My first T - Lasiodora parahybana

[Andrea82]

Nothing crazy about that at all!
Boy, she must have been cramped in her previous arboreal enclosure no wonder you wanted to give her space!
Be careful about getting temperature and humidity to the number, like they say in care sheets. If you're comfortable, then your T is probably also comfortable. Lasiodora parahybana is a hardy species. I only overflow the waterdish every now and then, they like a bit of humidity, but that's it. Great feeders as well, mine never rejected food, unless in pre-molt, and of course now he is mature, he has other things on his mind.

 

[Marija Takac]

Nothing crazy about that at all!
Boy, she must have been cramped in her previous arboreal enclosure no wonder you wanted to give her space!
Be careful about getting temperature and humidity to the number, like they say in care sheets. If you're comfortable, then your T is probably also comfortable. Lasiodora parahybana is a hardy species. I only overflow the waterdish every now and then, they like a bit of humidity, but that's it. Great feeders as well, mine never rejected food, unless in pre-molt, and of course now he is mature, he has other things on his mind.

I keep the humidity at 70% and while the summer lasted the temp was 25-26°C (no air conditioner in the room). So then, what would be a acceptable temp for her? When the temp was below the 23°C she cramped up her legs to her face like she is frustrated or stressed and didn't move for two days. As soon as I got the temp to 23°C she perked up and started moving.

 

[Andrea82]

23 is good. Humidity measurements aren't necessary, and the meters aren't always right. Say, the meter indicated 50%, but some care sheet says it should be 60%, so you add moisture to the substrate until you reach 60%. Meanwhile, your T is living in a swamp because of care sheet and faulty meters. Although they appreciate a bit of humidity, Lasiodora aren't swamp spiders, so it would be very unhappy.
I don't use any humidity meters, just dry substrate with waterdish flooding, and a good 'rain' by spraying now and then. Your T will show you what it prefers by going to the drier or wetter side.

 

[Marija Takac]

23 is good. Humidity measurements aren't necessary, and the meters aren't always right. Say, the meter indicated 50%, but some care sheet says it should be 60%, so you add moisture to the substrate until you reach 60%. Meanwhile, your T is living in a swamp because of care sheet and faulty meters. Although they appreciate a bit of humidity, Lasiodora aren't swamp spiders, so it would be very unhappy.
I don't use any humidity meters, just dry substrate with waterdish flooding, and a good 'rain' by spraying now and then. Your T will show you what it prefers by going to the drier or wetter side.

Thanks, now I can be calm about the temperature
As far as the humidity the meter says 70%. When I got her and set up her enclosure I had to use substrate in a brick that I added a few liters of water so the only humidity that she got was from the substrate. I haven't sprayed or rained in the tank since there was no need. I only changed her water every 3-4 days because it gets dirty when she walks all over the place.
The think that I noticed when I went to get her from a friend that her previous tank was really really dry, I mean like sand dry and her water bowl was also dry. When I put her in my tank she drank from the bowl like crazy, she wouldn't move from the bowl for hours. Maybe she was a bit dehydrated...

 

[Andrea82]

That is really sad. Good thing you took her in!
By overflowing the waterdish, I partly wet the substrate, so mine can choose where it wants to be, wet or dry. Mine likes both, or maybe he doesn't care anymore since his mind is on the ladies

 

[SoulSpiegel12]

Congrats on your first T! An LP is certainly on my list of future Ts, though granted I need more space before I get any more .

 

[SoulSpiegel12]

I got mine as big as she is now. It was a birthday gift from a good friend of mine that works at the ZOO.
I like her a lot, she is very active, always climbing on the glass, a real joy to watch
For my second T I'm thinking G pulchripes
Must admit, I was always kind of scared of getting a sling and they are not so fun to watch.

Good choice for a second T. I was iffy on getting one but I caught a great deal on an adult female at a reptile show for 45$. Now she is my favorite T in my collection! She's always out the open, always hungry, and likes to renovate her home a lot. She is also quite docile but I understand a few owners out there have some rather defensive pulchripes.

 

[Marija Takac]

Good choice for a second T. I was iffy on getting one but I caught a great deal on an adult female at a reptile show for 45$. Now she is my favorite T in my collection! She's always out the open, always hungry, and likes to renovate her home a lot. She is also quite docile but I understand a few owners out there have some rather defensive pulchripes.

You got a great deal, must admit. I don't know, I'm kind of impatient to get her. She is about to molt in a few weeks and the guy says that he'll be able to tell the sex then and the price would go higher. I don't know should I get her right now or should I wait for the molt. Is there any way to tell if she's a girl just by a picture he sent me? She is really small and cute, I kind of can't resist

 

[Marija Takac]

Congrats on your first T! An LP is certainly on my list of future Ts, though granted I need more space before I get any more .

Thanks , it was a long time wish come true! I can't wait to see her in full size, she's going to be a beast

 

[Marija Takac]

That is really sad. Good thing you took her in!
By overflowing the waterdish, I partly wet the substrate, so mine can choose where it wants to be, wet or dry. Mine likes both, or maybe he doesn't care anymore since his mind is on the ladies

Haha, guy business

 

[Marija Takac]

Depending on the species, s'lings are really not that difficult at all. I had never raised a sling until two years ago. out of six, spiders I received, I have 4. But, ome was a sub-adult that simply matured male and eventually passed and the other and the other was an A. geiniculata that suffered the Tragic Moult, and by that time it was a juvenile. So technically, I had complete success with the raising of the s'lings I received, as well as with the A. geniculata sling I was given over a year ago to replace the one I lost.

