Avicularia Avicularia Help

[Hutake]

Hello guys, I bought a pink toe tarantula last week and initially I placed him/her in a horizontal 10 gallon tank for i think 3 days then after my cork bark, substrate, and plants came I decived to turn my tank vertically because I read that avic T prefer higher enclosure.
Now one of my problem is the side of my tank because its not like what i see most on youtube or on the net, i think its made from metal. I wanted to make a proper enclosure for my T, does someone know someone selling a proper cover for a 10 gallon tank turned vertically?
My second question is, i saw some enclosure and its not that big. I am thinking of turning it back to horizontal and deviding it to two one side for my avic T and another for another T, im planning to get a terrestrial one. What can you guys say about this?
Lastly, I try to feed my T everyday and he/she eats it everyday but then I read that Ts cant be fed everyday like maybe everyother day or i think 3x a day is what i read. Am i doing it right?

 

[chanda]

Avics like to make web tubes or tunnels. In order to do that, it will need more attachment points - taller fake plants, grapevine, or additional cork pieces.

As for splitting the cage, you'd be better off with two separate cages - particularly if you are going to have two different species of tarantulas in them. The two spiders may have entirely different environmental needs. One may prefer a dry climate while the other needs higher humidity. One may prefer a deep, sandy substrate for burrowing while the other lIkes something moist and doesn't care to burrow.

Also, while arboreal spiders need height to climb and web, a tall enclosure can be deadly to a terrestrial spider - which will also climb, but can suffer a fatal ruptured abdomen if it falls. For a terrestrial spider, the height from the top of the substrate to the top of the cage should be around 1.5 times the spider's leg span.

Then there's the question of access. Unless you have separate openings on both sides of the divider, removing the lid for feeding or cage maintenance will require leaving both sides open at once - increasing the risk of an escape on one side while you are busy with the other.

And then there's the question of the divider itself. Many cage dividers - like those sold for aquariums or reptile cages - leave a small gap at the top because they are not sealed onto the lid - a gap which spiders or other inverts can exploit. I've had this happen with whip spiders that I was keeping in a "divided" cage. Fortunately, the only consequence I faced was a gravid whip spider (and eventually baby whip spiders), but if two different tarantulas decide to try their luck at getting over the wall, you could come home to one fat spider - and one dead one.

Finally, feeding every day is WAY too often. I feed my spiders once every week or two and they do great. (Slightly more often for slings.) Tarantulas do not need to eat all that often.

 

[Hutake]

Thank you, that helps alot.

 

[RemyZee]

Check out Jamie's Tarantulas online (if you're in the US). She has some very nice arboreal enclosures with proper ventilation. There are also some great YouTube videos out there on making your own. (DarkDen and Tarantula Sam both have good videos on this).

 

[RemyZee]

And yes, as @chanda said, cut way back on that food.

 

[Hutake]

Thank you, I now bought an enclosure from jaimie. And yes I watch videos from dark den hahaha.

 

[RemyZee]

Thank you, I now bought an enclosure from jaimie. And yes I watch videos from dark den hahaha.

Great!