Basic Care Requirements/Best T for me?

[Raye Humphries]

Hello,
So I decided to get a tarantula awhile back. I've never owned one before, but I've always thought they were cool. I've done my research and understand Ts somewhat. Anyway, what are the basics for caring for a Tarantula. Like do they need their food dusted with calcium?

Also, I've been looking at some beginner Ts. The type I wanted was one that was docile, webbed a lot, or burrowed a lot. I was thinking about the Greenbottle Blue Tarantula, but they need a humidity level of 30%-50% (the humidity in my room is usually 50% and sometimes will escalate). Any suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[Ellenantula]

No calcium dusting needed -- a well fed feeder should be nutritious in its own right and no where in nature are feeders dusted with calcium -- you're prolly thinking of reptiles? Anyway -- skip the calcium -- unneeded.
I have a GBB, kept dry with a water bowl, lots of anchor points (cork bark, fake plants) for anchoring webbing to.

More info needed beyond this point -- are you getting a sling, juvie, sub-adult, adult?

 

[TownesVanZandt]

Good evening and welcome to the forum!

GBB´s are great tarantulas with beautiful colours and IMO one of the most entertaining feeding responses. They will web the whole enclosure down and stay out most of the time. Some here might suggest that it is best suited as your second or third tarantula as this genus is skittish and bit fast for a beginner. I have however yet to see a threat display from a GBB and as long as you do not intend to handle it and is aware of its speed, you should do just fine with having it as your first T.

When it comes to the basic care it is quite easy. GBB´s comes from a desert area of Venezuela and should be kept in an enclosure with bone dry substrate. A water dish that is filled at all times will provide all the liquid and humidity this species needs. As this tarantula likes to web a lot you should provide it with a hide and some fake plants or branches to function as anchor points for the webbing. Even though GBB´s are better climbers than most terrestrial species and some say they can be kept like a semi-arboreal tarantula, they are ground dwellers and a fall might injure or kill them. Therefore it is best to keep them in an enclosure with a lot of anchor points, but not with more than two times the leg span in height. When it comes to feeding it really depend on the size of the specimen that you get. A sling will eat more often than an adult and IMO GBB´s always eat if they are not in pre-molt. The danger with having a tarantula this voracious is overfeeding it rather than getting it to eat. No tarantula will need their food dusted or laced with anything. (Even though I do feed my OBTs crickets laced with PCP before rehousing them, just in order to make it more interesting .) But, stupid jokes aside, you should feed them live crickets as staple diet and occasionally throw in a mealworm or two.

When it comes to measuring humidity you should never rely on care sheets as they will just cause you more stress than you need. Your enclosure is a micro-climate and I keep both very arid species and tropical species. I adjust their enclosures to fit the need of the individual tarantula and the general humidity in the room is not really an issue. GBB´s like an arid environment and therefore you will keep it on a dry substrate

 

[gypsy cola]

My first suggestion is to pick up the Tarantula Keepers Guide.
Very informative and detailed.

Second suggestion. Do not worry about humidity. A water bowl WITHOUT a sponge is perfect.
Only a few T's you need to worry about a humidity and those T's are not that accessible to get in the first place.

GBB is a great choice and the other advice posted by members is very solid pertaining the care of a GBB

please be careful though. Tarantulas are addictive
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

 

[cold blood]

GBB, while a great choice, isn't "docile", skittish might be a better word.

No t requires a number specific humidity, stop reading "care-sheets", they are a joke and will get you into trouble. You do not need a hygrometer to keep tarantulas or even to know the humidity....I've been keeping for 15 years and have yet to be concerned with humidity percentages. A GBB actually has NO humidity requirements, they like it bone dry, it literally couldn't be any easier (same can be said for just about every good beginner t).

The vast majority of good beginner ts are not heavy webbers, at least not as adults...they do however, tend to be very docile and easy to work with, which I think is more important than other qualities.

If handling is in your future, a GBB is a terrible choice, if you are not concerned with handling (fingers crossed), a GBB would be just fine...otherwise look to species like G. pulchra or pulchripes, or B. smithi/albo/emelia.

And yeah, that calcium dust is specifically for reptiles, absolutely no need to buy that stuff for a t.

 

[Raye Humphries]

Ya I'm not concerned with handling. I just thought that spiders were awesome to look at. I'm probably going to get a sling or maybe a subadult because the adult GBBs I found were $200. Here's the cage I was going to get for the GBB: >>
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000OAVN0W/ref=twister_B005661P48?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

The only thing that concerned me about that was that some people said the doors didn't always shut... I might just end up getting one of those big critter cages.

And yes, Ellenantula, I do have reptiles .

 

[SausageinaNet]

Ya I'm not concerned with handling. I just thought that spiders were awesome to look at. I'm probably going to get a sling or maybe a subadult because the adult GBBs I found were $200. Here's the cage I was going to get for the GBB: >>
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000OAVN0W/ref=twister_B005661P48?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

The only thing that concerned me about that was that some people said the doors didn't always shut... I might just end up getting one of those big critter cages.

And yes, Ellenantula, I do have reptiles .

If you get not an adult you should start off with a smaller enclosure. No need to house a juvenile in a 12x12. I use an exoterra for my GBB which is a little bit bigger than what it would need but so far I had no problems.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Go for that Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens, then. You can't go wrong. Humidity? What is? Water dish and you're done.

If the 'GBB' you want to buy is a sling then just a bit of slightly moist substrate. Forget the humidity % you can find here and then on the Internet. That's crap.

'GBB' are perfect beginner Theraphosidae. Only thing they have is fast dash but that's all. 25 years of T's, raised several 'GBB', never saw a threat display from those. "Hands Off" of course and there's no issues.

