# New T owner, GBB Sling common care questions



## GBBslinger (Jan 20, 2016)

So I am a new T owner and decided to start off with a GBB. I have had him for roughly 6 weeks now and for most of those he would eat whenever I fed him (usually once per day or every other). Recently he has stopped eating alive or dead crickets. 

So here are a few questions if you can answer one or all that would be much appreciated!

1: GBB Slings from what I've read require a high moisture enclosure. At what size do they no longer need this and instead require a more arid environment?

2: how large should his enclosure be and what substrate is best (currently its a 50/50 mixture of Vermiculite and pete moss) ? ( please see posted pictures ) 

3: Currently he is in a small enclosure can I relocate him into a larger enclosure with some sort of plants or twigs to give him more room to climb since as slings they tend to be arboreal
	

		
			
		

		
	




	

		
			
		

		
	
 ? 

Any other advice or suggestions or links to threads are greatly appreciated! 

Thank you for you help!

Reactions: Like 2


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## Toxoderidae (Jan 20, 2016)

Since I do not own GBBs, all I can tell you is this. That spider is grossly overweight, and will not eat for a LONG time. Also, he appears to be in premolt. Any other questions, google might be a great friend. 
www.google.com

Reactions: Agree 2


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## GBBslinger (Jan 20, 2016)

Toxoderidae said:


> Since I do not own GBBs, all I can tell you is this. That spider is grossly overweight, and will not eat for a LONG time. Also, he appears to be in premolt. Any other questions, google might be a great friend.
> www.google.com


Appreciate the Response! I will lay off the feeding for a while, and yes google has become a good friend recently.


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## ratluvr76 (Jan 20, 2016)

He's not grossly overweight. His chunky bum is because he is, as mentioned, in pre-molt. When they are getting ready to molt, the old exo will fill with fluid between the old and the new exo. They will appear bigger then normal because, I guess you could say, they are retaining water haha.

Don't worry about feeding him, that's why he's not eating. Most T's will fast for a period of time before a molt. The period of the fast can range from a few days to a few months but is nothing to worry about.  You're Tarantula is Tarantula'ing.

As far as the size of the enclosure, you can probably put him in a bigger container a few days after his molt. Don't move him right away, he will be very soft and vulnerable for a few days while his new exo hardens up. Don't feed him for about 4 or 5 days after his molt either. His fangs will be soft until they harden up good too and feeding too soon can cause injury, or even loss, of one or both fangs rendering him unable to eat.

As to humidity, even slings of this species are very tolerant of dryer conditions. Not to say bone dry is good, especially for a sling, but vermiculite/peat mixture seems a little bit of overkill. Personally, I use expanded coco fibre for all of my spiders. Poec uses straight top soil, both options are excellent, or even a mixture of the two. To meet this species humidity needs, at that size is very simple, wet the substrate in a corner of the enclosure, not dripping wet, but damp is fine. Then a water dish with clean water is the only other thing he needs. For a T this size you can use a cap off a soda bottle or water bottle cap, which ever is easiest for you to obtain.

Finally, he needs a hide. You can get a very small terracotta plant pot, break it in half and put that in there for him as a hide. Even if they don't use their hides, they seem to like having the option. You also need some kind of foliage in there for him to anchor his webs to. You can get plastic plants from the aquarium section of any pet store, or get fake plant in the reptile section. Snip a small length of it and put it in there for him as extra cover. This species are prolific webbers and given anchor points like this for his webs will encourage him to make some pretty awesome webs.

Question: I see the holes you've drilled in the side of the container, did you also put holes in the top? In my experience it is better to leave the top undrilled. The goal for ventilation is cross ventilation, so a few holes in the sides is all you need. If you put holes in the top then what humidity is in there just evaporates and has no "staying power".

Congratulations on your beautiful little one. I think you are going to enjoy him. They are a very active, great display species. Voracious and aggressive eaters, and entertaining to boot.  Welcome to the hobby and welcome to the boards. If you have any other questions I'd be happy to help.

