Short list of things experienced keepers would like to tell the new guys.

[Methal]

Thought i'd make me a list of the things I've learned over the past year or so owning Ts and ~20 years keeping various other spiders.

1) Dont pick them up! seriously! they are not for the petting zoo!
a. you GOING to hurt the T. Its just going to happen.
b. you going to stress them to death. Stress does the same thing to Ts as it does to humans, shortens life. (bit if an assumption) They are not vertebrates, they will never recognize youre smell, or get used to being handled. if you want an exotic pet for handling, get a cat-snake (aka ferret)
c. You going to get bit (this might not be a bad thing. Pain teaches. I got shot once, never ever did that again)
d. If you have kids, Jr. is going to do what daddy/mommy does, and do it wrong. There has never been a confirmed death due to a Tarantula bite God forbid your stupid ass gets your 2 year old bit by an OBT because you keep picking up your Rosie and kids aint going to know the difference. There is enough pressure from Ignorante government dumbasses without having your child on the 6 o'clock news spreading the false crap that "an aggressive T ran down and bit a unsuspecting child."

2) "small enclosure cuz the big ones will stress your T"
a. Yeah this one is just dumb on the face of it. You ever notice how big earth is? you never heard anyone say 'better put them Ts on a smaller planet, this one just too big, will stress them out."
b. More space to move, means more space for you to not get your hand bit when cleaning/refilling water dishes.

3) Regular feeding/misting.
a. No. its not a person, not like it needs 5 pizza's a week to stay happy.
b. as far as we know, which isn't enough, Tarantula's dont have emotions. just reactions. nature presents them with something, they are genetically programmed to respond. Even though your T will eat like a horse, doesn't mean you need to feed it one every week.
c. There is evidence to suggest that the T's organs will not develop properly if overfed.


4) Make sure you buy from a good CAPTIVE bred source.
a. We are here to help conserve this misunderstood species. Not drive it to extinction.
b. There isnt enough data to accurately tell if your T you just spent 200 bucks is on its last molt.
c. Parasites. Congratulations, you now have imported the death of all the Ts in your collection, or at least the ones not resistant.

Thats enough for now, I'll be adding to this list, and cleaning it up.

Share with me some of the things you'd pass on. I'd like to link this to friends who are new to this hobby.

 

[PanzoN88]

1. Do NOT buy an OW as a first tarantula, buy a docile NW species like a E. Campestratus.

 

[Ashton]

1) Only deal with what you are comfortable with.
2) Don't over think things because it will cause more harm
3) Avics are not hard to keep
4) Attempt to get only CB specimens
5) DO NOT PUT IT NEAR YOUR FACE!!
6) Handling: do or don't? Its a preference. Any death resulted from it is your fault.
7) Limit crickets to a minimum and go roach
8) Make the enclosure as nice as possible
9) SET A SPENDING LIMIT
10) Don't shoot into it, work up to it and have fun

Also, keep the more potent, faster, more defensive ones under lock and key.

 

[jdl]

Do your research. Don't walk into keeping any type of animal until you have a knowledge base to keep that animal throughout its life successfully. I hate seeing people here posting animals for sale because they want to cut their animals down or are getting out of the hobby. Plan on keeping that animal for the rest of its life. A 5-30 year commitment.

 

[katluc]

All sounds like very sensible advice. Thank you.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Thought i'd make me a list of the things I've learned over the past year or so owning Ts and ~20 years keeping various other spiders.

1) Dont pick them up! seriously! they are not for the petting zoo!
a. you GOING to hurt the T. Its just going to happen.

4) Make sure you buy from a good CAPTIVE bred source.
a. We are here to help conserve this misunderstood species. Not drive it to extinction.
b. There isnt enough data to accurately tell if your T you just spent 200 bucks is on its last molt.
c. Parasites. Congratulations, you now have imported the death of all the Ts in your collection, or at least the ones not resistant.

Thats enough for now, I'll be adding to this list, and cleaning it up.

Share with me some of the things you'd pass on. I'd like to link this to friends who are new to this hobby.

+1 Well said I suffered a bit of losses 2 years ago from Phorid fly infestation.

1. Do not over expand T collection unless you are sure you are staying in the T hobby for the long-hual.
2. Vary collection with all growth speeds of Ts King baboons are so cool when you get the experience for them.
3. Breed Your Ts of rare species when they are large enough, so they do not go extinct in the hobby. Rare species such as Phamphos, pokies(rare in wild) etc. Most Ts in America aren't bred, T hobby suffers badly from this.
4. Do not ask for advice from pet store's.
5. No heat mats !

 

[gobey]

I'm only 6 months in...

