Aphonopelma care?

[Moltar]

do you remember phil jones? he was the one whose whole entire post consisted of smileys...

kinda like this:
:clap: :? :}

(just reminiscent with 6 smilies, that's all )

Nope. I'm not Phil Jones, lol. I just had had to put the smilies in there to fulfill the minimum character requirement...

 

[Widowman10]

Nope. I'm not Phil Jones, lol. I just had had to put the smilies in there to fulfill the minimum character requirement...

oh, i get it

 

[Pulk]

Why on Earth do you have a 3" T. in a 10 gallon tank?
Waaaaay to big for this kid, at this point.
T's feel more secure in a smaller "territory".
Has it been in the 10gal all this time? :?

If Ts can burrow/web/hide, they make their own retreat in a PART of the tank. There's nothing wrong with a cage larger than just the spider's burrow. Such as the entire Amazon rainforest.

 

[Drachenjager]

If Ts can burrow/web/hide, they make their own retreat in a PART of the tank. There's nothing wrong with a cage larger than just the spider's burrow. Such as the entire Amazon rainforest.

except that you can get 6 3inch Ts, housed in smaller containers in the space of one housed in the 10 gallon lol

 

[kingfarvito]

Why on Earth do you have a 3" T. in a 10 gallon tank?
Waaaaay to big for this kid, at this point.
T's feel more secure in a smaller "territory".
Has it been in the 10gal all this time? :?

why do people always whine about tanks being to big? i hate to let you all know but ummm they dont live in various appropriately sized containers in the wild and as for the comment about the smaller territory how do they achieve this in that wild? Because from what I've seen they make burrows on the ground in the desert

 

[Moltar]

Usually a big tank is set up with too little substrate which creates a hazard of a potentially fatal fall. Also it makes it much harder for the T to find its prey. For me this goes along with my frustration at the tendency of newer leepers to try to over-complicate t-keeping. I haven't seen ttula's setup so i don't know if it's ok or not. A large enlosure certainly presents more chalenges for the keeper to ensure the t's needs are met.

A "I think my 10 gallon tank is fine" thread is often followed up a couple of months later with a "My rosea won't eat" thread or a "My tarantula fell and broke off a leg" thread. There is often a connection.

You don't need to try to recreate their wild living conditions. You can't. It's in captivity now and the provisions you should make are different than those in the wild.

 

[ttula]

the tank is almost half full of substrate, and she never climbs the walls, she uses almost all of the space for burrowing. she has not had any problems finding food and has a nice hide in the tank as well.

 

[SNAFU]

My female A. Hentzi does'nt burrow much either. She'll dig in corners or out the back of her hide but no tunnels and I've had her since last Fall (thanx Austin!) Keep the sub dry, water dish and a hide is all they really need. I just have about 6" of pure peat a few fake plants, water dish and a hide. I never mist her tank. She has done great and is in premolt right now. I toss her a cricket about 2x per week.

 

[SNAFU]

Oh and I agree with etown on tank size. Tarantula's don't venture far from their dens in the wild and they just don't need very much space. A 3" T in a 10 gallon tank just means he/she will have to work that much harder to find the feeder 'cause crickets won't sit still. I spoil mine though 'cause on feeding day, if they are in their hides, I toss the crickets right in to them and they usually grab'em right up. Yeah, I'm making 'em lazy I guess....pets resemble their owners though right?....but anyway-I have found through trial and error (and getting info from the board) a 5 gal or large kritter keeper is plenty big for most species.

 

[Greyhalo]

As long as the proper amount of substrate is used there is no reason a person cant use a 10 gallon tank for a terrestrial T. Also, it may take longer than two seconds for a T in a larger enlcosure to find the cricket you toss in but it is more than capable of finding it.

 

[JMoran1097]

As long as the proper amount of substrate is used there is no reason a person cant use a 10 gallon tank for a terrestrial T. Also, it may take longer than two seconds for a T in a larger enlcosure to find the cricket you toss in but it is more than capable of finding it.

exactly. there's no issue with it, but as it's been already stated, the T won't wander too far to find prey so a smaller enclosure is more recommended.

 

[desertdweller]

exactly. there's no issue with it, but as it's been already stated, the T won't wander too far to find prey so a smaller enclosure is more recommended.

My larger Ts all have nice and big containers. I have never seen them not eat. In fact I find it totally humorous that sooner or later, usually sooner, the cricket or roach I toss in there always finds it way down the hole or into the hide. :? :? Kinda like a heat seeking missile.

 

[JMoran1097]

My larger Ts all have nice and big containers. I have never seen them not eat. In fact I find it totally humorous that sooner or later, usually sooner, the cricket or roach I toss in there always finds it way down the hole or into the hide. :? :? Kinda like a heat seeking missile.

exactly. it's a dark, comfortable area for them to get out of direct light.