In regard to s'lings not being as fun to watch, that depends on your point of view. They are arguably more interesting to watch as they develop at a faster pace as they head towards being juveniles. Naturally, they aren't as impressive to look at as older spiders, but I think there is something special about looking at them after they've grown and remembering that you successfully nurtured them to that point. I still look at my L. parahybana and remember when she lived in a tiny deli cup and was a small thing the size of my thumbnail that was able to dart up my arm when she decided to make a break from that deli-cup one evening. Now she could do it from her current much larger enclosure enclosure, but it would be a bit more unsettling.

G. pulchripes are nice tarantulas. Mine has been a relatively slow grower, though, only slightly out-pacing my B. smithi. But I've read other accounts of their growth rate being a bit faster than what I've experienced with mine.

I decided to get the G pulchripes. She's a small cutie and she'll come home tomorrow The sex is unknown still, hope it's a girl

 

[Estein]

I decided to get the G pulchripes. She's a small cutie and she'll come home tomorrow The sex is unknown still, hope it's a girl
View attachment 221269 View attachment 221270

Great choice! I also have a G. pulchripes the same size and I love watching it. Now that it is a little bigger than when I first got it, it's almost always out in the open and such a cute little fuzzball. Congrats on your new T!

 

[Marija Takac]

Great choice! I also have a G. pulchripes the same size and I love watching it. Now that it is a little bigger than when I first got it, it's almost always out in the open and such a cute little fuzzball. Congrats on your new T!

When I saw those yellow knees it was love at first sight and I like the fact that she's calm. What can I say, Ts are like chips, can't have just one

 

[ratluvr76]

You got a great deal, must admit. I don't know, I'm kind of impatient to get her. She is about to molt in a few weeks and the guy says that he'll be able to tell the sex then and the price would go higher. I don't know should I get her right now or should I wait for the molt. Is there any way to tell if she's a girl just by a picture he sent me? She is really small and cute, I kind of can't resist
View attachment 221259

it's impossible to tell with most T species whether they are female or male with a picture unless it's a ventral shot. IE: underside not topside. Even then, ventral sexing is definitely not 100%. The best, most difinitive way to determine the sex is by molt. You can carefully examine the inside of the molt. You can check out the sexing forums to get an idea of what your looking for, you can also post pictures in there for others to look at to give you an idea.

http://arachnoboards.com/gallery/categories/tarantula-sexing.3/

 

[Ghost Dragon]

Nice first T, Marija, and welcome to the hobby.

As with any T, personalities can vary greatly. Happy to see yours is calm. My MF LP, who has a DLS of 8.5", is quite grumpy, so I don't handle her. That being said, it is quite fascinating to watch a T that big lumber around.

Good luck!

 

[Marija Takac]

it's impossible to tell with most T species whether they are female or male with a picture unless it's a ventral shot. IE: underside not topside. Even then, ventral sexing is definitely not 100%. The best, most difinitive way to determine the sex is by molt. You can carefully examine the inside of the molt. You can check out the sexing forums to get an idea of what your looking for, you can also post pictures in there for others to look at to give you an idea.

http://arachnoboards.com/gallery/categories/tarantula-sexing.3/

She should molt in a few weeks, she has been refusing food for 3 weeks now and made a webbing beneath her. Than I'll look at the molt

 

[Marija Takac]

Nice first T, Marija, and welcome to the hobby.

As with any T, personalities can vary greatly. Happy to see yours is calm. My MF LP, who has a DLS of 8.5", is quite grumpy, so I don't handle her. That being said, it is quite fascinating to watch a T that big lumber around.

Good luck!

My friend warned me that she could be grumpy sometimes (as it is said for the species) but I was surprised to see her so calm. When I try to touch her she only moves a bit, never turning around to attack. She only gave me the pose when I just got her and the lid of the tank was stuck a bit so I opened it a bit aggressively and I think she got scared or something but after a few seconds put her legs down like nothing happened. I handled her twice (kind of). The first time she stepped on my hand and stayed there for a few seconds than ran away to the tank and the second time she walked all over my hands very calmly, got all the way to my elbow and then I pushed her a bit to go back so she went back to the tank. Gotta say I'm very happy that she's like that since I might have made mistakes her being my first to ever own or handle.

 

[Ghost Dragon]

My friend warned me that she could be grumpy sometimes (as it is said for the species) but I was surprised to see her so calm. When I try to touch her she only moves a bit, never turning around to attack. She only gave me the pose when I just got her and the lid of the tank was stuck a bit so I opened it a bit aggressively and I think she got scared or something but after a few seconds put her legs down like nothing happened. I handled her twice (kind of). The first time she stepped on my hand and stayed there for a few seconds than ran away to the tank and the second time she walked all over my hands very calmly, got all the way to my elbow and then I pushed her a bit to go back so she went back to the tank. Gotta say I'm very happy that she's like that since I might have made mistakes her being my first to ever own or handle.

That's awesome. Hopefully you'll have many years of watching her (fingers crossed) grow into a large T.

They'll do very unexpected things that will strike you as quite endearing. My first G. pulchra had one particular habit when she was smaller. Every time I opened her enclosure and would be working around in it, she would come over & rest her front legs on my hand.

 

[Marija Takac]

That's awesome. Hopefully you'll have many years of watching her (fingers crossed) grow into a large T.

They'll do very unexpected things that will strike you as quite endearing. My first G. pulchra had one particular habit when she was smaller. Every time I opened her enclosure and would be working around in it, she would come over & rest her front legs on my hand.

I hope she grows into a big girl too
The thing that your G pulchra is doing is so sweet. I just got a small G pulchripes today, hope she acts like that.

 

[Marija Takac]

The baby G pulchripes arrived I'm so happy!