The Water Dish Saga

[viper69]

I wouldn't be surprised if they flipped their water dishes a long time ago, but each time they did you'd threaten to break their legs if they didn't stop.

They sign a contract--- no tipping you get dinner, tipping> no crickets

A few of mine from many years ago did this, but the current members on my list have never done it.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

I now truly understand the frustration of having a tarantula that constantly shovels substrate into its water dish. My male B. albiceps has done nothing but test my patience since he got here. (I swear, if you look at him funny, he kicks hairs. Should've named him Bald Butt.) His latest thing is scooping heaps of substrate over his water dish the night after I clean and refill it, completely soaking up all the water. Yet, as soon as I fill it again, he'll come over and drink. So he's thirsty, but... I don't understand tarantula logic, guys, haha. I think I will just ditch the water dish and wet the substrate for him instead. Oh, and I also made him a wonderful hide, and he simply covered the opening with substrate and forgot it even existed. Thanks, dude, you're a real friend.

This is a contrast from my male A. geniculata, who thinks all water is precious and must be protected from the evil hoomans. He has two water dishes, just so I can refill one while he's guarding the other.

(It's worth mentioning that all my females keep their water dishes pristine and don't put up a fight when I need to refill it. They also use their hides...)

Please feel free to share your own water dish struggles so I don't feel so alone in this battle. XD

P Miranda buried it’s water dishes , most my other ones throw bolas in them .
Gbb covers it in webs can’t remove one dish or it will rip all webbing out.
Lasiodoras will ignore water dish til it’s empty then roll it around !!
A few kicks hairs when trying to add water or freak out.

 

[spookyvibes]

They sign a contract--- no tipping you get dinner, tipping> no crickets

A few of mine from many years ago did this, but the current members on my list have never done it.

I’ll have to steal this idea

 

[Crone Returns]

I now truly understand the frustration of having a tarantula that constantly shovels substrate into its water dish. My male B. albiceps has done nothing but test my patience since he got here. (I swear, if you look at him funny, he kicks hairs. Should've named him Bald Butt.) His latest thing is scooping heaps of substrate over his water dish the night after I clean and refill it, completely soaking up all the water. Yet, as soon as I fill it again, he'll come over and drink. So he's thirsty, but... I don't understand tarantula logic, guys, haha. I think I will just ditch the water dish and wet the substrate for him instead. Oh, and I also made him a wonderful hide, and he simply covered the opening with substrate and forgot it even existed. Thanks, dude, you're a real friend.

This is a contrast from my male A. geniculata, who thinks all water is precious and must be protected from the evil hoomans. He has two water dishes, just so I can refill one while he's guarding the other.

(It's worth mentioning that all my females keep their water dishes pristine and don't put up a fight when I need to refill it. They also use their hides...)

Please feel free to share your own water dish struggles so I don't feel so alone in this battle. XD

Puny hooman. Resistance is futile.

 

[Moakmeister]

Regina used to do that stuff constantly. She really doesn't anymore tho.

@crone what’s sad about this?

 

[Crone Returns]

@crone what’s sad about this?

Hit the wrong button

 

[weibkreux]

I caught my B. auratum before in the act of carrying the bottle cap on the way to his hide. Didn't manage to get a picture tho, he let go and made a full run into his hide. Blame my poor stalking ability.

 

[Thekla]

Let me tell you a story. It involves a water dish, some moss, and my H. sp. fire:

A few days ago, all was right with the world. Or so I thought...

It started with some strands of moss in the water dish...

(pay attention to that neat patch of dried up moss in the background ).

When those strands of moss wicked away almost all of the water, my 1-inch sling took a deep drink.

(is it more comfortable to hang in there for a drink? I've no idea! But on with the story.)

I guess it was collecting its strength for what was to come... and that was quite something. Within a few days that sling totally remodelled its enclosure, but not with substrate like every other normal spider out there... no, it was using that nice patch of moss:

(Can you find my little sling? )



"What do you think, mum? Did I do good?"



Wait! The story is not over yet...