Reactions: Like 2 | Agree 2 | Informative 2


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## Poec54 (Jan 20, 2016)

Many of us feed slings 2 or 3 times a week, some feed them weekly.  Daily is pretty intense and rarely done.  They don't have the metabolism of mammals. 

Chromatopelma are from an area with a fair amount humidity but dry soil.  *Do not* keep them on moist substrate, that may kill them.  A water bowl will provide humidity.  Yours should have a small water bowl (lid from a small water bottle).  That will allow the substrate to be dry like it should be.  Don't mist.  I do this dry set up for Chromatopelma, baboons from east and south Africa, Aphonopelma, and Avicularia.  Everything else gets slightly moist substrate. 

I start slings in 16 oz deli cups with 1" of substrate, and when they get 2 - 3" bump them up to 6 qt clear storage boxes (Sterlite).  I wish there were more affordable choices in between those sizes.  I start arboreals off in 32 oz deli cups (except Avics which get 16 oz).  Your spider is a terrestrial and doesn't need the extra height of a 32 oz. 

Chromatopelma are avid eaters and grow at a good pace.  I just had two males mature from slings I got last year.  Yours will be premolt soon, judging by the relative sizes of abdomen to carapace.  It will stop eating for a week or two then molt.  It'll take about a week after that to harden off and begin eating again.

Reactions: Like 3 | Agree 4 | Informative 1


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## Pociemon (Jan 20, 2016)

Toxoderidae said:


> Since I do not own GBBs, all I can tell you is this. That spider is grossly overweight, and will not eat for a LONG time. Also, he appears to be in premolt. Any other questions, google might be a great friend.
> www.google.com


The spider may have a big bum, but with gbb´s it is very easy to give them that extra food, just because they eat so well... A natural eating machine.... 
It can be a good idea to feed them well up untill juvie stage, that way they will grow faster and also to make sure they make it past sling stage...

Reactions: Like 2


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## GBBslinger (Jan 20, 2016)

ratluvr76 said:


> He's not grossly overweight. His chunky bum is because he is, as mentioned, in pre-molt. When they are getting ready to molt, the old exo will fill with fluid between the old and the new exo. They will appear bigger then normal because, I guess you could say, they are retaining water haha.
> 
> Don't worry about feeding him, that's why he's not eating. Most T's will fast for a period of time before a molt. The period of the fast can range from a few days to a few months but is nothing to worry about.  You're Tarantula is Tarantula'ing.
> 
> ...


Thanks so much for you input! I appreciate you clearing up the questions and concerns I had, and educating me on why I have noticed these changes!

To answer your question I did poke several holes in the top of the lid. Now if I put a bottle top for water, some artificial plant, and a hide I will have to clearly change the enclosure to support that since its only roughly 2x2. I will go to local deli today and get an assortment of containers (unless you or anyone else has suggestions regarding enclosures) to test out which size grants me adequate space for all those things plus the T himself. This time I will only poke holes (from inside out) on the sides and not the top. I will also be looking for Coco Fibre when I head to pet store today for some items. 

Thank you again for taking the time to explain everything to me!

Reactions: Like 1 | Optimistic 1


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## GBBslinger (Jan 20, 2016)

Poec54 said:


> Many of us feed slings 2 or 3 times a week, some feed them weekly.  Daily is pretty intense and rarely done.  They don't have the metabolism of mammals.
> 
> Chromatopelma are from an area with a fair amount humidity but dry soil.  *Do not* keep them on moist substrate, that may kill them.  A water bowl will provide humidity.  Yours should have a small water bowl (lid from a small water bottle).  That will allow the substrate to be dry like it should be.  Don't mist.  I do this dry set up for Chromatopelma, baboons from east and south Africa, Aphonopelma, and Avicularia.  Everything else gets slightly moist substrate.
> 
> ...


Thank you for the information! I will be taking your advice and will prepare a new enclosure for him today since I am off of work!

Reactions: Optimistic 1


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## Poec54 (Jan 20, 2016)

GBBslinger said:


> To answer your question I did poke several holes in the top of the lid. Now if I put a bottle top for water, some artificial plant, and a hide I will have to clearly change the enclosure to support that since its only roughly 2x2. I will go to local deli today and get an assortment of containers (unless you or anyone else has suggestions regarding enclosures) to test out which size grants me adequate space for all those things plus the T himself. This time I will only poke holes (from inside out) on the sides and not the top. I will also be looking for Coco Fibre when I head to pet store today for some items.