 

[Raye Humphries]

Ok thanks! I have some plastic Tupperware and other smaller things I could keep the sling in. But for an adult GBB, how big should its cage be?

 

[eminart]

I think most of the people who have replied here have misunderstood his question about humidity. He's afraid his humidity will be TOO high, since he apparently lives in a humid area. I think most of the advice of "don't worry about it" will still apply, but, to be fair, it is a lot more difficult to remove humidity than to add humidity.

 

[Raye Humphries]

Ya. It's been getting more humid around here lately because of rain. But usually my room is 50%. I do have a hygrometer if I ever need to check my GBB's humidity levels.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Ya. It's been getting more humid around here lately because of rain. But usually my room is 50%. I do have a hygrometer if I ever need to check my GBB's humidity levels.

It doesn't matter. 'GBB' juvenile/adults "humidity" = bone dry substrate + full water dish. Period.

Slings 'GBB' = slightly moist substrate. Well hidratated/fed preys do the rest.

No need to worry, man. Buy that ;-)

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Ok thanks! I have some plastic Tupperware and other smaller things I could keep the sling in. But for an adult GBB, how big should its cage be?

'GBB' aren't so much of big sized Theraphosidae... mine is into a medium KK (20 X 20 x 15/high cm). Just like my 0.1 Pterinochilus murinus. For some people a "Jack in the box". Not for me.

 

[Poec54]

Ya. It's been getting more humid around here lately because of rain. But usually my room is 50%. I do have a hygrometer if I ever need to check my GBB's humidity levels.

The humidity in my spider room is usually 40-60%, which is good. If the spider cages have a full water bowl and sufficient cross ventilation, you'll be fine.

 

[gypsy cola]

tarantulacages.com has some pretty cool cages if you just want a nice display. Habispheres are really cool, expensive and overkill on size but super nice.

 

[Storm76]

For the record, despite the fact they come from a pretty dry part, the winds from the Oceans bring still plenty of moisture with them. Even a GBB will be just fine with the humidity levels the OP said he has.

 

[Raye Humphries]

Wow thanks guys! This is probably the best forum I've ever been on.

I'll probably get a cage from tarantulacages.com when my GBB becomes an adult. Those cages are nice and not too expensive. (Heck, for as much as I'd pay for a cheaper-built cage, they're definitely worth it.)

Just a few more questions though, what kind of substrate should I use and how often should I feed them?

 

[Ghost Dragon]

Welcome to the forum & the hobby, Raye.

If you're looking for a fairly idiot proof beginner T, I can't think of a better one than a juvenile B. albopilosum. Sure, they don't have striking patterns or vibrant colours (like the GBB), but they are very hardy, usually pretty docile, great feeding response, and tolerant of a newbie's mistakes. I have four, and they are all in appropriate sized enclosures, with enough lightly packed Eco-Earth so that it comes to within their leg span of the top (before hitting an inch, they use to like to burrow, making very cool tunnels). A water dish & a hide complete the setup. As others have stated previous, most beginner species will get enough humidity from their dish, no need to wet the substrate.

A couple of others to consider would be G. pulchra & G. pulchripes. I love the velvet black appearance of the pulchra, making it one of my favourites. The pulchripes is an absolute pig of an eater (mine is, anyway), and is arguably the fastest growing of the Grammastolas. Mine went from ¾" to 3¾" in about 15 months.

Good luck.

 

[Raye Humphries]

I'll have to check those out too! I always thought that the burrowing ones were cool. They also aren't as expensive as GGBs.
Thanks!

 

[viper69]

Hello,
So I decided to get a tarantula awhile back. I've never owned one before, but I've always thought they were cool. I've done my research and understand Ts somewhat. Anyway, what are the basics for caring for a Tarantula. Like do they need their food dusted with calcium?

It's nice to see a new person interested in Ts. W/that said, I suggest you keep reading. It's clear from your your own statement, your reasonable question and your ExoTerra selection that you have not done enough research. Ts don't need calcium dusted crickets like herps/amphibs. It is wise to gutfeed and hydrate the crickets/prey items you feed your Ts, as crickets themselves aren't very nutritious.

While adult female GBBs typically exceed 150$, any GBB smaller than that would be too small for the ExoTerra you selected. For small ones, assorted plastic containers will be fine, even Kriter Keepers. I do like ExoTerra's Breeder Box line of plastic container because they offer a sliding food door (useful with this species), they are STACKABLE containers, and you can see through the container walls perfectly, ie they are not translucent.

GBBs are pretty fast Ts relative to Brachypelmas for example or even G. rosea, G. pulchripes and G pulchra (typically more pricey than the previous ones I mentioned). They web the most of any T species I've seen or owned so far. They are incredibly hardy and can handle quite a bit of poor T husbandry unlike many other T species. In short, if an owner kills a GBB it's because you are a negligent exotic animal owner, and you should stick with growing mold instead as a pet.

Regarding your environment's humidity as in outside your home, it's not an issue, provided it isn't very humid in your home. They are from desert/scrubland areas of Venzeula.

Keep them dry if you decide to keep them, with a water dish for drinking.

Docile/Disposition- There's no one that can predict the behavior of a T, just like you cannot predict the behavior of a human animal. W/that said some species have trends, that is, all things being equal genus X is human tolerant, whereas genus Y is not. GBBs are not human tolerant. Almost all Ts aren't. The only locality that is known to be exceedingly human tolerant is Euathlus sp. Red and Euathlus sp Yellow. I don't recommend handling Ts, it's dangerous for the T.

Last but not least, ALWAYS buy captive bred animals, esp with the beginner species. There's no need to buy wild caught animals for a long list of reasons.