Today I came home from work, and apparently, it still wasn't to its liking. It was just trying to lean some of the moss against the wall, so I grabbed my phone and the very moment I released the shutter this happened:

 

[Thekla]

(Sorry for the double post, but I need more pics! )

So, where was I? Oh yes, this happened:

It actually made some kind of involuntary backflip, rolled over and came up again, the moss still in its fangs...



"What? Are you laughing at me?" "Noooooo, I would never l..." *lol* *lol*

"Well, okay, then I'll try again..."


"And now, I need some well-deserved grooming after a hard day's work!"



Sorry about the pic spam, but I needed to document that. It was just hilarious. I'm curious about with what it comes up next...?
(I'm pretty sure though it's plotting its escape by building a way up and out...)

 

[MrTwister]

My N. chromatus buries the dish as soon as it’s full. B. vagans will grab the dish and try and pull it back into enclosure.

 

[Andrea82]

Not mine, but I like to leave this in pretty much every thread on waterdish-drama:

My D.pentaloris has four or five waterdishes covered in web. E.murinus three. G.pulchra has three stacked in a corner. P.muticus has two down in her burrow. And my A.geniculatas...one each, and if I only think of moving them, it's a declaration of war...

 

[Greasylake]

A second chromatus has given a water dish to the mole people. It's frustrating because I mean I can see the dish but it's webbed over and 3/4ths buried. I try to pull the dish out and the sling runs out of its burrow to defend its bottle cap.

 

[SonsofArachne]

I think it might be easier to list our T's that DON'T mess with their water dishes.

 

[Thekla]

Well then, new water dish, new luck!



The new water dish is there, where all that moss on the right side was before. I'm curious if that moss miraculously finds its way back to that spot, or not.

 

[spookyvibes]

Well then, new water dish, new luck!

View attachment 286365

The new water dish is there, where all that moss on the right side was before. I'm curious if that moss miraculously finds its way back to that spot, or not.

It’s already scheming

 

[starnaito]

And my A.geniculatas...one each, and if I only think of moving them, it's a declaration of war...

If anyone has a geniculata that doesn't defend its water dish, I want to meet it. XD I even wet some substrate for my genics, and they still rarely stray from the dish. And if they happen to be away from it and I make any attempt to clean, fill, or move it, they come running over like they have a sixth sense dedicated to detecting water dish movement.

 

[SonsofArachne]

If anyone has a geniculata that doesn't defend its water dish, I want to meet it. XD I even wet some substrate for my genics, and they still rarely stray from the dish. And if they happen to be away from it and I make any attempt to clean, fill, or move it, they come running over like they have a sixth sense dedicated to detecting water dish movement.

Well, at least they don't move them or fill them with dirt (mine doesn't anyway).

 

[Ungoliant]

My Neoholothele incei webs over her water dish so that I can't remove the dish for cleaning without tearing up her web, so I just add a new one. At one point, she had a tower of four webbed water dishes.

Bulldozer (Grammostola pulchra) did this to her water dish.

Poop art -- Mixed media with water colours -- poop beige mixed with burnt umber substrate. Excellent leaf placement. A masterpiece - glad you preserved it in pixels for posterity.

Grammostola pulchra Renovates Enclosure

• Ungoliant
• Aug 25, 2017
• 1
• brazilian black tarantula bulldozer female grammostola grammostola pulchra juvenile juvenile female pulchra

Bulldozer dragged her leaf "rug" into her water dish, dragged her rubber mat next to the dish...

If anyone has a geniculata that doesn't defend its water dish, I want to meet it. XD I even wet some substrate for my genics, and they still rarely stray from the dish. And if they happen to be away from it and I make any attempt to clean, fill, or move it, they come running over like they have a sixth sense dedicated to detecting water dish movement.

Protest (♂ Acanthoscurria geniculata 3")

• Ungoliant
• Apr 3, 2018
• 7
• acanthoscurria acanthoscurria geniculata genicula geniculata juvenile juvenile male male whitebanded tarantula

Guess who didn't want his water dish refilled.

 

[Ratmosphere]

Recently a few of my tarantulas have been flipping over their water dish.

 

[Marika]

My G. pulchra has been pretty good with her dish, but has occasionally dumped stuff or pooped in it. She also moved it to another spot when she was rearranging her enclosure.

H. sp. fire has two dishes - the first one is buried.