Are you a Tarantula hobbyist? If so, we invite you to join our community! Once you join you'll be able to post messages, upload pictures of your pets and enclosures and chat with other Tarantula enthusiasts. Sign up today!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Stan Schultz" data-source="post: 224282" data-attributes="member: 28438">A not-so-quick answer...Sorry I couldn't post this in a more timely fashion. Every once in a while life gets in the way! In addition to the comments by M0LSX I would add the following.1.    Redrump tarantulas (Tliltocatl (Brachypelma) vagans) tend to be more skittish than many other kinds. Your little buddy more or less fits that mould. If you want one that will tame down nicely and that you can handle, try a curlyhair, Tliltocatl (Brachypelma) albopilosus (see the <a href="https://wsc.nmbe.ch/species/37245/Tliltocatl_albopilosus" target="_blank">World Spider Catalog</a>).2.    Be aware that male tarantulas, even immature ones, are generally more skittish than their female counterparts. If it's a male, you may simply be expecting too much of it. Do you know what sex it is? Do you know how to tell what sex it is? If not, get back to me. I can help.3.    At what temperature are you keeping it? There is a common misunderstanding that, because tarantulas are cold blooded, or because so many of them originate from tropical climes, they must be kept like tropical fish, i.e., at a constant, elevated, tropical temperature. Little could be farther than the truth. In fact, even the tropical kinds of tarantulas will easily tolerate temperatures fluctuating between 50 degrees F and 100 degrees F (10 and 38 degrees C, respectively) as long as the extremes are not forced on them for extended periods of time. And those kinds which originated from temperate climates and montane habitats, e.g., Aphonopelma iodius from northern Utah, USA, and a small species (Hapalotremus vilcanota) living at over 15,000 feet - 4400 m - in the Cordillera Vilcanota mountains of Peru - see <a href="https://www.alamy.com/hapalotremus-vilcanota-a-new-species-described-in-2018-this-is-the-highest-occurring-species-of-tarantula-in-the-world-and-lives-high-in-the-andes-image367823541.html" target="_blank">ALAMY</a>) manage to survive (because of special behavioural modifications) sporadic, brief, near freezing temperatures for a large portion of their lives. But, this does not mean that you should keep your tarantula in a refrigerator either.    If you are artificially heating its cage, be aware that you may actually be keeping it too warm, thus shortening your tarantula's life. In general, your tarantula may be kept at about any ambient temperature at which you're comfortable as long as you don't need to routinely dress in a ski jacket or wear swim trunks in mid Winter (unless, of course, you're living in someplace like Jamaica!). And keeping it at more moderate temperatures will help suppress its hyperactivity.4.    Move the tarantula's cage into a darker part of your home, and remove the deep hide. Instead, supply it with something that's more open, not so cavernous. It needs to become accustomed to the concept that it's living in captivity, not in a jungle. It needs to learn that it's relatively safe, that motion around it is okay.5.    Learn to properly pick up your tarantula, and do so often. Once it learns that you're not a threat through frequent one-on-one interactions, it'll calm down a lot.    And for everybody who reads this, I'm not interested in getting involved in another lengthy discussion of whether handling is good or bad. A truly large number of enthusiasts routinely handle their tarantulas, and the overwhelming majority of experience is that, if done properly, it does the tarantula no harm at all. The fact is that it really doesn't matter. Captive tarantulas seem to do equally well whether they're handled or not. In fact, many tarantulas become quite accustomed to the experience, and even seem to enjoy it (assuming that such is possible). Just be sure to do it correctly. See "Personal Contact-One on One" beginning at page 184 of the Tarantula Keeper's Guide, freely available from most public libraries. You might also want to check out "Those @#$%&# Bristles" beginning on page 199.I hope this helps. Enjoy your fuzzy little eight legged buddy!Stan</blockquote>

Verification