Feeding dead insects?

Tiler Oneill

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I’ve been wanting a tarantula for soemthing time now, but the only problem is I can’t have live insects in my house. Would I be okay to feed dead crickets? Surely if you moved the dead insect with a tong the tarantula could sense it. I can also feed pre-killed pinkies, but not too often because I’ve heard they contain a lot of calcium. I’m not sure what tarantula I would get, but I’ve been looking into the Avicularia Versicolor (pink toe). Are they good eaters? Would you guys approve of this diet,and do you think the tarantula would eat pre-killed crickets if I moved them around?
 

AngelDeVille

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A tarantula is a live insect, what is the restriction on feeders?

Mealworms keep fairy well.

pre-killed/freeze dried feeders don't have the nutrients/moisture of live prey

Wiggling them with a tong risks your spider breaking their fangs off on the tong and then they will be unable to eat.
 

buzz182

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I've only heard of one person using dead frozen and thawed crickets, i believe any feed any freeze dried prey could cause a various problems due to the lack of liquid in the food. In any event it is far from ideal and I would question whether keeping a T is a good idea if you are not willing or able to provide it with an appropriate diet.
 

cold blood

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Well most slings will readily take dead prey...but Avic types, like versi, tend to focus more on movement, so live is definitely preferred, if not required...For adults pre kill isnt an ideal way to go as its less likely to be accepted.

Dont feed pinkies, please. And the reason has nothing to do with calcium...this is a myth. The issue lies with the fact that its an immense meal that takes crazy long to eat...so long that it actually begins to rot....so it smells terrible and there can be unpleasant clean up after.

If you cant bring in a cricket (or something) every now and then, dont buy a t until you move.
 
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Mini8leggedfreak

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Mealworms shouldn’t be an issue anywhere.
They can live in a tiny cup and don’t stink at all like crickets do.
No noise, no smell, the can’t excape like crickets can.
Just sneak them in wherever you live
 

Greasylake

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Well you say you want to feed dead insects, and it gives me the impression that you were going to buy them dead. Those dried crickets that come in a bottle aren't suitable for a tarantula, but what you could do is buy crickets/cockroaches/super or mealworms and squish the heads before feeding them to your spider. That's what I do with a lot of spiderlings and they have no problem with it. Some larger tarantulas might not touch pre-killed food however, and you may end up having to feed them live feeders anyway.
 

StampFan

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I’ve been wanting a tarantula for soemthing time now, but the only problem is I can’t have live insects in my house. Would I be okay to feed dead crickets? Surely if you moved the dead insect with a tong the tarantula could sense it. I can also feed pre-killed pinkies, but not too often because I’ve heard they contain a lot of calcium. I’m not sure what tarantula I would get, but I’ve been looking into the Avicularia Versicolor (pink toe). Are they good eaters? Would you guys approve of this diet,and do you think the tarantula would eat pre-killed crickets if I moved them around?
Buy crickets. Put them in freezer. Pull them out and feed one as required. Just drop it in, no need to do the weird tong wiggle unless you feel you have to. Done deal.
 

PidderPeets

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As everyone else said, it wouldn't really work. You can sometimes offer prekilled feeders to them, but it needs to be freshly prekilled. You can't use dried crickets or other inverts to feed them. They don't chew food like mantids and some other carnivorous insects, so it wouldn't work for them.

I wouldn't offer mice of any size either. Ethics aside (and there are a lot of ethical reasons against it), it'd be messy, smelly, wasteful, way too much food for even an adult Avic (and absolutely ridiculous for anything smaller than an adult), and there's no guarantee the Avic would even take it.

Avics can be frustratingly picky eaters. And their pickiness isn't always consistent with each molt. Prior to her first molt in my care, my AF A. avic would only eat crickets. After her molt, she refused them and would only accept certain roaches. My sling A. purpurea will not accept prekill and is extremely particular about the size of prey and how it approaches

As others have said, if you can't have feeder insects (and possibly a variety of them in the event you get a picky eater), tarantulas just might not be a feasible option for you
 

Tiler Oneill

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Thank for all the replies. I’m gonna try and convince my mum to let us keep crickets. If she still says no then I’m going to pass on the tarantula
 

Theneil

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Thank for all the replies. I’m gonna try and convince my mum to let us keep crickets. If she still says no then I’m going to pass on the tarantula
Perhaps the best solution is just not to "KEEP" any feeders at all. Buy them one or two at a time and feed them off imediately. Your T should be able to go a week or teo between meals no problem anyway so in my opinion it would be impracticable to try to keep feeders on hand anyway.
 

SpaceM

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Thank for all the replies. I’m gonna try and convince my mum to let us keep crickets. If she still says no then I’m going to pass on the tarantula
I'm sure if your mum knew how simple crickets are she'd be ok with it (bearing in mind she's ok with the tarantula) they come in tubs ready with everything they need to last at least a few weeks and the only maintenance they need for keeping longer is trowing a slice of potato/carrot in there for moisture. No mess and no hassle.
I'f it's them escaping she's worried about it's easy to avoid if you always open the tub over the enclosure.
 

