1st OBt...Holy <edit> Its FAST

[k2power]

I got my first OBT today at a local show and it seemed quick but nothing crazy during the day when putting it in the cage...But then night fell

And it showed its true colors. Fast as all get out and yes it got out but I chased it back in. Certainly makes you nervous dealing with it. AS for working up to one like this. I don't know if you ever can. You just have to experience it for yourself and then adapt.

I have it in a large pretzel jar that is probably fine for now but I need a different cage so that it wont go ballistic every time I have to change something....Is that possible? I have a Cameroon red that dug a hole and stays there during the day but comes out at night but this one is totally different. Any tips on the best cage size and setup for an adult one of these. I would love for it to burrow and get comfortable so that it doesn't race out everytime I am in there (will keep to a minimum for sure).

 

[jt39565]

I have 3 OBT's but by no means consider myself an expert. I would advise to just let it be for a while, feed it regularly and enjoy the web show.
I have mine in giant cheeseball containers I got from walmart, they will grow into the containers. Mine come out and explore every few hours day or night. I only have about 3" of substrate, natural bark and limbs for them to hide under and climb on. Truly amazing T's.

 

[Raven9464]

congrats!

Congrats on your first OBT ! And yes, they are fast, and nasty little guys =) I totally agree that nothing really can prepare you for one of these! Mine was really active and climbed all over the enclosure the first week I had him. And he was very unhappy when ever I "disturbed" him. After that, he settled down and made a burrow with heavy webbing and I never see him anymore except when he dashes out to grab a cricket. Yours should settle down after awhile. As long as he has deep enough substrate to burrow down into, or a hide to web himself into, he should be fine. I actually downsized my OBTs enclosure just a couple days ago because he didn't seem to need all the space I gave him.

 

[Irene B. Smithi]

Give him some time to adjust... yes they are fast, and any little mishaps and you'll have one running around your house in no time... Give it some nice substrate, a few hides (I used fake leaves) and a water dish, feed it twice a week... they'll settle down and hide when disturbed.... OR maybe not. I have one that premolt will run to the top of the KK and poke it's fangs through trying to bite me lol.... ah, the joy of OBTs... Gotta love them

 

[Spam010]

Mine acted the same way

 

[grayzone]

i <edit> love readin bout obts lol.. so many fun stories lol.... i got my 1st one comin tues. and CANT WAIT:drool: hope its everything everybody says they are lol is there an obt thread where people have lots of pics?

 

[J Morningstar]

Congrats on your first OBT ! And yes, they are fast, and nasty little guys =) I totally agree that nothing really can prepare you for one of these! Mine was really active and climbed all over the enclosure the first week I had him. And he was very unhappy when ever I "disturbed" him. After that, he settled down and made a burrow with heavy webbing and I never see him anymore except when he dashes out to grab a cricket. Yours should settle down after awhile. As long as he has deep enough substrate to burrow down into, or a hide to web himself into, he should be fine. I actually downsized my OBTs enclosure just a couple days ago because he didn't seem to need all the space I gave him.

What size is yours may I ask? Is it full grown? And if so how big an enclosure did you give it?

 

[Dominatus]

Grats and good luck ;-)

oooooo man you make me so impatient though... I want my little OBTS to grow up! I have 4 about around 1", maybe a bit bigger. They don't have any real attitude yet, one seems scared still of even the tiniest roaches. I do so love their webs, can't wait to get them bigger and in a kewler set up to watch them burrow and web when they are ready for such an enclosure.

 

[BrynWilliams]

i <edit> love readin bout obts lol.. so many fun stories lol.... i got my 1st one comin tues. and CANT WAIT:drool: hope its everything everybody says they are lol is there an obt thread where people have lots of pics?

Genus Pterinochilus
http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=21408

Enclosures:
http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=167130

 

[CFleming]

Congrats on the new pickup. I have 2 slings coming Fri or Sat. Cant wait. They are just so pretty and you gotta love them tudes.

So how was the Raleigh show? I was going to go but one of my friends is vending and called and told me not to waste my time. So I passed on this show and ordered a group of slings instead. lol

 

[k2power]

The pretzel jar is about one gallon and the spider is close to full size (4" diagonally). I thought about one of the Petco arboreal type cages for it. I need something tall to prevent escapes and more importantly bites when dealing with it.

 

[Raven9464]

To J Morningstar

What size is yours may I ask? Is it full grown? And if so how big an enclosure did you give it?

My OBT "Samara" is about 3 1/2 in., and her enclosure is a critter keeper measuring 10 in. long, 8 in. wide, and 6 in. high. She was in a 10 gallon tank, but only seemed to need about half of it.

 

[k2power]

It seems to have set up a small webbed area and is hunkering down in there for now. Not interested in food yet. funny...the new female rosehair I got for the male is eating like mad and the OBT is not. What is wrong here. I am sure it will be fine.

 

[jt39565]

"i <edit> love readin bout obts lol.. so many fun stories lol.... i got my 1st one comin tues. and CANT WAIT"





You only have 1 coming, be prepared to, at least, want many more!
I know I certainly do!

 

[Kathy]

And I still haven't found mine that escaped 2 weeks, 2 days ago. I haven't a good night's sleep since........watch them like a hawk. They are Houdini in disguise.

 

[catfishrod69]

i'd recommend a exxo terra 12x12x12 or 12x12x18....thats what ill be putting mine into before too long...right now i have 4 of them, and they are still in tall deli cups...id say they are 3 1/2"-4"....3 of them run, and the other one gets up on top his webbing and lays upside down striking at me...and thats just when i pick the deli cup up....its hard to get him to get back to the bottom to do some feeding...and man their webbing is like the thickest and strongest ever....when ever i toss in a cricket, they get stuck, and then i try and force them down into the web tubes with a paintbrush, and i end up puling webbing out...most the time i gotta just leave the cricket stuck there, and those little obt's like to explore alot, so within minutes they find it....

 

[k2power]

I am in the process of getting it to the new petsmart cage that is taller and has easier access. I tried the refrigerator method to slow it down to change it. Once in there I think it will be fine for a while with just water changes and occasional food removal.

 

[jt39565]

You put your T in the refridgerator? I do that with the crickets before I feed my T's, I would NEVER do that to a T, absolutely NEVER.

 

[k2power]

It is in its cage now and seems fine. Brief cooling (10-15 min) certainly slowed it down and made for a risk free cage transfer. Not something I have ever done and wouldn't do regularly but I read other sites suggesting this and it worked. I even read that an exotic vet uses this method to get a couple of minutes of time to work on feisty tarantulas. I had it in a cage that it was impossible to get the bark/branches out easily to transfer it without risking dropping them on the spider or getting bit. Now the cage has a large top opening and plenty of room to operate in. The hide is in one corner and the water dish , the other. It will be a minimal set up to allow quick and easy water/ other item removal without too much disturbance. I don't believe I caused it any harm as it was already climbing around the cage a few minutes after warming up some. My graduate advisor suggested a similar method for transporting herps (even tropicals) from Florida in a hot car to prevent overheating. If I had left it for hours there may have been a problem but I believe all is fine. They are known from high elevations and are extremely hardy from what I have read. We will see if there are any after effects.

 

[gromgrom]

i kept my adult females in large KK's, and the male was in a small KK when he molted to maturity. Hope to get some more later on. Never had these issues, they were mostly calm and stayed all webbed up in their corkbark. Then again, i didnt bother them too much. not exactly a specie i wanna see up close without clear plastic between us.