 
You can get deli cups & lids by the sleeve at restaurant supply stores (there's GFS down here).  I set up most sling cages with an inch of substrate, a small piece of cork, a small piece of plastic plant (Zoo Med vining type, cut to fit the cage), and a small water bowl.  This works for 1/2" slings and up; they won't drown.  If the sling is closer to 1/4" or less, I simply put some long fiber sphagnum on the substrate and keep it slightly moist( no water bowl).  That gives the sling a water source and a place to hide.   

I only use bagged top soil (Home Depot) for all my spiders, I can't stand cocofiber.  What you're using now is fine, as long as it's dry.

Reactions: Agree 3 | Informative 2


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## Chris LXXIX (Jan 20, 2016)

Pre molt, IMO. When a _Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens _or _Acanthoscurria geniculata _(two great eaters) stop eating, 99% is pre molt time.

And those doesn't need humidity of all sorts at all save for a (appropriate size) always full water dish (juvenile & adults).

As for sling, since are more delicate than juvenile and adults (however even as slings "GBB" are hardy than other genus T's slings, like OW Asian arboreals) i've always raised "GBB" slings adding here and then, with the help of a plastic pipette, drop of water in the web, especially during pre molt/molt time.


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## nunoskii (Jan 20, 2016)

So from experience, these guys win pretty much eat every single time food is offered to them but, I think your guy has gotten to a point where A. He can't fit anymore food inside him and B. He's super premolt 
Just give him some time and within maybe a week or so you'll have a molt and a bigger GBB. 
Also as far as humidity, I would keep the misting to like 1x maybe 2x per week, that usually keeps them humid enough for mine.  And I feed them 2x a week 
The enclosure is okay but if you want it to climb and web everything up I'd add some artificial plants or shrubs and they'll put it to use in no time


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## Rogerpoco (Jan 20, 2016)

Mebbe mine is "off",as I only have a single specimen-my GBB seems to have the longest pre/post molt phase(hides,extremely sedentary),of any of my T's.
I do feed a lot,so it could just require less food than usual leading up to premolt,already"full".


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## Rogerpoco (Jan 20, 2016)

Poec54 said:


> I only use bagged top soil (Home Depot) for all my spiders, I can't stand cocofiber.  What you're using now is fine, as long as it's dry.


I'd guess this is a lot cheaper than coco fiber,buying in bulk as some of us need to. I'll check into that,for sure. Aware to watch for chemicals/cedar.


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## viper69 (Jan 20, 2016)

GBBslinger said:


> So I am a new T owner and decided to start off with a GBB. I have had him for roughly 6 weeks now and for most of those he would eat whenever I fed him (usually once per day or every other). Recently he has stopped eating alive or dead crickets.
> 
> So here are a few questions if you can answer one or all that would be much appreciated!
> 
> ...



I own GBBs.

1. *FALSE*
3. They are not arboreal, these are terrestrial Ts. Their leg morphology indicates they are terrestrial.

That GBB is really FAT, it will molt soon. Ts adapt to a lot of conditions. Sure it will live in that container for a bit, but you want it to thrive, put it in something a bit larger, ie more floor space.

Also, considering you are a first time owner, do your T a favor and mine this forum for all its worth in knowledge.

All your questions could be found within the forum.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 3


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## Poec54 (Jan 20, 2016)

Rogerpoco said:


> I'd guess this is a lot cheaper than coco fiber,buying in bulk as some of us need to.


It's not just cost.  Very few animals live under coconut palms (and therefore in cocofiber), as it's extremely hazardous to have cannon balls dropping at random (as a Florida resident I'm well aware of this.  You do not want to be spending much time under coconuts with ripe fruit on a windy day).