Zepmaster

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I've tried keeping crickets and can usually keep them alive for a week or so but they all tend to die off. I've tried potato it seems to work better then store bought cricket feed. I'm using a exo-terra cricket keeper to keep them in with added egg crates. I'm actually considering starting a dubia colony i've heard they are pretty easy and less smelly then crickets.
 

The Grym Reaper

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I can also feed pre-killed pinkies, but not too often because I’ve heard they contain a lot of calcium.
The "calcium causing moult problems" thing is a myth, however, I'd still advise against feeding pinkies as the bolus would be horrible to clean up and would most likely attract pests.

I’m gonna try and convince my mum to let us keep crickets.
Slings/juvies will do fine on mealworms and adults can be fed morio worms. These can just be kept in a tub of bran, pose no escape risk, make no noise, no odour and last for months, you'd probably have better luck convincing her to let you keep these as feeders.

I've tried keeping crickets and can usually keep them alive for a week or so but they all tend to die off.
Bear in mind that a cricket's entire life cycle is about 3 months max but they're not that difficult to keep alive.

Keep in a spacious well-ventilated enclosure, egg crates to hide in, feed oatmeal/fish food, water crystals for moisture (make sure this is always available, they cannibalise if they run out of water), pick out any dead crix as you find them, clean out the enclosure once a fortnight, replace egg crates once a month.

I never lost more than 20% of a pack between pinhead and adult (2-3 months) and there was no noticeable smell, the only reasons I don't use them any more are because a) I can't stand the chirping and b) pinheads quickly outgrow slings.
 
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cold blood

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Thank for all the replies. I’m gonna try and convince my mum to let us keep crickets. If she still says no then I’m going to pass on the tarantula
Perhaps the best solution is just not to "KEEP" any feeders at all. Buy them one or two at a time and feed them off imediately. Your T should be able to go a week or teo between meals no problem anyway so in my opinion it would be impracticable to try to keep feeders on hand anyway.
^^ this.

If you have one t, there is absolutely, positively no reason to keep ANY feeders. Just buy one a week or as needed.
 

Zepmaster

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^^ this.

If you have one t, there is absolutely, positively no reason to keep ANY feeders. Just buy one a week or as needed.
this is what i do for my office spiders. I keep three tarantulas in my office. Once a week i head over to the Local pet shop and pick up a dubia and a few small crickets. it gives me a chance to see what other tarantulas they've picked up that week.

admittedly that could be a downside as I'm always tempted to buy new additions. the store owner is an enabler, if i mention a species i wish i had it somehow always makes an appearance a week or so later . . . he's an evil sort
 

viper69

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I can’t have live insects in my house
This is a problem, they subsist on many things, insects being one of them.

Would I be okay to feed dead crickets?
Yes/No-- as a regular diet, no in my opinion. For a few times, esp when tiny to scavenge feed, sure. Also, dead ones don't move hah.

Surely if you moved the dead insect with a tong the tarantula could sense it
Not always no. You moving a cricket is NOT at all the same as a cricket moving naturally. The motion detected through the webbing is not the same. I've observed this personally. Also, some specimens will have nothing to do with something that isn't alive, and moving.

because I’ve heard they contain a lot of calcium
FALSE- Scientists know Ts eat mammals in the wild, including mice and bats. There's a T that preys on bats, more than one actually if I recall.

Avicularia Versicolor
Gorgeous T, POOR first choice, get a NW T to start.

Are they good eaters?
Yes

Would you guys approve of this diet
No

do you think the tarantula would eat pre-killed crickets if I moved them around?
No, see above

A tarantula is a live insect
NO in point of FACT it is not. I suggest you do some reading. How embarrassing to read this on a forum from one who owns them.:rolleyes:
 

AngelDeVille

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The point of my statement was, the op is allowed to have a creepy crawley as a pet but no creepy crawley feeders.

Some of you need to lighten up.
 
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Ultum4Spiderz

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I’ve been wanting a tarantula for soemthing time now, but the only problem is I can’t have live insects in my house. Would I be okay to feed dead crickets? Surely if you moved the dead insect with a tong the tarantula could sense it. I can also feed pre-killed pinkies, but not too often because I’ve heard they contain a lot of calcium. I’m not sure what tarantula I would get, but I’ve been looking into the Avicularia Versicolor (pink toe). Are they good eaters? Would you guys approve of this diet,and do you think the tarantula would eat pre-killed crickets if I moved them around?
Thank for all the replies. I’m gonna try and convince my mum to let us keep crickets. If she still says no then I’m going to pass on the tarantula
Why does she care of food is Alive? If you have one T you might as well buy 1 or 12 crickets at a time . Mealworms work and they don’t chirp. Just keep em alive , feed when needed.
Pinktoe is poor choices there not beginner Ts if you get one g rosea better.
Read a lot of you want pinktoe.
Best of luck to you my parents, want me to find a job but economy is dead in water keep trying tho . I’d like more Ts and some other inverts.
 
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