Pokie troubles

[Lyle Beach]

Well I put this P. regalis in a new tank 5 days ago. At first, it went straight to the cork bark (which is where I want it to be). The next morning I saw that it started to make its home on the bottom front of the tank!?!? Right where the screen lid opens! (see 2nd picture with red circle). The 3rd picture is a close up of the red circle in picture 2

I am able to shoo it back up into the cork bark, and it will stay there all day, 16 hours or so, and then the next morning.... right back to the bottom front.

This has been going on every morning for the past 5 days. What can I do to make it, so it DOES NOT make its home in the front?? Why is my aboreal more happy with being down on the ground, rather than up in the air?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Mike H.]

Give it some time...some arborials will stay on the ground for a while...when it puts on some size it will most likely stay in the bark...

Regards, Mike

 

[Mike H.]

Here's a pic of my big girl...

Regards, Mike


http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=28175

 

[manville]

It probably just feels comfortable on the ground. Keep doing what you are doing and eventually it will make a home somewhere else.

 

[mick]

That is a juvenile and most of mine did the same thing. I think it's a survival thing as when in the wild the bigger ones are in the tree tops and the smaller ones would probably get eaten if the went there. Hope this helped.
Mike

 

[yeR_NarKoTiK]

and some terrestrials try to be arrboreal my chaco is a little confused right now about where s/he's supposed to live too

 

[Lyle Beach]

Yes it is a juvie. About 2.75". Do you think I should keep messing with it when I find it down there? Or will I stress it out?

I really don't care if it wants to be on the ground right now.... just not right in front of where the screen opens! I heard these things were fast... but MAN are they fast!!! It ran up that cage faster than I could blink! That is why I don't want it down there. If it made a break for it... it'd be gone!

Also, do all regalis's look like this when juviniles? Or can someone tell if it is a she/he??

 

[oogieboogie]

I would venture to guess that it is hanging out at the bottom because it feels safer there.

You have no cover at all for it in the cage, try buying a vine of leaves and wraping it around the bark. Also dont keep the bark straight up and down. Angle it from the top corner to the bottom corner, I dont think they would like to be straight horizontal all day long. *lol*

But really try and get some leaves to put in that cage, it will never feel secure with just that stick. Unless it webs up the base like it did.

 

[Alias]

in my opinion, the tank is WAY too large. the spider would feel much more secure in much smaller (say 1/4 of this size) tank. or at least decorate it much more (like oogieboogie said) - imagine yourself living in an empty room large like an airport terminal - this is similar

btw don´t worry, I also installed a nice cork bark tube for my small P.subfusca, but he/she stays in a shallow burrow in the substrate

 

[pelo]

Move your corkbark.Put it leaned into a back/rear corner with hollow/inside towards corner.Make sure the base of the corkbark is touching/on the substrate.Add a little extra (few inches) of substrate around the base of corkbark.I find most young aboreals will web/burrow the base of the corkbark before becoming fully aboreal as adults even though some adults are still content staying webbed/burrowed at the base of the corkbark.Give the spider all opportunities and let it decide which way it prefers to live.

 

[Phalagorn]

Your Pokie will feel much comfortablea and secure if you use a much smaller cork bark tube, and it´s natural that Pokie-spiderlings dig down in the substrate.

Phalagorn - Poecilotheria sp. ©
My Webpage:http://www.zoonen.com/minzoon.asp?oid=22299

 

[Kali]

my P. regalis sling actually dug a burrow under its cork bark. i agree that some hanging leaves will help, and less space. it is hard for t's to find food when they have a lot of room to work with. i had a lot of oversized enclosures when i started out too. it can be hard to downsize because you feel like you would prefer more space and therefore that is what is best for the t. sometimes there is simply no rhyme or reason to why t's do what they do. good luck.

kristin

 

[Lyle Beach]

Going to the pet store right now... to get some leaves, water dish.... maybe a T

Anything else I should get for the Pokie tank?

 

[manville]

I think your tank is fine. Nothing needs to be added.

 

[Paladin]

if you put a peice of black construction paper on the outside of the tank behind the corkbark it will look more like a hide to the spider...why hide under something when staying out n the open serves the same purpose....just a thought

 

[Pheonixx]

i actually reccomend a "web breaker and make it easier to open the cage thingy" aka PAPER CLIP... i use a small paperclip, slightly opened up, to remove sections of web on the screens. just slide the clip in and pull part of the web through the screen top and it will break without ruining the sipders home.

 

[Lyle Beach]

Okay, well I put another piece of cork bark in the tank.... and on this one I hot glued some leaves on it.

He also seems to be happier, and staying in the cork bark. I haven't seen him in that corner anymore.

 

[oogieboogie]

*lol*


Dont go *TOO* crazy with all those leaves now! haha That tank is so huge, and so empty!!! Fill it up with some stuff for the spider to crawl around on and play in. More greenery I say!

Let me show you a few pictures of my tanks.


This is how I had my T's. No greenage what so ever. All of them built burrows at the bottom of the tank near the branch.

This is how it is now, MUCH more cover for them. Every one of them now resides up in the branches and leaves. They make hammocks and such with the leaves, its really cool.

 

[jesses]

in my opinion, the tank is WAY too large. the spider would feel much more secure in much smaller (say 1/4 of this size) tank. or at least decorate it much more (like oogieboogie said) - imagine yourself living in an empty room large like an airport terminal - this is similar

btw don´t worry, I also installed a nice cork bark tube for my small P.subfusca, but he/she stays in a shallow burrow in the substrate

Yes the enclosure is way too big. P. species have a strong aversion to light, much stronger than any other genus I have dealt with. Probably it is in that corner because that is the darkest space it can find. Maybe make some kind of hide that is glued to the side of the tank and gives it more darkness and it will go there, thats what happened with mine.

 

[Lyle Beach]

I think you all must think the tank is bigger than it is?? The tank is only 16" high. And the pokie is 3". I'm sure he will grow into it real soon.

In the wild, pokies live in trees.... so why would this be any different?

I would however like to add more to the tank, but I am all out of cork bark. The nearest place to but bark is in Seattle which is 3 hours away, and I don't buy online since I don't have a credit card.

He seems to be doing much better now though.... he enjoyed 3 crickets last night and one more this evening.