Reactions: Funny 3


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## Chris LXXIX (Jan 20, 2016)

Poec54 said:


> It's not just cost.  Very few animals live under coconut palms (and therefore in cocofiber), as it's extremely hazardous to have cannon balls dropping at random (as a Florida resident I'm well aware of this.  You do not want to be spending much time under coconuts with ripe fruit on a windy day).


You are right, but this happens in the wild, because in captivity T's accept coco fiber without problems. All of mines, including obligate burrowers, "work" with that substrate pretty well. Yes, indeed is high priced and maybe unnatural at look but IMO works well.


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## Rogerpoco (Jan 20, 2016)

Lol. I grew up in north Florida,Lake City-we had palmettos,but not palm trees so much.
Totally understand the analogy with the cannon balls,and understand why,with their primitave nature,that T's would avoid habitating there naturally.


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## Poec54 (Jan 21, 2016)

Chris LXXIX said:


> You are right, but this happens in the wild, because in captivity T's accept coco fiber without problems.


What choice do they have when they're put in a cage full of it?  They make the best of the situation.


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## Poec54 (Jan 21, 2016)

Rogerpoco said:


> Lol. I grew up in north Florida,Lake City-we had palmettos,but not palm trees so much.
> Totally understand the analogy with the cannon balls,and understand why,with their primitave nature,that T's would avoid habitating there naturally.


It's really not anything to do with their 'primitive nature.'  It also applies to the most intelligent mammals.  Would you want to sit under a tall coconut on a daily basis?  It's only a matter of time before the fruit drops and anything under it is going to take a pounding.  The 'dwarf' forms get 50 feet tall; the others get much taller.  Coconuts are planted all over south and coastal Florida, sometimes without any thought to eventual problems.  I've seen them planted along sidewalks and in parking lots, which forces the owner/city/county to use ladder trucks to trim off the fruit annually before it ripens.  They're a beautiful symbol of the tropics, but not without it's hazards.


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## jiacovazzi (Jan 21, 2016)

viper69 said:


> I own GBBs.
> 
> 1. *FALSE*
> 3. They are not arboreal, these are terrestrial Ts. Their leg morphology indicates they are terrestrial.
> ...


2 comes after 1, not 3.

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## Rogerpoco (Jan 21, 2016)

Fair-but mebbe it's our primitive nature to avoid them as well?
And our intelligent nature that allows us to make Coconut Layer Cake out of them.
SOO being contrary,just for it's own sake,and VERY kidding,sorry...


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## Chris LXXIX (Jan 21, 2016)

Poec54 said:


> What choice do they have when they're put in a cage full of it?  They make the best of the situation.


True. But after years we are able, let's say, to notice if they are happy or not. I remember a _Grammostola pulchripes _i've rescued, needed a re-house thanks to her previous owner bad care. I was out of the coco fiber i always use back then, and housed her with peat moss (bone dry, of course) as substrate. She was mad, always into climbing mode, she used her fangs for that trough the air holes... walking in a nervous way was the routine. Re-housed again after a week when i received the coco fiber i use (i buy ready to use KG bags from breeders, not coco bricks) after one day settled, and that behavior disappeared. 
IMO that's not bad, especially for "arid" T's.


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## Poec54 (Jan 21, 2016)

Rogerpoco said:


> Fair-but mebbe it's our primitive nature to avoid them as well?
> And our intelligent nature that allows us to make Coconut Layer Cake out of them.


 
We don't need to avoid them, they just need to be planted in appropriate places.  They're a big part of the diet to many people in the tropics, and when lethal yellowing disease wiped out millions of coconuts around the world, a lot of people starved.


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## Rogerpoco (Jan 21, 2016)

I guess could google,but what happened to remedy the issue with yellowing disease? Human intervention?
If so,that's pretty cool. You hear a lot about the destruction humankind is responsible for,but not so much about succesful eco-efforts.

Getting off topic a little,I like Mantids quite a bit-we would have a much larger variety of sp. here in the US,I believe,if they hadn't brought in Tenodera sinensis(chinese mantids),mebbe in the 50's,for insect control(which really didn't work...). First thing I think they wiped out were probably undiscovered,standard size(1-2")mantids.
These tend to tolerate each other to some degree in relatively close proximity in the wild,so I think would be better for insect control-larger mantids do not share territory,ever,and one mantid can only eat so much.


