B. Vagans Enclosure

Deartonilouise

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 28, 2017
Messages
3
Hello everyone, I'm new to the hobby so please be gentle with me hahah. I bought a small juvenile B Vagans from a pet shop on the 14th of this month and his enclosure is FULL of condensation! I don't want to disturb him because I want him to settle in but I'm so concerned that he's too wet in there that he cant be doing much settling! I always thought the young ones needed their conditions slightly wetter than adults but I think this is too much ? Last night in an attempt to battle the condensation we removed the lid, wiped it down and pierced some more holes in the top to help the ventilation but I've woke up this morning and it's so wet in there I can't even see him! I really don't want to disturb him but I don't want to keep him in these conditions if it's going to hurt him ? The first few days he was up against the sides of the tank trying to find his heat mat because he absolutely loves that thing! My house is by no means cold I'm in the UK and we've had some pretty mild weather recently. I reluctantly moved the heat Mat from the side of the tank to the bottom in an attempt to dry the substrate hoping it would lessen the condensation but he just won't move off the substrate where the heat mat is (at least he's off the sides now) but I'm scared about the heat mat being near the bottom as I've heard they can burn themselves? It's only on one side of the tub and like I say he absolutely loves it so will it be okay to leave it there for now? And do you think I should take him out or leave him to do his thing while he settles in?
Thanks for your help
 

Rittdk01

Arachnoknight
Joined
Oct 4, 2016
Messages
258
You're gonna kill your pet with the heat mat. They will sit on it and cook themselves. You need to change the dirt since it's obviously way too wet if you can't see into the enclosure.
You can make an enclosure out of any plastic container. Throw some dirt or coco fiber in for substrate, add a hide and water dish. That's it.
 

KezyGLA

Arachnoking
Joined
Apr 8, 2016
Messages
3,013
Too much moisture causes stagnant air which will eventually kill your spider.

Can you poke some holes in the side of its enclosure? This would help ventilation greatly.

Also, you should take your spider out of the enclosure and swap the wet substrate for dry substrate ASAP.

This will solve the problem instantly.

Contrary to popular belief B. vagans appreciate a bit of humidity. However, if it is causing condensation it is waaayyyy too much.
 

Deartonilouise

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 28, 2017
Messages
3
We found a new container for him and drilled more holes in and put some dry eco earth in and he's actually sitting on the substrate now and there's zero condensation yay! Thanks for all your help ! I'd just read that it's best to just leave them alone to settle in so I didn't want to disturb him but I felt awful every time I seen him he must have been so uncomfortable poor thing! He's all good now though :) also removed the evil heat mat! I didn't even want to buy it after what I'd read about them but the pet shop man insisted and stared me down hahah.
 

Oreo

Arachnocookie
Joined
Sep 21, 2011
Messages
259
Sounds like you've made the necessary adjustments. Let's see your new pet! And did you just assume its gender? I mean as long as you asked how it identifies itself that's cool.
 

ccTroi

Arachnobaron
Joined
Mar 27, 2017
Messages
340
Congratulations and welcome to the hobby! I love my B. vagans! Some pointers I think you might find useful:
  • Cross-ventilation is KEY
  • Offer your T a water dish (bottle cap). It WILL NOT drown
  • ^ Clean/replace the dish every few days b/c stagnant water may hold harmful bacteria
  • Remove bolus (food remains) asap
  • B. vagans (at least for my juvies) prefer dry substrate. Occasionally pour water at one corner of the enclosure. Make sure the water trickles down towards the bottom. Do not mist
  • I prefer superworms and dubia roaches as feeders for my T's b/c they are more filling vs crickets and mealworms ("meaty")
  • ^ Always crush the heads of supers b/c they CAN injure a T. I crush the heads of dubias so that they don't burrow or "play dead". When crushed, dubias make twitching movements that attract T's. Slice your feeders if it is too. big
  • When my B. vagans slings were 3/4", I fed them prey (not any bigger than their abdomen) every three days. Now at 2.5", I feed them every two weeks
If you have any other concerns or questions, let us know! We're happy to help! :)
 
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