# Poecilotheria metallica Tank Set-Ups.



## Striker

I am interested in seeing how you P.Metallica owners have your tanks set up for these spiders. I am looking for idea's and suggestions in making an ideal living space for a female P.Metallica in the near future. 

Pictures would be greatly appreciated. 

Thank You in advance!


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## paul fleming

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/spiders-inverts/234784-newbie-guide-poecilotheria.html


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## Arachnobrian

I can suggest what not to do. lol

I thought it would be a great idea to silicone a cork tube to the back corner of the tank. Tank being square and cork tube being round, a small space was left in the corner.

This is where my expensive pretty blue spider hides all the time. lol 
I get to see the pretty blue leg tips and not much else.


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## Striker

See that's the thing too, I would like to be able to see the thing too. I think this will be the most difficult thing to figure out and make perfect. Second would be picking the brightest, most rich color I can find.


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## Protectyaaaneck

All of my poecilotheria setups are the same.  They consist of 3-4 inches of coco fiber, and a cork bark flat that has a curve to it. 

I place the cork bark into the corner and pack the coco fiber around it so it holds the cork bark in place.  I'll see if I can post a few photos here in a bit.


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## Protectyaaaneck

Here is how I keep em. 

From left to right: 0.1 p. rufilata (premolt), 0.1 p. formosa, 0.1 p. metallica, 0.1 p. ornata, 0.1 p. subfusca.






(sorry it's blurry)


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## un33dit

...Hmmmm....I thought Robc would be all over this....

-Gary


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## Striker

Protectyaaaneck said:


> Here is how I keep em.
> 
> From left to right: 0.1 p. rufilata (premolt), 0.1 p. formosa, 0.1 p. metallica, 0.1 p. ornata, 0.1 p. subfusca.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> (sorry it's blurry)


Thank you for posting those pics. Nice collection you have there. Im assuming that these aren't fully grown? 

What's the ideal size of tank for a pet like this?


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## Spyder 1.0

un33dit said:


> ...Hmmmm....I thought Robc would be all over this....
> 
> -Gary


He is a member on like 10 T forums. I don't think arachnoboards is his first stop.


My input- Any cage can be designed for proper viewing of the T. Just think about how you can design it. Metallicas are photosensative meaning they will dash when they come in contact with light. You can design a hide against the side of the tank and cover the outside with a piece of black paper and a piece of tape. Then when you wish to see the spider in its hide, simply lift the paper.

If you are starting with a sling(like I did) Use a peanut butter jar modified as so:
[YOUTUBE]<object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xsxBfST31ik&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/xsxBfST31ik&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

This way the spiderling will get acclimatized to the light as it comes in from all sides pretty much all the time..It's awesome as you always get to see your blue T.


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## Striker

That's one of the many things I didn't know about them-photosensitive. That's really a shame, considering how it looks


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## robc

un33dit said:


> ...Hmmmm....I thought Robc would be all over this....
> 
> -Gary


I got a veryt bad virus in my PC LOL...but  am getting it fixed and getting all new stuff LOL!!


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## robc

Here you go:

[YOUTUBE]tEdyu-jKymQ[/YOUTUBE]


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## Striker

robc said:


> Here you go:
> 
> [YOUTUBE]tEdyu-jKymQ[/YOUTUBE]


Thank you for that! I actually PM'd you a long time ago regarding P.Metallica's. You definately know what's going on. Very nice T's!


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## Striker

Rob one more thing, what's the ideal size for a tank? The one that you are using in your tutorial above, what are the dimensions for that one? I'd like to know so see if it will fit in my shelfing unit I have in my bedroom.


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## violentblossom

My metallica set-up is just a vial with about 1 inch of subtrate and a piece of (cork?) wood glued to the side. 

She's a real scaredy cat. Everytime I open her lid, she dives under the wood and basically buries herself in the substrate.


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## Protectyaaaneck

Striker said:


> Thank you for posting those pics. Nice collection you have there. Im assuming that these aren't fully grown?
> 
> What's the ideal size of tank for a pet like this?



Some are mature, some not.  Anyways, this type of cage would be perfect for any pokie you can get.  It's plenty big.


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## Striker

So does this particular species spend a lot of time in the open or mostly hidden? I was reading up on them and one source mentioned them being pretty shy when they are little, but juveniles and adults loose that and spend a lot more time in the open. I would definately want to see them out in the open that's for sure. 

*What do you folks think of these enclosures? They seem to have good height which is that these T's require? Thanks!

http://tarantulacages.com/arboreal.html


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## trivallica

Here is what i keep my P.Metallica in, i brought this the other week from

House of Spiders.

They make fantastic perplex tanks 

Here are some photos

Jason


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## robc

Striker said:


> Rob one more thing, what's the ideal size for a tank? The one that you are using in your tutorial above, what are the dimensions for that one? I'd like to know so see if it will fit in my shelfing unit I have in my bedroom.


That is a very weird tank actually, it is called a 12 gal??? I changed the tank to a 10 gal...I tend to have bigger tanks, bigger tanks are good as long as you build it correctly! I use 5.5 gals for juvie/large juvied (4"+-6"+) then go up to a 10 gal for 7" & up. I use 30-40 gals for only my largest pokies Ornata & rufilata, they do not need it, but that is just a personal preference! All Avics are in 5.5 gals!!


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## robc

trivallica said:


> Here is what i keep my P.Metallica in, i brought this the other week from
> 
> House of Spiders.
> 
> They make fantastic perplex tanks
> 
> Here are some photos
> 
> Jason


Very nice!!:clap::clap::clap: but if I may suggest one thing, you may need to increase the ventilation!!


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## robc

Striker said:


> So does this particular species spend a lot of time in the open or mostly hidden? I was reading up on them and one source mentioned them being pretty shy when they are little, but juveniles and adults loose that and spend a lot more time in the open. I would definately want to see them out in the open that's for sure.
> 
> *What do you folks think of these enclosures? They seem to have good height which is that these T's require? Thanks!
> 
> http://tarantulacages.com/arboreal.html


My P. metallica never hides!! I see her more than any other T I have LOL....but my sub-adult males hide at the slightest disturbance..or light!!


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## Striker

robc said:


> My P. metallica never hides!! I see her more than any other T I have LOL....but my sub-adult males hide at the slightest disturbance..or light!!


Interesting how their attitudes are very. I wonder if it has to do with the sex, or just the individual spider.

Anyways, I am still trying to find an ideal tank size for my future P.Metallica. I haven't bought a spider yet as some of you might have noticed, I might be a little overreacting but I do wanna have all of my research done first.

I took some measurements of my shelving unit and it goes as follows- 
13"Width x 15"Depths x 27" Height. This is all the room that I have to play with.


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