animals suffer. I think it really hit home when my husband asked what I was going to do with the body, that's when the tears came. It was buried in one of my permanent flower pots.
The second was a freebie B. Smithi sling, absolutely tiny. It looked like it was DOA, almost fully curled up. It perked up a bit after being put in its pot, but was dead the next morning. From its colour I wonder whether it had just molted and maybe it was too early to be packed and sent (which would surprise me, because it was from a usually very good shop)?

 

[kormath]

Same here! I've been dying to go to one. We have a reptile expo once a year and that's about it. But it's probably for the best. I can't even drive by a petshop without stopping and buying something ......a hole expo full of tarantulas and accessories.....oh god it will ruin my bank account! Hahaha

The expo here is mainly a reptile expo but they do show some inverts also. I'd go check the one near you out just to see .

@Kymura google reptile expos for your area. That's how I found the one here, wouldn't have ever known it existed otherwise. They never advertise it on TV or in the newspaper. And i don't recall ever seeing a flyer but i may have just ignored it

 

[TabithasMom]

Same here! I've been dying to go to one. We have a reptile expo once a year and that's about it. But it's probably for the best. I can't even drive by a petshop without stopping and buying something ......a hole expo full of tarantulas and accessories.....oh god it will ruin my bank account! Hahaha

We have an expo that runs every second Saturday of the month by me. I don't walk out with anything less than 4 Ts. Can't help it. It's really a reptile show, but there are 5-7 booths of inverts. Out of those, only about 3 are serious, and reputable, breeders. I've acquired a few Ts from the others, and they are on my mama hen feeding regimen. I'm lucky that I'm able to build a rapport with with these guys, as I can see some serious business exchanges happening.

 

[TabithasMom]

I've lost three spiders in the 10+ years I've practice spider husbandry. One was a fishing spider my partner caught for me while working. I had her for about 9 months, and she spun 4 egg sacs in that time. One was viable, and I set her babies free in my garden. I have no idea how old she was, but I'm guessing she was beyond her prime. Her name was Mama Spider.

The second was my first T; a rosea (probably a porteri) bought at a local pet shop. Knowing what I know now, I'm guessing it was a MM, at his prime. I had him for about 5 months, when a very unsuccessful molt was his demise. His name was Rosie.

The third was very hard. She was my Tabitha (in my profile picture). My guess she was wild-caught, and well within her lifespan. The time between her molts kept lengthening, and lengthening; it was obvious she was an old lady. She spun an egg sac four months after obtaining her, but it wasn't viable. So I'm thinking she was in contact with the male somewhere in the wild. I had her for over nine years, and adored her. She had the most sour disposition, but it made me love her more. I have since acquired another porteri (the species will always hold a flame in my heart), whom I've dubbed Tabitha II. She's nothing the the first (doesn't get pissy being handled, and has the sweetest disposition out of my 19), but she matters enough to carry on the legacy.

 

[Wg25]

So my B.boehmei dying yesterday is definitely one of the hardest goodbyes. Can honestly say last night was the first time I have ever cried over a Tarantula ( I'm a real softy when it comes to any animal....I know...) Hehe. That poor baby could just never molt without complications! But know I have an excuse to buy another T. But I'm definitely going to search for another Boehmei.....maybe a juvie or sub adult this time

 

[Kymura]

I want one, but with shipping having gone nuts probably wont be getting any more then I have now

 

[Bugmom]

Did Bertha ever molt in that year and a half that you had her? Just wondering if she was conformable enough to molt after being in the wild most of her life. I bought my Avic avic for R450 which is about $30...doesn't sound like a lot but believe me in South-Africa it's a lot of money! Half of her body was eaten by a f☆ck!ng cricket while she was busy molting!!! Believe me when I say I was absolutely furious!!! Gave that cricket a painful death sentence!!! Hahaha And do expos have a bad reputation when it comes to the health of their tarantulas???

Yes, she molted at least once, and just a few months after I found her.

Expos are hit and miss as to reputable tarantula breeders/sellers. They're primarily reptile expos, but there's enough people who keep both inverts and reptiles that inverts are usually found at reptile expos. However, some reptile breeders get into tarantulas as a kind of side gig or hobby, and sometimes just don't know as much about the inverts as they do their reptiles.

And sometimes tarantulas just fail to thrive no matter who they are bought from.

 

[Bugmom]

I want one, but with shipping having gone nuts probably wont be getting any more then I have now

Shipping will probably stay around the same as it has been, especially if you buy from the bigger dealers.

 

[Kymura]

Asked them to get me a flame leg, (they don't know them by real names) at the local pet shop. It just came in
Told me it's small but has color so assuming juvie, supposed to be going to the hospital but getting my spider first.!

 

[Kymura]

Didn't get him. Was a male according to his shipping tub and between my speaking to them and my getting there they raised the price from 20 (19.99) to 80 (79.99)

 

[Fuzzball79]

Didn't get him. Was a male according to his shipping tub and between my speaking to them and my getting there they raised the price from 20 (19.99) to 80 (79.99)

$80 for a male Boehmei juvie? That's a bit steep if you ask me.

 

[Kymura]

Thats why hes still in the store hun,
about to go to hospital now, be phone only for a few days so excuse the typos in advance

 

[Thistles]

I've had a few that were especially heart-wrenching and some that just made me angry from a monetary perspective. I lost a beautiful AF Pelinobius muticus on the day that my beloved cat of 15 years died. The tarantula was relatively new to me (6 months) and when I unpacked her I had noticed a little bit of retained molt stuck to her book lungs. I figured I would be mindful when she was molting and be on hand to ensure things went smoothly. Unfortunately my cat had acute kidney failure and went from perfectly healthy to on death's door in the span of a week and on the day I had to euthanize my heart and soul my big baboon also molted, apparently unsuccessfully. That sucked.

I also had a female Ceratogyrus meridionalis that had some strange illness. I hand watered her for weeks while I was myself very sick but then my Poecilotheria subfusca female ended up with the same symptoms. I euthanized both to prevent it from spreading. That P. subfusca was my favorite tarantula at the time and the whole ordeal came while I was having surgery. That also sucked. It was also just a few months after the sad little story above.

Well this was depressing.

 

[Fleas]

My first t that died was my mistake I made two big of air holes it was a b emilia, woke up in the morning went to check on it and sure enough no were to be seen started to think we're could it be, then felt something wet on my foot sure enough it was the emilia stuck on it. Other than that my pet rescue avic was a MM he lasted 4 months before he passed away. Well shiz happens

 

[Fuzzball79]

Thats why hes still in the store hun,
about to go to hospital now, be phone only for a few days so excuse the typos in advance

Wishing you all the best xx

 

[kormath]

Shipping will probably stay around the same as it has been, especially if you buy from the bigger dealers.

I've been keeping watch on the vendors sites I like (net-bug, jamies, KTBG, mainly) and haven't seen any changes in shipping yet.

 

[Rockpython]

My true T. blondi was the hardest. It was a male I raised from a sling... lived 3 years.