# Micah, the vegatarian G. rosea



## dukegarda (Jun 19, 2007)

Sorry about the stretching. Yes, indeed that is a _P. sativum_. ;P


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## 8ball (Jun 19, 2007)

thats 1 weird T lol


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## Shayna (Jun 19, 2007)

It's cool in my books.   
I might try this with some of my organic peas, did you cook it first?


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## Ando55 (Jun 19, 2007)

That's a first I see this T wanted more of and organic, higher in antioxidants diet.   Great stuff! :clap:


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## JungleGuts (Jun 19, 2007)

the question: did it eat the thing?


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## dukegarda (Jun 19, 2007)

Nope, it's raw. I did it with "Green Giant" frozen peas & carrots, picked out a few peas, thawed them out, and she accepted it readily. I wouldn't make it a regular thing though. How often is a T going to encounter a pea in the wild? 

I wouldn't use canned peas, just because of all the preservatives they add in.

JungleGuts see for yourself;


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## AubZ (Jun 20, 2007)

Oh my.  That pee is all shriveled up.  Definately the wierdest thing i've ever seen.


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## Cirith Ungol (Jun 20, 2007)

OH NAW!!! The poor pea!!


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## Alice (Jun 20, 2007)

lol, that's really funny. i don't imagine the rosie can do much with the nutrients in a pea, but it sure looks like she enjoys it


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## Cirith Ungol (Jun 20, 2007)

Alice said:


> lol, that's really funny. i don't imagine the rosie can do much with the nutrients in a pea, but it sure looks like she enjoys it


I'm sure it can suck all the water out of it, and that's not such a bad thing really


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## P. Novak (Jun 20, 2007)

haha wow that is very interesting!:clap: How did it take it?


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## Vys (Jun 20, 2007)

dukegarda said:


> Nope, it's raw. I did it with "Green Giant" frozen peas & carrots, picked out a few peas, thawed them out, and she accepted it readily. I wouldn't make it a regular thing though. How often is a T going to encounter a pea in the wild?


Haha, I've had a few of mine eat thawed block of cod, but this...I'd suspect it's because the intelligence level of the tarantula approaches that of the pea =)


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## Cirith Ungol (Jun 20, 2007)

Come to think of it, one thing I'm not sure of is if it's a waste of good digestive juices for the T. There is no problem if the juices can just as much digest the vegetable as they digest an insect, but I doubt(! - not know for a fact) that they are designed to deal with plant matter. (That besides the obvious difference in contents of a pea and an insect.)

Thinking even further, if looking at a few other animals and recalling what I've heard in documentaries, digesting plant matter is quite a tough thing. That's why many of the plant eaters and grazers have such enormous and bulky bellies. The "aparatus" needs room and they have to eat quite a lot to sustain themselves  (But yes, ofcourse I'm comparing to mammals, which have a much higher metabolism and thus need a lot more anyway.)

Only looking at the above I'd agree, best not to try this too often.


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## Becky (Jun 20, 2007)

Cirith Ungol said:


> Come to think of it, one thing I'm not sure of is if it's a waste of good digestive juices for the T. There is no problem if the juices can just as much digest the vegetable as they digest an insect, but I doubt(! - not know for a fact) that they are designed to deal with plant matter. (That besides the obvious difference in contents of a pea and an insect.)
> .


They obviously are designed for it coz that T dissolved it! lol If it can dissolve a cricket or cockroaches insides, it can kill a pea


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## Moltar (Jun 20, 2007)

That's cool! It may be the cutest thing i've ever seen a tarantula do. I'm trying it with my little 'Gammy'


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## bushbuster (Jun 20, 2007)

Did she go into stealth mode and stalk the Pea? lol


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## dtknow (Jun 20, 2007)

I think she just mashed it up to obtain moisture, no?


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## Merfolk (Jun 20, 2007)

They are some of the nutrients T's need in peas but I think it's not sufficient.