I'll tell this to really new new guys based on my own path...

SLOW DOWN

 

[Medusa]

If you're doing something with your t's...always, ALWAYS have a catch cup handy. [emoji6]

 

[ARACHNO-SMACK48]

1.When doing rehouses etc. always expect something to go wrong and expect the T to be much faster and more defensive than it seems. Do maintenance and rehouses in the middle of a clean/ uncluttered floor, keep a catchup ready, and put the T's enclosure inside another box.
2. Always make sure you know where the T is in the enclosure before opening the lid.
3. Poke holes reasonably smaller than the abdomen of the tarantula. If there is any way to get out they will find it.
4. T's will climb up your tongs (especially slings)
5. Buy the tarantula keeper's guide

 

[telepatella]

Don't expect to see your tarantulas moving around a lot. You may never see some at all. They are a different type of pet altogether. Less is more. Don't over care. Prepare to have crickets all over your house. Be careful who or what you touch after you get flicked on. Read the TKG.

 

[HungryGhost]

1. Your wife doesn't have to know exactly how many tarantulas you have.

 

[gobey]

1. Your wife doesn't have to know exactly how many tarantulas you have.

This... They are very compact and hidable... They like the dark

 

[Glorious Baboon]

when it’s a moisture dependent species don’t create a swamp in the enclosure the substrate has to be wet enough it holds together when squeezed.
if it drips you have added to much water.

Cross ventilation is highly important as you don’t want to create stagnant air in the enclosure.

If your unsure the holes on the enclosure are too big treat it as they are and get a different enclosure. You don’t wanna wake up with T on your face.

Always make sure lids are closed and don’t turn your back to open enclosure good way to get a jump scare or lose the T

Don’t buy bird eaters for your first T it’s like buying a python as a baby you may not be afraid of it At that size but when it hits 10” or exceeds that you may feel differently.

Your T is not going to drown in a water dish and don’t use a sponge.

Your metal tongs can brake their fangs so be careful.

Tarantulas are measured by diagonal leg span not body length.

Stay calm in a rehouse even if it starts running like crazy compose yourself and determine where it’s gonna go. A panic will result in being bit, an escape, or you squishing your T. And yes you will have a tarantula give you difficulty during a rehouse at some point or another

 

[LV-426]

1. Do your research
2. Don’t overthink things
3. Arboreals don’t live as long as terrestrials (IME)
4. Keep handling to a minimum
5. Tarantula Keepers Guide is a great book for beginners.

 

[sasker]

Don't go around resurrecting old threats

Tarantulas are measured by diagonal leg span not body length.

Depends on where you live. Many sellers in Europe state body length instead of leg span.

 

[Teal]

1. Do not get complacent.
Each and every time you must interact with your spider/s, be prepared and have respect for their potential speed/defensiveness/etc.

2. Do your research.
Asking questions is great, but don't take any one person's advice for the gospel. Cross reference advice given and make informed decisions for the good of your spider. Realize that certain aspects of care "trend" in popularity, get disproven with advances in keeping inverts, etc.

3. Have patience.
These animals do not function like mammals. They are unlike any other animal you may have experience with. They will fast from eating for weeks... months... maybe years. They will hole themselves up for the same amount of time. Just remind yourself - *They know what they are doing* Resist the urge to disturb them unless you have a valid reason to believe there is an issue.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Tarantulas are measured by diagonal leg span not body length.

Depends on where you live, some countries use body length, some don't measure at all, they just use the instar number.

 

[boina]

Don't go resurrecting old threads. There are a few things in the early posts that have been contested or even disproven by now. Knowledge evolves. Don't let your's stay static.

 

[nicodimus22]

2) "small enclosure cuz the big ones will stress your T"
a. Yeah this one is just dumb on the face of it. You ever notice how big earth is? you never heard anyone say 'better put them Ts on a smaller planet, this one just too big, will stress them out."

Smaller container = faster growth rate for slings. The T can find food and water more easily, and you can keep track of it more easily. They are not like other animals that want as much space as possible. They make a burrow and sit in it, waiting for food to come by. They are not roaming animals (except MMs looking to breed.)

b. More space to move, means more space for you to not get your hand bit when cleaning/refilling water dishes.

Your hand should never enter their enclosures in the first place. Use tongs.

 

[basin79]

It's a marathon not a sprint. There's no need to buy 30 slings within the first weeks of buying your first tarantula because you're "addicted".

Those little slings in the pots will require much larger enclosures when they're full grown. They won't all fit on that little shelf you've got spare.

There's also no reason you have to own loads of tarantulas because that's how it's "normally" done. They're living animals not models.