Active beginner tarantulas?

[viper69]

Do you know of any beginner tarantulas that are quite active? From what I've heard, most of the Brachypelma and Grammostola are pretty much pet rocks and they hide all the time.
I'm looking for a T that will be on display most of the time. Also, preferably not S. calceatum-level bolty

None- not T is "active", they are all pet rocks ALL of them compared to other animals.

 

[Smotzer]

I've been buying groups of each species, usually some where between 5 and 10 of each.

Man I wish I had the space and means to be buying that quantity of slings!

 

[noobscaper]

You'd probably be better off getting something from the Aviculariinae subfamily first (Avicularia, Caribena, Ybyrapora, Iridopelma, Pachistopelma, etc.).

Is it because they're arboreal Ts or just because the humidity requirements etc. are similar? We only have slings here in Central Europe (yes, even spidersworld.eu), and SADS seems inevitable. Are avic slings so difficult or is it just because of poor husbandry? Would there be any terrestrials that would give me the experience for psalmos or should I just get an avic sling (in the far far far future, obviously)?

 

[spideyspinneret78]

SADS isn't really a legitimate thing. It's because people were caring for them incorrectly. They need dry substrate, good ventilation, and a water dish, and people shouldn't repeatedly mist them like care sheets say. It's stuffy, humid conditions that kill them.

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Is it because they're arboreal Ts or just because the humidity requirements etc. are similar?

Because Aviculariinae are at the beginner end of the arboreal ladder, arboreals don't really behave like terrestrials at all so better to cut your teeth on one of those than an intermediate species from the Psalmopoeinae subfamily (which are faster, can be more defensive, and have somewhat more potent venom than other NW species). That said, if you wanted to jump into Psalmos then P. cambridgei are probably the easiest to deal with, relatively speaking.

We only have slings here in Central Europe (yes, even spidersworld.eu), and SADS seems inevitable.

SADS is a misnomer for improper husbandry, if you follow the care guides below (@spideyspinneret78 provided a brief summary above) then you shouldn't have any issues.

Avicularia care

this thread will go over what beginners and vets alike should be providing their Avicularia. i find it quite sad that so many Avics are subject to low vent cages and doomed to die. even experienced keepers can have difficulty with them. anyway, there are a few main concepts to keeping Avics that...

arachnoboards.com

Avicularia Husbandry?

Hi! I'm new to the forum and am unsure if this is the right place for this, but I was wondering if there's anything I should know in advance before purchasing an Avicularia genus? (specifically, I have my eye on some a. metallica slings) I've done some reading, but being that I've only ever had...

arachnoboards.com

Are avic slings so difficult or is it just because of poor husbandry?

They're pretty easy, I've raised a bunch and only lost two of them to bad moults.

 

[fried rice]

If you want something active, I recommend jumping spiders! They are very active! The only bad thing about them is just like mantids, they only live a year.

 

[spideyspinneret78]

One other cool thing about Avics is that there a great many species and color morphs to choose from (I'm no expert on Avics, but there are a lot of options out there if you want something a little different than A. avicularia). Psalmopeous are very,very fast and if cornered, can resort to biting as a defense. Maybe as a third tarantula, they'd make a good pick. Although avics are some of the more "basic" beginner arboreals, they certainly have their own interesting aspects. If given enough foliage and anchor points for webbing, they spin impressive tube-sock webs. From what I've seen, they also tend to be highly visible and active.

 

[Colorado Ts]

Man I wish I had the space and means to be buying that quantity of slings!

I have two rooms that I can use for this little hobby...one for males and a larger room for the females. I can temperature control each room. I should be able to maintain 45 species at 3 females per species...and still have a bit of room if I want to double or triple up on some select species.

And I must admit...my wonderful wife is very good at budgeting. When this first hit me, I talked to her about what I want to do, and calculated about how much it will probably cost me to do it...

...and she says, “Give me three months, and you & the grand kids can play with your spiders”

I married up, I really did.