A question regarding my tarantula

[RoseHairDivina]

As you can obviously see, I am a bit new to this forum. I have always loved spiders, and I got my first tarantula in the middle of June this year. She is a beautiful Chilean Rose Hair, and her name is Nemesis Divina. I love her very dearly, which is why I have been worried about her behavior and have been seeking out advice. I hope this group can help.
I bought Nemesis Divina when she was about the size of my palm. She was just the sweetest little thing, so friendly. She used to crawl on my hand, and I would let her ride on my shoulder all over the house. Her domain was the couch.
In the beginning of August, she molted her exoskeleton for the first time since I got her. She looks absolutely stunning, with her rosy copper posterior shining in her heat light. She has dramatically increased in size...and has become terribly aggressive. I cannot even put my hand inside the cage to change out her water dish without her running my hand down and trying to bite! It makes me so sad to see my little tarantula so mad at me all the time. It is not like I don't feed her enough, either. She eats like a hog.
I was hoping to have some answers as to why she suddenly turned rotten on me...please help!

 

[Immortal_sin]

are you certain she's being aggressive, or just hungry?
If you are new to keeping Ts, you might not be able to tell the difference.
If she's eating like a hog (which is normal, postmolt) then she probably thinks your hand might be a food item. I have many Ts that have a feeding response like this, and have actually been 'tagged' by a pair of front legs thinking I'm a meal! They are so quick, they figured it out and pulled back before I could even react.
If you still want to handle her, try coaxing her out on her own, with a soft paintbrush to her abdomen. If she turns around to attack it, then she's either startled, or possibly still hungry

 

[belewfripp]

Maybe she's irritated by the heat light, as well. If the temp isn't dropping below approx 68 degrees or so, I wouldn't even begin to worry about adding external heat sources.

Adrian

 

[Immortal_sin]

oops, I missed the phrase 'heat light' I'd get that out of there too.... I'm sure she doesn't need that either

 

[mebebraz]

might be possable of maturity too, and you hand isnt giving the right response to the opposite sex...

 

[Longbord1]

yeah my rosie is in pre molt and im not sure why but she is getting very mean and agressive is this norma/ sry bout hijacking the thread
MIKE

 

[JBoyer]

Not all rosies are gentle. There are plenty of psychos!
Jennifer

 

[xBurntBytheSunx]

rose hairs seem to have a nasty reputation for being a "docile and calm" species

 

[MrT]

Originally posted by Immortal_sin
oops, I missed the phrase 'heat light' I'd get that out of there too.... I'm sure she doesn't need that either

SKIMMER !!! ;P ;P


E

 

[RoseHairDivina]

Nemesis Divina response

Thank you all for your insightful responses! I shall take your words into careful consideration. However, in regards to Divina's heat light, it is not directly on the cage. In fact, her terrarium is on top of my gecko's, and they "share" a light. The light shines down on the gecko, but is only adjacent to Divina's enclosure. The cage never really gets too warm, and in fact, she loves to sit next to the nice warm lamp, especially since the nights get very cool up here this time of year.
I worry about her getting too cold...especially since all the care sheets say to keep her relatively warm. Her cage is not hot, and she has plenty of room to run away from the lamp to the other side of her cage where her little house is. But, if the heat is making her aggressive...man, I didn't even know it could do that! I guess really am a newbie at this. I hope I am taking care of her right...

 

[RoseHairDivina]

Another concern for Divina

I am not too sure if my response post was displayed a few minutes ago, due to the rather ancient and unpredictable nature of my computer and its untrustworthy internet server, AOL.
But, I thank all of you for your insightful responses to my concerns about Nemesis Divina! I shall take your words into careful consideration.
Some of you seemed concerned about the presence of her heat light. Well...you see, her case is sort of special. Her terrarium is on top of my gecko's enormous tank, and the gecko, Cameron, and Divina sort of "share" the lamp. The light is not directly shining on her, but the cage is merely adjacent to the lamp. The heat radiating off the lamp warms up the side of Divina's cage a bit, but not enough to really change the temperature of her enclosure. She really likes her little warm spot, and I hate to take it from her...but could that little warmth be making her aggressive, like one of you said? I can't imagine that, but then again, I am really just a newbie at this whole thing...I hope I am not taking bad care of her...
I think she may need the light now, since it gets really cold at nights up in Washington this time of year, and I don't want her to be uncomfortable, especially since I have read many care guidelines that say to keep her warm...what should I do?

 

[roylemom]

cold at nights up in Washington

I know what ya mean, I'm also in Washington.

 

[noboyscout]

Your T may love the heat but they can live with out the light. I saw a killer female Citharischius crawshayi huddle up an die in a corner of a display tank in a local pet store. Intense light will stress your "T".:8o

 

[Immortal_sin]

I wouldn't think the light would be making her aggressive, but stranger things have happened. If you are worried about heating issues (I'm in Northern Oregon), then you could buy a UTH (under tank heater) and put it on the SIDE of the tank. They don't use much electricity, and for one or two tanks, it's rather cost effective.
Of course, without seeing the current setup, I can't really give a better opinion.
As far as the aggression, I *think* I addressed that in the other thread, but now I can't remember!