Favorite tools for T husbandry

[Jeff23]

Magnifying Glass (necessary if you work with really small slings)
Red Flashlight (very handy when a T wakes you up in the middle of the night and you want to investigate).
Muffin pan (if you are carrying multiple 5.5 oz deli cups simultaneously to feeding area from shelf)
Vials (lots of them in multiple sizes - I use them for transporting crickets from the cricket hotel to the dining area, use as water dishes, use them for carrying small amounts of substrate for occasional touch ups)
3M Blue Painters Tape (I use this to create blinders that hide the T's burrow from light - created along the wall of container)

 

[mistertim]

For rehousing I actually prefer to use long bendy straws instead of paintbrushes most of the time, though I do have paintbrushes. You can manipulate the straw so your hand isn't in the direct path of the spider if it decides to do a runner on you so you're a bit less likely to have it run up onto your hand. And of course most of what others have said...long tongs are a must, I do have a couple syringes but I generally prefer to use long plastic pipettes just because they're a bit longer...though for the bigger water dishes I'll use a syringe because it can hold more.

 

[Venom1080]

I've tried that and if it's small prey, they get stuck in the water (lol) and often don't move at all and my large balfouri, I gave her a roach for the first time and she started using it as a water dish instead lmao. And light won't work because I turn on the lights in my T room anyway. But otherwise, a paintbrush is nice because in case the tarantula does decide to teleport for the meal, (say it's stuck upside down in a web and not wiggling or something) it isn't biting anything hard. Paintbrush is my preference and it's not harming anything.

alot of paintbrushs have metal right after the brush. if the T bites like 2" up it might break its fangs. a straw has all the advantages and none of the disadvantages.

 

[EulersK]

A keen mind and a patient heart

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Uhm... I don't know. Today I only buy sexed females (or 0.1, or whatever & etc) since I don't want nor I have time anymore for breeding/invertsonal (happens when you're reaching 40 as an Italian man). Therefore, since I buy from fellow breeders only sexed 100% Theraphosidae, my magnifying glass and Sherlock Holmes -- old of once Churchill lover Brit dress I used back then for sex I.D T's -- are useless for such goal and in the closet only for perform themed sex jokes u_u

That's the tools a Theraphosidae scholar needs :-s

 

[Bugmom]

I tend to use whatever is nearby. My fingers (least recommended method), feeding tongs, paintbrush, straw, pen, lid, whatever. They're going to get defensive at being touched regardless of what I use, IME.

As spoon and knife are used in my room regularly.


Paintbrushes are popular...but I don't have one...I don't understand why on earth so many people need to motivate their ts to move. I pretty much just leave my ts alone.

For re-housing I prefer a longish stick...IME natural wood is less likely to trigger a flight or fight response....so in these rare instances, I use a stick.

Hahahaha wanna see how well the "longish stick" worked for me?

 

[cold blood]

The problem was less the stick and more the enclosures. Necked down enclosures complicate everything....had you been using something with a wide and open top, you would have been done in the first 30 sec of the transfer.

Cool vid, thanks for sharing.

 

[Bugmom]

The problem was less the stick and more the enclosures. Necked down enclosures complicate everything....had you been using something with a wide and open top, you would have been done in the first 30 sec of the transfer.

Cool vid, thanks for sharing.

I dunno man, she wasn't going anywhere she didn't want to go lol. And now I'm about to mate that little monster

 

[cold blood]

I dunno man, she wasn't going anywhere she didn't want to go lol. And now I'm about to mate that little monster

Lol, I definitely wouldn't breed a t in that enclosure...geez, I just don't know how you would accomplish carefully digging her out and getting the sac or god forbid, hatchlings......I would literally take a knife and cut the top off before I went in there with that little of room to maneuver.....getting a male in and out...omg, its gonna be the exact same scenario all over again. Why not just put it in a nice sterilite tub that you can work within?

 

[ediblepain]

I tend to use whatever is nearby. My fingers (least recommended method), feeding tongs, paintbrush, straw, pen, lid, whatever. They're going to get defensive at being touched regardless of what I use, IME.


Hahahaha wanna see how well the "longish stick" worked for me?

Welp.. Yeah, that could have gone better. Smaller catch cup, and an enclosure without a narrow opening would be ideal. Thanks for sharing the video! Lovely fuzzball you have.

 

[G. pulchra]

For those of you who use an electric room heater, this will be your best friend.

Johnson Control ETC-111000-000

 

[darkness975]

I'm curious to see what your favorite tools are for T keeping.

Common sense and respect. I give them a wide berth and keep any interaction to consisting of feeding, watering, the occasional rehousing, and the occasional spot cleaning.
It is the best for both keeper and invertebrate.

Also, tongs. For obvious reasons

 

[checkmate]

-9" forceps
-Paper towels (I ball some up and use forceps soak up all the old water in a dish then refill from above so I don't have to stick my hand in or pull the whole thing out)
-Flashlight
-Old tupperware container for a catch cup
-Straw

 

[DrowsyLids]

-Paper towels (I ball some up and use forceps soak up all the old water in a dish then refill from above so I don't have to stick my hand in or pull the whole thing out)

I haven't thought of that one. I might try that

 

[Venom1080]

-Paper towels (I ball some up and use forceps soak up all the old water in a dish then refill from above so I don't have to stick my hand in or pull the whole thing out)

what about when theres a bolus? or dirt?

 

[dopamine]

Tweezers and a paintbrush

 

[Tanner Dzula]

Well done. I need more tweezers. I'm from Arizona so I have no idea what that robot thing is in that first picture.

Hey, i am also from arizona! its always nice to see somebody from AZ on here haha

but other then the many tools already mentioned here(paintbrush/tweezers/tongs/sticks/ETC)
one of the greatest things I've found were the Super Large straws that some restaurants offer(IE: Boba Tea company) i like to take them and put them over the end of my spray bottles(keep the spray bottle on mist setting). kind of like what you can do with WD-40 or the Dust-off bottles for the precision spray with the little straws.

its a easy way to get into deeper tanks to water without having anything hard for the T to possibly damage itself on if they do attack it - had an incident with my LP a while back where she ended up cracking a Fang off on Metal tongs when i was feeding her so i always try to find the softest or squishiest things to the job-
plus it allows for very precise watering without the force a spray bottle on the normal stream setting has(especially with terrestrials, the actual spray itself tends to splash bit and get my T's attention more then anything else)

 

[checkmate]

what about when theres a bolus? or dirt?

After I soak up all the water, I moisten a second one and "clean up" the inside of the dish. Takes maybe 4-5 total but I only have 3 T's so I don't go through a whole roll.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Johnson Control ETC-111000-000

It's the lovely pure '90 robot of 'Rocky IV' movie real name, my man?

 

[TomKemp]

I can't live without my LED Headlamp. Even in a well lit room it makes everything nicer to work with.