# Caribena versicolor: How to create an enclosure for slings.



## Ratmosphere (Jun 25, 2017)

Before I start, I need to say that this is the method that works best for me when keeping half inch slings. I see so many new people on this thread ask "How do I set up an enclosure for a _Caribena versicolor _sling?" Hopefully this will help.

What you will need: A drill, a 1/16" drill bit, clear AMAC box, small wire nail, fake plant, piece of cork bark, substrate, and a deep bottle cap. You could get the AMAC boxes at www.containerstore.com

When you get your AMAC box, it will need air holes. Make sure that the longer side is facing up when assembled. Then, put small air holes all around the enclosure with your drill. Cross ventilation is very important for this species. I do 12 holes on each side, some people say it's overkill but I haven't had one sling death yet.




After it starts to look like the picture above, you need to drill a small hole on the top. The reason for this will be explained later.




At this point you will need to get your cork bark piece and drill a small hole on the top of it. 




This is where the wire nail, fake plant, and cork bark come into play. The hole that you drilled on top of the enclosure will be filled with the wire nail. Add the wire nail more than half way, then drop a fake plant in there. You do not need to secure the plant. 




Now, match the hole in the cork bark to the wire nail. Press the bark in all of the way and apply pressure to the top of the wire nail. This will secure the plant to the top of the enclosure while setting the cork bark into position. Once the sling webs the enclosure, the plant will be even more secure. 




Grab the bottom of the enclosure and add enough substrate so it's not touching the cork bark. When you add the full, deep water bottle cap, make sure it does not touch the cork bark.




This is the finished product. It looks amazing but one may ask: "Ratmosphere, what if my sling webs so much that it cannot be seen? What if it gets too dirty in there?" We will get to that in a moment.

Slings web up the enclosure over a period of months and you may not be able to see them. 




To fix this is simple. Safely transport the sling into a temporary container. Then, open the enclosure and pull the cork bark from the wire nail. Once that is done, you could peel the webbing off, change the substrate, and even wash the plant or the whole enclosure. 




Once that is done, you could easily assemble everything together again. I hope this helped and I wish you all the best of luck!

Reactions: Like 9 | Informative 2 | Helpful 5 | Award 3


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## OctoPhid (Jun 25, 2017)

Excellent thread, but I just want to confirm something real quick. Which size of Amac box do you use, the 2" by 4" model, or the 3" by 6" model? Thanks!


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## Mojo288 (Jun 25, 2017)

Great idea with the wire nail, i used hot glue on mine and i was thinking its gonna be such a pain for cleanup or re-purposing. One piece of advice i might add is, personally iv tried using a dremel tool and a regular drill on acrylic boxes, the dremel was not fun, tried to kill me, and the drill cracked the plastic. I've been using a cheap soldering iron off of amazon and it works great, pokes through it like butter. Just do it outside... fumes.

Reactions: Agree 1


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## BobBarley (Jun 25, 2017)

Beauties.  I wish I had the funds for a few of those lol.  Good job!


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## cold blood (Jun 25, 2017)

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__ cold blood
__ Mar 1, 2017



						Johnny 2 legs finally got an actual enclosure to enjoy...the recovery process and growth of this...
					




16oz deli cup...cheaper, easier to ventilate and as the top isnt rigid, you can only open a small area you need....tops are soooooooooooo much easier for me to deal with than the amex boxes.

Reactions: Like 1 | Agree 1 | Helpful 1


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## OctoPhid (Jun 25, 2017)

cold blood said:


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At what size will I need to rehouse my sings if they are living in a 16 oz deli cup?



cold blood said:


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Also, would these cups work fine for 1 in slings? Thanks.


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## cold blood (Jun 25, 2017)

by an inch and a half or so i move them to 32oz deli cups, where they remain till 3"













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__ cold blood
__ Jan 13, 2017
__ 1



						versi
					










OctoPhid said:


> Also, would these cups work fine for 1 in slings? Thanks.


yep

Reactions: Like 2 | Helpful 1


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## Ratmosphere (Jun 25, 2017)

To each his own. Personally, I never liked the 16 oz containers and that's why I moved to the AMAC boxes. Plus these look way better to showcase in my opinion. Also, they don't take up much space at all and there is no chance they could escape.

