Prekilled or live?

[Zaxxen]

For tiny slings under 2.5 cm I really like red runner roach nymphs. They are quick but still have some mass to them and the spiders go nuts for them. I find pinhead crickets a pain because they seem to just get lost in the enclosure and they don't move as much as the lataralis *excuse the spelling* nymphs. Or you could try sticking a mealworm or whatever worm you're using right onto the web itself so the worm will thrash around and attract the tarantula.

the problem with my Meridionalis is that he won't web, nor burrow. Next time i watch his enclosure imma put in a hide and see if he'll use that, i have a store of corkbark pieces that i got for like 10€ which i use for my T's except the Ceratogyrus's (because they are usually obligated burrowers). My darlingi accepts what he is, but my Meridionalis thinks he's a poecilotheria so he won't burrow nor web at all. he just runs around and clings to the sides and lid of the enclosure. I'll see if he likes a hide thanks for the tips, i havent ever seen a single lateralis in sweden, expos or stores. Local petstore sells dubias quite cheap but they're a tad too big, though i will use those and zophobas when they're bigger

 

[Venom1080]

Do you have a picky spider? My adult female T. rasti is one of the best hunters I have.

Yeah I could see how you could get that.. I meant the specific example I had was my 3 Tapinauchinius rasti females. I've fed them virtually exclusively mealworms all their lives. And it's easiest for me to just prekill a few and leave it. Not that Tappies are bad eaters. They're not. They're incredible.

 

[MBArachnids]

well since there arent many places where i live where mealworms arent the smallest feeder available and the shipping here is quite expensive. The reason i feed prekilled mealworms is because i dont want to order stuff like buffaloworms or baby crickets/roaches is because id much rather walk for 10 minutes to the nearest shop and pickup mealworms for like 10€ a KG, and since the mealworms are cheap and i get them in big numbers, and they work fine for the most part, why not then? feeding live or prekilled is diffrent from keeper to keeper, some feed prekilled, some feed live. Of course when they are bigger than they are now, i will feed live, no question. but the slings hasnt even surpassed 1" in size. When i first got my N chromatus i fed her buffaloworms that were prekilled but not cut up and she ate without a problem. I asked a simple question and there is no need to tell me to get more appropriate feeders when the feeders i feed them currently work just fine for me, most of my species, and most people, i know T's wont always eat and thats fine, just wanted some input. simple as that. I can get crickets quite cheap, i can get mealworms cheap, i can get cockroaches decently cheap. Thats it. if i wanted advice on what feeder to use, thats what i would have asked.

Never seen anyone this triggered over a simple remark Calm down big boy. It was only some added remarks, no need to get all hysterical

 

[Zaxxen]

Never seen anyone this triggered over a simple remark Calm down big boy. It was only some added remarks, no need to get all hysterical

how is that being triggered? also i do respect your post, you were being friendly, allthough the other person was being a bit more sly. Thats not being triggered in my opinion. I went through my own experience in an informative way, not hysterical or triggered in any way. But if you think thats being "hysterical" then fair play, all the luck to you bro

 

[viper69]

I never feed my Aphonopelma. seemanni live prey I always pre killed for him.

Why?

 

[Paul1126]

Why?

Because he just bolts down into the burrow when I open the enclosure, so I just leave pre killed at the entrancr

 

[Inspector Aberline]

Suggestion that has worked for me to reduce the propensity for uneaten insect-prey to harm a T:

Using small Swiss Army-type micro-scissors, clip the legs off the insect prey-item. Cricket, roach, etc. Then introduce. That way, the insect is still very much alive and tempting to the T but of absolutely no long-term danger to the T should the T fail to take the prey-item. Also makes retrieval of non-taken prey-item much easier. Insects can subsist for many hours with no-legs at all, or just one pair remaining.

 

[asunshinefix]

I always feed my slings live except in a few situations: I feed prekilled when they've sealed off their burrow, if I think they're within a few days of molting, or if for some reason I don't have small enough prey available. I pretty much exclusively feed crickets because I'm honestly afraid of roaches and worms. I only keep NW terrestrials, but so far every sling I've raised has thrived on pinhead crickets.

 

[Kitara]

So far, *knock on wood* I haven't had to feed prekilled. My smallest a little over 1/2" and she takes live pinhead b. lateralis.

I pretty much exclusively feed crickets because I'm honestly afraid of roaches and worms.

That was me. I ordered the b. lateralis (roaches) because I couldn't kill the crickets/worms and there were no crickets small enough for my tiny ones. When the b. lats were so tiny I could just convince myself they weren't roaches. I have a little vial that I take outside with the feeders and I put one in each vial and then dump it into the enclosure. I am really shocked with myself that I'm able to deal with the roaches and have come to hate them less than I hate crickets (smelly, loud when they're bigger, die off quickly).

 

[asunshinefix]

So far, *knock on wood* I haven't had to feed prekilled. My smallest a little over 1/2" and she takes live pinhead b. lateralis.
That was me. I ordered the b. lateralis (roaches) because I couldn't kill the crickets/worms and there were no crickets small enough for my tiny ones. When the b. lats were so tiny I could just convince myself they weren't roaches. I have a little vial that I take outside with the feeders and I put one in each vial and then dump it into the enclosure. I am really shocked with myself that I'm able to deal with the roaches and have come to hate them less than I hate crickets (smelly, loud when they're bigger, die off quickly).

I do the vial thing too! Honesty, the crickets freak me out as well - they're just the least scary prey option to me. I still put them in the fridge before getting them out though and if one jumps at my face I teleport.