As for the difficulty digesting it, remember that it's the solid fibers and vegetal matters that need all those stomach in obligate herbivores; whatever the T doen't liquify turns into a bolus. So what gets in is water and some elements that would anyway end in the prey's digestive track and would most likely be absorbed by the T.

 Also, a lot of animal sometimes cross over... like a dog eating some vegetables or cannibalism in rodents. So small amounts of very watery vegetals should't harm...

...I had way more to worry about with the plastic fishing jig that my friend  dangled in front of my LP


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## esotericman (Jun 20, 2007)

I've heard of various species feeding on fruits before.  I'd have to hunt down the references.  The sugars and water and in this case some of the soluble proteins would be available, the cellulose would not be (ruminants use bacteria).

Nice picture and I doubt there is any risk to the animal if it chooses to eat peas.

Christian


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## Cirith Ungol (Jun 20, 2007)

Becky said:


> They obviously are designed for it coz that T dissolved it! lol If it can dissolve a cricket or cockroaches insides, it can kill a pea


Desolved or chewed it to a pulp? There is a big difference.


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## lunixweb (Jun 20, 2007)

:clap: incredible --> I had to see it to believe it   stunning and excellent picture...


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## JMoran1097 (Jun 20, 2007)

i've wondered if there ever would be a vegan tarantula.


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## dukegarda (Jun 20, 2007)

Novak said:


> haha wow that is very interesting!:clap: How did it take it?


Well, I put the Pea into the enclosure right outside her burrow using the chopsticks I always use. I think she's WC, but no one really knows (crazy pet stores), because she is more defensive. You know those nice, closeups? Well the Nikon I use is awfully noisy when it focuses making clicks. She snaps at the lens where the clicks are coming from. I'm not kidding, very defensive _G. rosea_. She investigated, felt it with her palps, turned it around a few times and fanged the juicy, unfortunate pea.



Vys said:


> Haha, I've had a few of mine eat thawed block of cod, but this...I'd suspect it's because the intelligence level of the tarantula approaches that of the pea =)


Your Ts have good taste if they accept Cod, I love Cod. Battered in some bread crumbs then fried, a little butter garlic sauce, mashed potatoes on the side, gently boiled isparagas to top it all off. :drool: 

And just as an update, she in fact, did not consume the whole pea. Somesone said that perhaps she was just getting the water out of it, I have to agree with that. Although she did quite the number masticating it.


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## DrAce (Jun 20, 2007)

Cirith Ungol said:


> Come to think of it, one thing I'm not sure of is if it's a waste of good digestive juices for the T. There is no problem if the juices can just as much digest the vegetable as they digest an insect, but I doubt(! - not know for a fact) that they are designed to deal with plant matter. (That besides the obvious difference in contents of a pea and an insect.)
> 
> Thinking even further, if looking at a few other animals and recalling what I've heard in documentaries, digesting plant matter is quite a tough thing. That's why many of the plant eaters and grazers have such enormous and bulky bellies. The "aparatus" needs room and they have to eat quite a lot to sustain themselves  (But yes, ofcourse I'm comparing to mammals, which have a much higher metabolism and thus need a lot more anyway.)
> 
> Only looking at the above I'd agree, best not to try this too often.





Becky said:


> They obviously are designed for it coz that T dissolved it! lol If it can dissolve a cricket or cockroaches insides, it can kill a pea


From the "random crap I have stashed in my head" files:
There is only one animal which can independantly digest cellulose - ie get into plant cell walls - and it's the garden snail.

Don't ask me where that gem of data comes from... and don't ask me to back it up... I really can't.  It's just one of the things I have stacked away for when I'm on a game show.


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## Mushroom Spore (Jun 20, 2007)

dukegarda said:


> Somesone said that perhaps she was just getting the water out of it, I have to agree with that.


Which I guess actually makes a lot of sense, since the place they come from is so dry. Maybe they DO chew on plants for the moisture, eh? Or at least anything as "meaty" as a pea, since they don't seem to show much interest in the usual leafy things that get put in tarantula tanks.