Reactions: Agree 3


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## cold blood (Jun 25, 2017)

Ratmosphere said:


> To each his own. Personally, I never liked the 16 oz containers and that's why I moved to the AMAC boxes. Plus these look way better to showcase in my opinion. Also, they don't take up much space at all and there is no chance they could escape.


yep, both are fine...just personal preference...while amex do look nicer...they dont offer any better visibility, nor do they take up more or less space...and without operator error, neither enclosure poses an escape risk.   Ive never had a t escape a deli cup and ive had a lot of chances.


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## ultraspider (Aug 23, 2017)

I might use something like this eventually https://www.walmart.com/ip/Better-Homes-and-Gardens-Square-Flip-Tite-Storage-Container/16332465, they come in a few different sizes for slings/juveniles..

I like how the top seems to come off and on smoothly once you flip the pressure lock on top, deli comes are a pain to take top off sometimes, its probably like an earth quake to them when you try to push the lid back on sometimes, the 4 Ts i have right now are all set I just have to keep my eye out on a decent adult residence for them...i have time to find something none of them are big enough yet


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## cold blood (Aug 23, 2017)

ultraspider said:


> I might use something like this eventually https://www.walmart.com/ip/Better-Homes-and-Gardens-Square-Flip-Tite-Storage-Container/16332465, they come in a few different sizes for slings/juveniles..
> 
> I like how the top seems to come off and on smoothly once you flip the pressure lock on top


They look good...but with ventilation drilled, would those lids still seal?  I bet not.



ultraspider said:


> deli comes are a pain to take top off sometimes


It get easier the more you do it...but sometimes you can get a stubborn one...when this happens, run a finger around the outside till you find a spot that gives...I don't really have a problem being overly disruptive.....although I'm sure that was once the case.


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## ccTroi (Aug 23, 2017)

I love this design! Great use of the nail, too. I've used glue gun to secure the cork bark, but I'm definitely going to try the nail-hole method. Thanks for sharing! 

Here is my current design that I will be updating  :




	

		
			
		

		
	
*
*Excuse the stacked clutter in the background 
*Big thanks to @Trenor for sharing his enclosure design!

Reactions: Like 2 | Lollipop 1


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## Ratmosphere (Nov 25, 2017)

OctoPhid said:


> Excellent thread, but I just want to confirm something real quick. Which size of Amac box do you use, the 2" by 4" model, or the 3" by 6" model? Thanks!


The 2" x 4" model.


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## Spidersfrommars (Apr 28, 2018)

Great post, I've made one too. My little guy is on its log right now, but I was wondering 2 things..

1. Its not likely for it to fall off and land in the water dish and drown right? 

2. How do I go about feeding it this way? Put my cut up mealworm on the bottom substrate and hope that it goes down and hunt for it?

Sure was a little hard getting this guy into the new enclosure though lol, I had put the enclosure inside another container just in case and it ended up running around all over, but eventually I guided it in, it was nice to get a good look at it. But it was fast!


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## ccTroi (Apr 28, 2018)

Spidersfrommars said:


> 1. Its not likely for it to fall off and land in the water dish and drown right?


Correct, it is not likely to fall off and land in the water to drown. Being on the cork bark gives a better grip than the walls of the AMAC. The fall isn’t much of a height so I wouldn’t worry if it does. Tarantulas (even slings) are covered with hair-like structures called setae all over their body. This increases their surface area over water and makes it highly unlikely to break the water tension thus drowning. 


Spidersfrommars said:


> 2. How do I go about feeding it this way? Put my cut up mealworm on the bottom substrate and hope that it goes down and hunt for it?


If you have a sling under 1/2”, I would leave the sliced mealworm on the webbing. When it gets bigger, they are more willing to hunt. I only provide live prey under supervision; if not, pre-killed prey. Throw a live cricket, for example, on the webbing and enjoy as it senses the vibrations and hunts.


Spidersfrommars said:


> I had put the enclosure inside another container just in case and it ended up running around all over


I find that Avicularia spp. along with other very similar species tend to move slow and generally predictable. However, they can bolt without notice. They make small bursts of movement and then shortly continue to crawl slow.


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## Spidersfrommars (Apr 28, 2018)

cc Troi, thanks for your responses. Good info, I learned something new about their body hair and the surface tension, pretty cool. 

Guess I need to wait for it to web some, it recently molted so it needs to wait for food anyhow. Hey another question which may seem silly. I don't think I made the holes too big for it to escape, they are much smaller then its body, but spiders cant do what mice can when it comes to collapsing its body through a hole right?



	

		
			
		

		
	
 yeah it ran around and then slowed down a bit, so I see what you mean. Sure was cute though! even though I was a little bit freaked out it would escape.