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## Poec54 (Jan 21, 2016)

Rogerpoco said:


> I guess could google,but what happened to remedy the issue with yellowing disease? Human intervention?
> If so,that's pretty cool. You hear a lot about the destruction humankind is responsible for, but not so much about succesful eco-efforts.


Many of the world's coconuts are closely-related, so the lethal yellowing disease spread quickly and took a large toll internationally.  The Malayan dwarf forms have proved resistant (but not immune) to lethal yellowing.  All that's legal to sell in the US now are Malayan dwarfs (dwarf green, dwarf golden, etc) and some of their hybrids ('MayPan' = Malayan dwarf x Panama tall, etc).

Reactions: Informative 1


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## Poec54 (Jan 21, 2016)

Chris LXXIX said:


> a _Grammostola pulchripes _needed a re-house... I was out of the coco fiber i always use back then, and housed her with *peat moss* (bone dry, of course) as substrate. She was mad, always into climbing mode, she used her fangs for that trough the air holes... walking in a nervous way was the routine. Re-housed again after a week when i received the *coco fiber* i use (i buy ready to use KG bags from breeders, not coco bricks) after one day settled, and that behavior disappeared.


Lesser of two evils?

Regardless, my point is that cocofiber isn't a natural medium for tarantulas in the wild.  Seems crazy to me to buy bricks of it and have to wet and dry it to make it useable, when all I do is buy 40 lb bags of top soil for $1.50 and pour it into spider cages.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## Chris LXXIX (Jan 21, 2016)

Poec54 said:


> Lesser of two evils?
> 
> Regardless, my point is that cocofiber isn't a natural medium for tarantulas in the wild.  Seems crazy to me to buy bricks of it and have to wet and dry it to make it useable, when all I do is buy 40 lb bags of top soil for $1.50 and pour it into spider cages.


I totally agree with you, that's the reason why i don't buy bricks, but bags of ready to use, bone dry, coco fiber. Usually i buy 10 KG or even more bags of that.


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## jiacovazzi (Jan 21, 2016)

Poec54 said:


> Lesser of two evils?
> 
> Regardless, my point is that cocofiber isn't a natural medium for tarantulas in the wild.  Seems crazy to me to buy bricks of it and have to wet and dry it to make it useable, when all I do is buy 40 lb bags of top soil for $1.50 and pour it into spider cages.


Maybe its for aesthetic purposes. SOme hobbyists may think that cocofiber looks nicer than top soil dirt in a T's cage.


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## Rogerpoco (Jan 21, 2016)

I use coco fiber exclusively,but am definitely going to look into safe topsoil.
This disagreement,*I think*,really boils down to personal preference.
I imagine both substrates are relatively safe for T's,as long as everything else Maslow requires for them is provided. (A stretch. Maslow likely is specific to human needs,I dunno).
I can't really visualize the appearance of topsoil in a T house,and agree that the coco fiber looks nice/is easily maintained.
But it does get expensive when you do 100+ rehousings in a year. That's the main reason I am going to consider topsoil.
Don't think there's a "best" answer. Just depends on where you are in the hobby,what areas of it you choose to spend money in,what substrate appeals to you most,for whatever reason.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## GG80 (Jan 21, 2016)

One thing I discovered early on in my care of my GBB sling, and it might be worth considering, is that they will almost totally web up a small enclosure and make it difficult to maintain a water dish. There is very little room for general maintenance as you almost cannot avoid the webbing.

I now keep mine in an enclosure that is bigger than needed but maintenance is much easier. The sling has webbed up a corner and spends most of its time there and there is plenty of room at the other side for a decent sized water dish which never gets webbed up or filled with substrate. The sling is fine in this enclosure even if it falls in the category of too big for a 1" sling but he's growing at a decent rate so the enclosure won't be too big for long.

Here's a pic of the enclosure: 6" X 4" for a 1" DLS sling, note the webbing on the near left side corner where the sling tends to stay and the big water dish in the far right side corner provideng all the humidity needed.

