Advice on enclosures for Texas Tan and Brazilian Black

[anxiousspider]

Hello again! I wanted to ask what you guys think about my g. pulchra (Brazilian black) and a. hentzi’s (Texas Tan) enclosures/what to add or remove, and overall any advice



My Texas Tan is much smaller than my Brazilian Black, (less than an inch) so I switched out their enclosures for my Texas Tan to have a little bit more room compared to their old enclosure (image with a rectangular type setup)



I need to get more spaghnum moss which is another thing I like to add to their enclosures for hiding and regulating the humidity. I keep the the enclosures in room temp as best I can and use a temp monitor in my room since I don’t have room to put anything like that directly into their enclosures.



If I’m being honest, I was hoping to get something semi-bioactive going for them, but after reading posts, I decided not to do so and to keep it plain until they’ve at least reached maturity(?)



Thank you again! And let me know if anything needs more context or explaining ^^’ I’m not the best with words.

 

[viper69]

I need to get more spaghnum moss which is another thing I like to add to their enclosures for hiding and regulating the humidit

No need to worry about humidity, also moss makes it too easy for crix to hide, and tha's no good.
Cant say if the boxes are too big or not. There's no T.

something semi-bioactive

That's never needed.

 

[anxiousspider]

No need to worry about humidity, also moss makes it too easy for crix to hide, and tha's no good.
Cant say if the boxes are too big or not. There's no T.

Good to know! And I shall get measurements of the containers tomorrow morning thank you for the kind reply! Have a good night

 

[viper69]

Helps if you type outside the quote box

Anytime you have questions, let us know!

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Did the t dig away ?

Hello again! I wanted to ask what you guys think about my g. pulchra (Brazilian black) and a. hentzi’s (Texas Tan) enclosures/what to add or remove, and overall any advice



My Texas Tan is much smaller than my Brazilian Black, (less than an inch) so I switched out their enclosures for my Texas Tan to have a little bit more room compared to their old enclosure (image with a rectangular type setup)



I need to get more spaghnum moss which is another thing I like to add to their enclosures for hiding and regulating the humidity. I keep the the enclosures in room temp as best I can and use a temp monitor in my room since I don’t have room to put anything like that directly into their enclosures.



If I’m being honest, I was hoping to get something semi-bioactive going for them, but after reading posts, I decided not to do so and to keep it plain until they’ve at least reached maturity(?)



Thank you again! And let me know if anything needs more context or explaining ^^’ I’m not the best with words. View attachment 494927 View attachment 494928

 

[fcat]

I didn't see your first post (best to just add to it rather than make anew if they are about the same specimen /situation), so I'm curious on the size of the A hentzi...regardless, the cork bark to tank ratio is a bit much?

This is a fossorial tarantula, maybe it would help to look at the components of other fossorial setups (mostly just dirt but lots of it, that's their home and security and moisture barrier). A small sling may be easy to lose for a beginner, but hides are almost optional for dirt lovers. Maybe as a hint to get started somewhere...

Look up an old post by @AphonopelmaTX where they made the "Aphonopelma Tank." This was based on years of observation in the wild AND keeping. It's simple and it works... You hear/read about pet rocks and pet holes...a pet hole is a happy tarantula. A pet rock is not...it usually means it's requirements are not met. Someday you may get to a point where you are giddy at wild behaviors...I personally do anything I can to encourage them...I find it makes for a predictable tarantula. And when they surface....well they definitely want something!!! Feet poking out of the burrow is the most reliable indicator of a hungry T.

The Aphonopelma tank doesn't have to be exact (if you don't have the foam blocks for example, you can use a small piece of cork bark) and you can adjust the depth of the substrate to fit your comfort/experience level, as long as there is enough substrate. Ideally enough to keep the lower levels moist and the upper levels dry. This will help you to consider if they are seeking moisture when they start digging deeper. They can and do drink from moist soil.

For smaller specimens like slings, this is achieved by dampening part of the soil and can be achieved in a deli cup. You don't have to make a mini aphonopelma tank. Once you start getting a feel for how seldom they eat and drink you'll get more comfortable with deeper substrate. You can start putting them into larger enclosures that they can grow into versus multiple rehouses. This will give them more time to establish their burrows. You can Google "Aphonopelma burrow cast" and see some really cool pictures...they seem to make separate chambers for different functions...eating vs resting/molting, heck one of my wild caught specimens has a pooping chamber! I wish it were easier to give them even more substrate...but then you have to worry about collapse when they inevitably dig out a basement...why you want everything in your enclosure to be as lightweight as possible.

Sorry for the wall, I just really love Aphonopelma