Reactions: Like 1


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## ccTroi (Apr 28, 2018)

Spidersfrommars said:


> Guess I need to wait for it to web some, it recently molted so it needs to wait for food anyhow.


Ensure a full water dish at the bottom for it to drink. When thirsty, they will go down and grab a drink as has been observed with all tarantulas I’ve housed in AMACs. Five days after molting would be a good time to feed it. If no webbing has been made since, leave the mealworm slice on the substrate to see if it would pick it up. Remove the next day to avoid mold.


Spidersfrommars said:


> I don't think I made the holes too big for it to escape, they are much smaller then its body, but spiders cant do what mice can when it comes to collapsing its body through a hole right?


As long as the holes are no bigger than the size of its carapace. The holes on my AMACs are drilled with 1/16” drill bits. If you have doubts of the ventilation holes, I suggest you keep your sling in a 2oz portion cup or a vial until it molts one or two more times - use a thumbtack to puncture holes.


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## Spidersfrommars (Apr 28, 2018)

I'll try to feed it half of a meal worm tomorrow, its fangs should be hardened up by then, I think the holes should be fine.


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## konythug (Jun 3, 2020)

This was an extremely helpful thread and I just built a replica for my versi sling for under $12. How often did you mist the sides of this enclosure? I am not doing a water dish until my sling is older.


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## moricollins (Jun 3, 2020)

konythug said:


> This was an extremely helpful thread and I just built a replica for my versi sling for under $12. How often did you mist the sides of this enclosure? I am not doing a water dish until my sling is older.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Never.
Water dish for all sizes of slings and adults

Reactions: Like 2


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## viper69 (Jun 3, 2020)

konythug said:


> This was an extremely helpful thread and I just built a replica for my versi sling for under $12. How often did you mist the sides of this enclosure? I am not doing a water dish until my sling is older.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Why are you waiting for a dish???? You have the space.

Also a bowl is useful because you don’t know when they need water other than abdomen size.

They won’t always drink from a bowl or do so sporadically- still can’t predict when they will drink.

@Tentacle Toast thread for you

Reactions: Like 1 | Helpful 1


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## Vanisher (Jun 3, 2020)

moricollins said:


> Never.
> Water dish for all sizes of slings and adults


Personally i think waterbowls are extreamly unpractical for slings. I prefer misting


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## Tentacle Toast (Jun 3, 2020)

viper69 said:


> Why are you waiting for a dish???? You have the space.
> 
> Also a bowl is useful because you don’t know when they need water other than abdomen size.
> 
> ...


Thank you... immensely!


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## viper69 (Jun 3, 2020)

Tentacle Toast said:


> Thank you... immensely!


Sure thing- Search* inside* AB via Google provides more answers than you would expect

Reactions: Agree 1 | Helpful 1


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## zeeman (Aug 20, 2020)

What are people using to place food on the web of the arboreals in enclosures that open at the bottom - such as AMAC's?

I have a pair of tweezers but man it is really hard to get a dead prey item up into an enclosure in the corner. I get when the T has sufficiently webbed things it'll be easier, but while they are still settling in the webs are far smaller.

I have read mixed reviews on Caribena and Avicularia slings hunting down. I did not see my previous sling ever take the pre-kill at that i placed on the ground or part way up on the moss piece  I had.


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## Ratmosphere (Aug 21, 2020)

Just put a cricket on the ground the spider will grab it and usually drop the bolus when its done.

Reactions: Winner 1


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## Python Patrol Exotics (Aug 23, 2020)

ultraspider said:


> I might use something like this eventually https://www.walmart.com/ip/Better-Homes-and-Gardens-Square-Flip-Tite-Storage-Container/16332465, they come in a few different sizes for slings/juveniles..


These will not 'seal' once ventilation holes are made. So it will be like just setting the lid on top


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## skullnbones (Nov 24, 2022)

First successful rehouse. Just held the top over the old vial and got my sling to walk right up and in. Great info on the enclosure setup.


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## curtisgiganteus (Nov 24, 2022)

This is a great thread and relevant to most avic species as well.

I want to point out one thing that could pose an issue that OP said.

Removing a slings web because you can’t see it is unnecessary. Ts will build their bend in a way that optimizes what they instinctually need as far as environmental factors go, so long as your husbandry is on point. This places unnecessary stress on the spider and may even lead to a death. Heavier webbing happens when a spider is heading towards a molt as well. Not a good thing to do ever. To much of a risk for an outcome that has nothing to dowith the health of the animal.


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