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## cold blood (Jan 21, 2016)

jiacovazzi said:


> Maybe its for aesthetic purposes. SOme hobbyists may think that cocofiber looks nicer than top soil dirt in a T's cage.


This is a valid point, although I much prefer the natural look of soil personally.


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Rogerpoco said:


> I use coco fiber exclusively,but am definitely going to look into safe topsoil.
> This disagreement,*I think*,really boils down to personal preference.
> I imagine both substrates are relatively safe for T's.


That's it right there.   Its not really a disagreement, more of a difference in keeping.  There are many very successful long time keepers that exclusively use soil, while other successful long time keepers prefer their coco fiber.  Neither substrate will cause the demise of your spiders.

I will say, that back when my collection was half soil and half coco fiber, I ran into a mite issue, oddly, the mites seemed to be almost exclusively in the cages with coco fiber.  I'm not saying that soil prevents mites, because it doesn't, but it certainly seemed that they did like the coco fiber better.  My guess is that it is easier for a t to bury a bolus in the softer coco fiber, I guessed this because the epicenter of the problem was a G. pulchripes that had dozens of buried bolus's in its coco fiber.   I also had less issues with mold patches, as soil doesn't mold for me....but I have heard others say they went away from soil due to mold.   So its entirely up to you to see which fits you or which you prefer better, there is no single right or wrong answer.


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## Rogerpoco (Jan 21, 2016)

Thought dish was too large,saw proportion with the ruler,is fine.
Nice pic,Bud-I'm guessing you will have 20+ T's before June,lol.


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## cold blood (Jan 21, 2016)

Rogerpoco said:


> Thought dish was too large,saw proportion with the ruler,is fine.


Huh??  Do you know what would happen if you dropped a 1" sling into the middle of a lake?   It would walk to the shore (as long as a fish didn't snatch it).   They float.   Even most adults actually.

Reactions: Like 1 | Informative 1 | Helpful 1


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## Rogerpoco (Jan 21, 2016)

Oh...WOW!
I was gonna take you on your word,not watch video,did anyway,haha.
That is absolutely amazing! Thought I had seen it all...
Good deal,comforting to know.


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## GBBslinger (Jan 22, 2016)

Wanted to thank everyone for their advice! I took much of it into consideration and moved him to a new enclosure with coco fibre, a water dish, and numerous things to anchor webs too. As most of you stated he was Pre-molt and is now post-molt and almost double the size! He seems back to normal and is webbing away! We both thank you for your help!


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## jiacovazzi (Jan 22, 2016)

cold blood said:


> This is a valid point, although I much prefer the natural look of soil personally.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I said that, not Poec as you have it quoted.


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## cold blood (Jan 22, 2016)

jiacovazzi said:


> I said that, not Poec as you have it quoted.


I know, I actually had a quote of his, and then your quote, but when I posted, this is what came out.   When I went to edit, it once again showed everything as written, but upon re-posting, it came out the same.....I have no idea how it happened or why it would attribute a quote to the wrong individual.


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## viper69 (Jan 22, 2016)

jiacovazzi said:


> 2 comes after 1, not 3.


3 comes after 1 as well, you are wrong.

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## Rogerpoco (Jan 22, 2016)

viper69 said:


> 3 comes after 1 as well, you are wrong.


Was just gonna stick a "like" to the post,but I gotta say...
Very astute,and likely the funniest thing I've seen yet this year.

Reactions: Like 1


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## viper69 (Jan 22, 2016)

Rogerpoco said:


> Was just gonna stick a "like" to the post,but I gotta say...
> Very astute,and likely the funniest thing I've seen yet this year.


I appreciate the comment, feel free to use it in your signature file if you so choose.

Reactions: Like 1 | Informative 1 | Funny 1


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## Toxoderidae (Jan 22, 2016)

viper69 said:


> I appreciate the comment, feel free to use it in your signature file if you so choose.


May I?


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## Poec54 (Jan 22, 2016)

jiacovazzi said:


> 2 comes after 1, not 3.


 
Who said you can't learn anything here?

Reactions: Funny 3


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## viper69 (Jan 22, 2016)

Toxoderidae said:


> May I?


Of course


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