Can tarantulas be conditioned?

[CladeArthropoda]

I know what you are thinking. "Wait, but tarantulas aren't smart enough!" But here's the thing. I have heard of people actually conditioning centipedes into being docile enough to handle. Of course, this takes a lot of time and care.

Can the same be done with tarantulas?

 

[Minty]

No.

 

[CladeArthropoda]

No.

Then how come centipedes can?

 

[Veitchiiman13]

I don't think you can really condition/train any arachnids, or most invertebrates for that matter (aside from Cephalopods). Some tolerate handling better than others, but at the end of the day, it really depends on the individual animal and its mood.

And I think people who handle centipedes are nuts. Just asking for a very painful bite

 

[Minty]

Then how come centipedes can?

I’m sorry, I know nothing about centipedes.

 

[Cavedweller]

I actually read an article yesterday that might be of interest.
"Energy and time optimal trajectories in exploratory jumps of the spider Phidippus regius"
In order to perform the research, a P. regius was trained to jump between platforms:

"We did not use prey as a bait item as this would mean one jump per week based on the observed diet of the spider. Instead, the spider was manually transported between the take-off and landing platforms until it became familiar with the challenge. No form of stimulation (e.g. air blowing) was used to induce a jump."

Something of note: only one of the four P. regius specimens was successfully conditioned to perform the jumps. Of course, jumping spiders are significantly more active than tarantulas, and may very well be more intelligent, but at the very least this proves inverts are not completely instinct-driven and incapable of "learning".

None of this is super relevant to your question of "can tarantulas be conditioned to accept handling", but I thought it was a pretty interesting read.

 

[spookyvibes]

Then how come centipedes can?

How come apples taste like apples and oranges taste like oranges? Because they’re two different things Ts and pedes aren’t related at all, save for the fact that they’re both in the Arthropodo phylum. That’s where the similarities/relations stop. Just because one invert can be conditioned to something doesn’t mean they all can be conditioned to something. They’re all different in terms of brain power, eyesight, etc... You can’t hold all inverts to the same standard.

 

[cold blood]

Anything can be conditioned...even a plant...so yes, to a degree they certainly can.

@boina and I have the talk about learning potential on occassion, I call their learning, conditioning...but maybe she can show examples of conditioning here.

 

[Greasylake]

We had the tarantula vs. Centipede handling discussion in the myriapods section a little while ago. If ya'll are interested I can go dig up the thread and post the link.

 

[CladeArthropoda]

How come apples taste like apples and oranges taste like oranges? Because they’re two different things Ts and pedes aren’t related at all, save for the fact that they’re both in the Arthropodo phylum. That’s where the similarities/relations stop. Just because one invert can be conditioned to something doesn’t mean they all can be conditioned to something. They’re all different in terms of brain power, eyesight, etc... You can’t hold all inverts to the same standard.

Well, I don't mean that they are all the same. But I do wonder what centipedes have that tarantulas don't. Could it be their highly active life style.

We had the tarantula vs. Centipede handling discussion in the myriapods section a little while ago. If ya'll are interested I can go dig up the thread and post the link.

I would certainly appreciate that.

And speaking of a more active life style, has anyone measured the intelligence of burrowing vs arboreal tarantulas?

 

[Greasylake]

I would certainly appreciate that.

http://arachnoboards.com/threads/just-a-short-quick-vid.305065/

 

[viper69]

Anything can be conditioned...even a plant...so yes, to a degree they certainly can.

@boina and I have the talk about learning potential on occassion, I call their learning, conditioning...but maybe she can show examples of conditioning here.

There was the jumping spider article I posted, regarding how they taught one to jump. It's in the True Sp. forum. I believe the actual article is up top in earlier post here.

 

[Nightshady]

I think the answer is yes. I remember reading an article somewhere that you can condition tarantulas to know when they are about to be fed (Pavlov’s dogs, but with tarantulas). I mean it only makes sense... how different is it from a tarantula recognizing a stimulus like three knocks on the cage that food is about to appear versus it sensing vibrations on its webs and knowing food is about to appear.

 

[Crone Returns]

I actually read an article yesterday that might be of interest.
"Energy and time optimal trajectories in exploratory jumps of the spider Phidippus regius"
In order to perform the research, a P. regius was trained to jump between platforms:


Something of note: only one of the four P. regius specimens was successfully conditioned to perform the jumps. Of course, jumping spiders are significantly more active than tarantulas, and may very well be more intelligent, but at the very least this proves inverts are not completely instinct-driven and incapable of "learning".

None of this is super relevant to your question of "can tarantulas be conditioned to accept handling", but I thought it was a pretty interesting read.

It's a very interesting read. They used a jumpers natural instinct and made it jumper longer distances. The fact that only one in four did it suggests it would be likelier to eat more often and be able to evade predators.

No not, lol!

 

[boina]

No, please, not again . Why does this topic pop up at least every couple of months?? Hi @cold blood . I gave you a coffee cause I don't have beer.

Yes, tarantulas can be conditioned, but what you are talking about here is not even conditioning but habituation - getting used to something. It's such a basic biological function that every animal on the planet can be habituated, even worms. The only question is what are they getting habituated to? To handling? Thats a pretty abstract concept. I think a tarantula can get habituated to certain chemical and mechanical cues encountered during handling and associate them with "not dangerous" - if, and only if, it's always done in the exactly the same way. That doesn't mean I think it's a good idea.

 

[CladeArthropoda]

No, please, not again . Why does this topic pop up at least every couple of months?? Hi @cold blood . I gave you a coffee cause I don't have beer.

I'm not too active here, so I'm not really up to date on the forum meta. Sorry about that

 

[AnimalNewbie]

Then how come centipedes can?

Centipedes such as Scolopendra are different than Tarantulas and are of different class/ families and I think it’s generally know that centipedes are not exactly smarter than Ts but less instinctual than Ts and can get used to a particular smell and connect that with safety.

 

[StampFan]

No, please, not again . Why does this topic pop up at least every couple of months?? Hi @cold blood . I gave you a coffee cause I don't have beer.

Yes, tarantulas can be conditioned, but what you are talking about here is not even conditioning but habituation - getting used to something. It's such a basic biological function that every animal on the planet can be habituated, even worms. The only question is what are they getting habituated to? To handling? Thats a pretty abstract concept. I think a tarantula can get habituated to certain chemical and mechanical cues encountered during handling and associate them with "not dangerous" - if, and only if, it's always done in the exactly the same way. That doesn't mean I think it's a good idea.

Wonderfully perfect, succinct and informative response. Please never leave this place.

 

[Staehilomyces]

Tarantulas can be conditioned - that's hardly news, but I've never heard of one acclimating to handling to the massive extent that centipedes can. Even the meanest centipedes can calm down enormously (and quite quickly too), but I doubt one could say the same for a highly defensive tarantula.

 

[Nightshady]

Tarantulas can be conditioned - that's hardly news, but I've never heard of one acclimating to handling to the massive extent that centipedes can. Even the meanest centipedes can calm down enormously (and quite quickly too), but I doubt one could say the same for a highly defensive tarantula.

There was some guy here like six months ago saying he conditions his Pokies to tolerate regular handling. Said he’s been doing it for many years without a bite. Don’t remember his name. I’ve seen other such stories as well. Of course, just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should. I think the most accurate answer would be, yes you probably can condition a T to handling, but in doing so you’re assuming a high risk of T injury/death or a bite. Overall a really bad idea.