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## Shayna (Jun 20, 2007)

JMoran1097 said:


> i've wondered if there ever would be a vegan tarantula.


lol. Maybe if all you supplied it with was plant food, I doubt it could live long as a normal T on that though.
It's a bad idea.


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## emmille (Jun 21, 2007)

*hmmm...*

it might be a cricket-flavored pea...


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## Cirith Ungol (Jun 21, 2007)

Mushroom Spore said:


> Which I guess actually makes a lot of sense, since the place they come from is so dry. Maybe they DO chew on plants for the moisture, eh? Or at least anything as "meaty" as a pea, since they don't seem to show much interest in the usual leafy things that get put in tarantula tanks.


We're talking about a pea here, not some plant  

What peas and insects have in common (very very generally), 
- they move irraticly if dropped onto an uneven surface
- they have a shell and soft insides
- they kinda pop when the shell is broken
- they contain "water"
- they contain some vegetable matter
- they are about equal size

In that I don't see it as unlikely to repeatedly fool a T with a P. But if they'd also chew on plats on a regular basis I'd be dead scared leaving plastic plants in the tanks because who knows how they decide what's a plant to chew on and what's not... so no. Just because we see a P-T doesn't nessessarily mean they eat part greenery. Not to me


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## pink'n'curly (Jun 21, 2007)

AWSOME PICS! the colour contrast of the pea compared to the soil and your spider makes it look like spidie kryptonite!


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## lfc1211 (Oct 13, 2007)

wow it is a cool stuff, I have give my A.genic a cherry tomato before first it grab it then within few second it just leave it alone.


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## problemchildx (Oct 13, 2007)

Personally, I would never feed any flora to a carnivorous T. My main concern I keep thinking about is what if while trying to chew up the veggie, the pump stomach got a bit of pulp or organic impurity sucked into it's belly? My guuess would be as little as frequent bowel movements, up to DS syndrome. I am completely speculating though, because the point that T's find prey more rarely in the wild, makes me believe they would sense the moisture in a plant, so when its bone dry, hot, and starving, I think almost any organism would do this without hesitation. The difference here being, you have the ability to feed it the prey it needs. Also, Is there really vegetable matter in insects? Hmm :? 

One more thing, if you provide some healthy veggies and fruits for your crickets to feed on, all those nutrients will be transferred to your T, which I deem a lot safer.

Also, the way I like cod is dipped in a batter of beer/tempura batter mix, (optional, bread with panko), season to your liking, and drop it in the deep fryer  Great with cole slaw, fries, or prawns!


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## silieputty (Oct 13, 2007)

Great photos, and I find the whole idea kind of funny!  That green is a wonderful colour in contrast to your T.


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## Stan Schultz (Oct 13, 2007)

Merfolk said:


> ... Also, a lot of animal sometimes cross over... like a dog eating some vegetables or cannibalism in rodents. So small amounts of very watery vegetals should't harm...


There's nothing wrong with what you say, I just needed to make 1 or 2 additional comments:

1. Dogs, including the wild dogs (e.g., wolves, coyotes) naturally eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. That's how we can get away with including all the corn meal and other vegetable fillers in dry dog food.

2. Cats, on the other hand, are almost obligate carnivores. A cat that eats plant matter (for sustenance, not just for its emetic properties) is either starving or crazy.

3. Most rodents are also omnivores, eating meat as well as plant matter. Because of their high metabolisms, they simply can't afford to pass up the concentrated nutrients in meat if it presents itself. In fact, in many places, rodents may be one of wild tarantulas most dangerous predators.

Enjoy your vegetarian tarantula!


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## problemchildx (Oct 13, 2007)

Yeah I don't care for dogs because of that..

They actively want, need, and beg for every single piece of food that they smell or see. I just want to kick some dogs in the face that whine and hop up on my lap while I am eating.


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