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I'm bumping this thread because this is something I've become curious enough about lately to come out of hiding. Over the past years, I've had two G. aureostriata spidlerlings grow up to be male (one female... and two to be G. rosea, D'OH!). The first male matured out back around 2004 and was...

The "three to four weeks" in the OP's post says it all: it's a bad joke of thread so, as always, don't feed the trolls. If you needed further proof of the lack of sincerity, the gratuitous dead mouse on the sidewalk should be enough. More than a couple of days and nobody is going to leave a...

As is often repeated because it's true, don't attribute to malice and aforethought what is more readily explained by stupidity. I'd believe the store owners were secretly worshipping Satan and sacrificing the animals slowly before I'd believe it was a deliberate ploy to find the 0.001% of the...

I'd say it's neither. They're "bugs" no more or less sophisticated than the billions of other inverts humans blithely stomp, spray, bait, and power wash into oblivion every year. Your average petstore employee and/or owner is no more aware that they are "mistreating" that bug in a crappy...

Nope, that's a widespread misconception. Tarantula venom appears to be overwhelmingly about getting the prey in the first place. Their strong chelicerae and fangs for mastication combined with "vomited" digestive juices from their oral opening handle all the extra-oral digestion just fine.

Exactly. It can't be declared impossible, but it sure ain't probable. The urticating hairs on new world species are evolved to elicit immune responses. The venom of the honey bee is evolved to elicit an intense, unpleasant response involving the immune system. Cockroach frass and degraded...

Your location says you live in the U.S., right or wrong, marijuana is illegal and discussion of it beyond a political discussion of it in the Watering Hole is clearly against our rules (assume you read those, right?). Now, if you'd framed the question in a flatly scientific, inquiring manner...

Some small "justice" for the improperly departed cockroaches: first night with the snap traps and two of the perps have been "apprehended", one at the scene of the crime ;)

The few catches were released far enough away that if they made it to anyone's home, it wasn't mine :) I own a vacant lot adjacent to my property. It's a fantastic wildlife refuge with all the good and bad that brings. Good is having squirrels, chipmunks, groundhogs, birds, newts, two species...

It's not a debating war, there is NO evidence they can transmit disease, full stop. All people have done is demonstrated they can *carry* some disease causing germs, but so don't all people as well. You can take my newborn son, dip him in Lysol, and you'll still be able to culture a bazillion...

FYI, there is exactly zero evidence that roaches can transmit disease. They *can* cause childhood asthma and aggravate existing asthma, but they are unknown to actually transmit a single disease.

Gutloading is unnecessary for feeding to inverts. Its intention is to compensate for the lower calcium absorbtion that occurs with herps in captivity. Tarantulas are, as you've probably noticed, not considered herps and require very little calcium in their diet.

I won't use glue traps for the reasons outlined but didn't comment because I've no interest in debating the merits of meece removal. I've been avoiding killing traps because I'd rather not kill anything I don't have to. However, I have at least one mouse (dubbed "Ninja Mouse") who can somehow...

With ferrets, three (nosy) dogs, and small children, I'm not comfortable with any toxin based control. I did find some blood on the base board cover where the mouse or mice have been sitting de-legging the innocent roaches, so the leg spines at least poked for minor justice. I have that very...

... or how to set back a thriving B. dubia colony 3+ years: I've had some mouse problems this winter. Thought I might have gotten rid of them when I discovered a mouse nest in some excess insulation in the basement that they were also using for easy access to the kitchen for night raids...

Mice vs. Cockroach Colony, CC loses :(

The adults don't overwinter; they have an egg sag they attach flat on bark/debris and that's what does the overwintering. I'd wager if you collected one in the late spring time when adults start showing up you might get a year in captivity, but that's probably the long estimate.

I save my emotion for those animals who have it themselves (not sure how rats wound up such a big part of this thread, comparing dead rats and dead tarantulas is like comparing decapitated babies and a freshly mown lawn). I can't even begin to understand how someone gets emotionally involved in...

No. Their feces dry up to a chalk like residue composed mainly of nitrogenous wastes and won't support much in the way of anything (I suppose it might make some decent fertilizer). The only thing you encounter with Ts that cause problems is leftover food in a moist cage. Their feces are only...

Some tarantulas are more dicreet and do their business in a corner in the substrate where it is often missed, others are "poo flingers" and make quite a mess. The Avicularia spp. are particularly reputed for such behavior.