When you buy a sling, do you buy 2 in the hopes atleast 1 is a female.....

[ryanm7277]

or do you just do a gamble of just buying 1 and hope for the best? I have 2 of 3 species currently, then found a seller who says he sold me females, but we all know that until they mature female there is always a risk they aren't female. What are your thoughts?

 

[Tarantulafeets]

I normally just buy one sling of a species, seeing what it is like to raise that particular species is more important than getting a female to me. Of course a female would be nice, but my collection is mostly single different species, maybe some repeats that were freebies or I got them for a good price.

As for buying a female you can ask for a picture of a molt or the underside of the specimen if you want to try it for yourself. But if you buy from a reputable breeder it will probably be what you buy.

 

[DustyD]

I will sometimes do that, but it can be expensive and then you are raising multiple Ts with no guarantee either one is female. Most times I think it is better to buy a confirmed female from a reputable dealer.

 

[meridannight]

I'm in the minority that I actually prefer males.

 

[m0lsx]

I generally buy more than one. Slings are in general not very expensive & it not only gives you a bigger chance of a female, but also the possibility of a second to sell.

 

[x_raphael_xx]

I'm in the minority that I actually prefer males.

I heard somewhere (can't remember where exactly, may have been a youtube vid) that the issue with everyone wanting females, males can sometimes be hard to find. Which can be problem when you want to breed.

As I'm a fairly new collector, I like to just buy the one and what it will be, it will be.
I've had a few males mature this last couple of months, but I've been able to find people in need, so they've all gone to use.

 

[PanzoN88]

I prefer buying more than one sling of each species. If they are priced well, I prefer buying in groups of 5. Better chance of getting a female. I had one experience where I had 9 Caribena versicolor, every single one turned out to be male (none of them had the opportunity to breed, as it was around the time when I was just debating on rather to dive into breeding or not). If you do end up with males, it’s not a bad thing for quite a few reasons.

 

[m0lsx]

I heard somewhere (can't remember where exactly, may have been a youtube vid) that the issue with everyone wanting females, males can sometimes be hard to find. Which can be problem when you want to breed.

We normally offer any T's that mature as males to local retailers. All we want is a few slings in return, if the breeding is successful & certainly not 50%, We see that as putting back into the hobby & gaining a number of slings that we can easily cope with.

 

[x_raphael_xx]

We normally offer any T's that mature as males to local retailers. All we want is a few slings in return, if the breeding is successful & certainly not 50%, We see that as putting back into the hobby & gaining a number of slings that we can easily cope with.

Yeah, 2 of my males went to retailers (with slings as payment)
And 2 went to local hobbiests, as the retailers had no need of them

 

[Tn tarantula]

or do you just do a gamble of just buying 1 and hope for the best? I have 2 of 3 species currently, then found a seller who says he sold me females, but we all know that until they mature female there is always a risk they aren't female. What are your thoughts?

For me I don't really care male or female I just like to watch them grow and change as they get older I do buy multiples of slings because I like the type of spider it is

 

[fallonzoey]

I am new to the hobby and currently I only buy one of each species. However I did just have the chance to buy 4 E. Campestratus slings & bought all 4 since the species is hard to find. I figure I will keep some and maybe sell some. I don't know yet. I will say that I am actually glad I bought the 4 and get to experience raising them bc they are each doing different things. One made a very long deep burrow on night 1. One climbed into the starter burrow and started digging a big, but then it looks like he got tired and just stuck his head into the dirt where he was. lol. One stayed up top and hid under a piece of spag moss, but left his butt poking out. And #4 is just hanging out in the open.

 

[phidippusRex]

I do on occasion. I think my motivation lies less with having a breeding pair, but more to have the female for a long time. I recently purchased two A. johnnycashi and ended up getting a free one. I do hope for at least one female out of that. Overall I've been lucky and would estimate 70% were females. If the price is right and you love the species, I say do it.

 

[I just need all the T's]

I always buy at least four of the same species as slings.
That being said
..it's rare that I buy slings,I usually buy sub adults that I've already gained experience with keeping as a sling or even ewls.

 

[liquidfluidity]

I always buy more than one especially if I plan to breed. If not, the males can be good trading subjects. Plus you get to see both sexes as they grow up.