Bag Transfer Technique: How To Transfer Your Tarantulas

[hcsk8ter]

Hi,
My 3" Female Poecilotheria Regalis needs more space so it was time to upgrade to a bigger container. Sh'e lightning fast and the "half a two liter bottle technique" seemed a bit iffy for me, especially since her bite is potent and she's a speed demon. That and the fact that one bend of the cardboard and you have a loose spider.
Now I came up with what I would call the "Bag Transfer Technique" and it worked like a dream. I did some searches and didn't find anything, so maybe I'm the first to post this? Either way I think this should make it into the sticky section. Hint Hint. :}

Ok, so first this will work with terrestrial or arboreal.

1. Take out any hides or bark, watering dishes with your forceps.

2. Take a clear plastic bag that will fit over both the old enclosure and the new one.

3. Remove the cover and quickly put your bag over and secure it with a rubber band.

4. Turn your container on its side. Be careful not to get too much substrate in the bag.

5. Coax the tarantula through the bag with your forceps into far end of the bag and grip the end nearest the rubber band with a tight fist.

6. Pull away from the bag with the tight fist and remove the rubber band. Keep a tight fist around the bag's mouth the entire time. Your tarantula should be at the bottom of the bag now.

7. Take the end you hold with a tight fist and put that end over the new enclosure with a rubber band. All the while WATCH WHERE YOUR TARANTULA IS !!! Make sure when you are read to transfer you have the bag secured to the new enclosure with a rubber band and your tarantula is still near the bottom of the bag.

8. Coax your tarantula from the bottom of the bag into its new container.

9. Quickly remove the rubber band holding the bag and put your top on the new and bigger enclosure for your tarantula to grow and be happy.

Some basic premises to ensure success:
Never get frightened. Remember, you are the boss. If the tarantula is not going where you want it to go. Coax it through the bag with your forceps. It will go where you want it. As long as you keep the bag between you and the tarantula, this method works like a dream.

 

[Thoth]

Good job, I've used a similiar method when rehousing a P.murinus; but a friendly reminder to all who'll use this method, be careful a ts fangs can penetrate the the plastic bag and tag you (more a risk with an irate larger individual of an aggressive/defensive species).

 

[cacoseraph]

i use this method for packing more than transfering.

when you want to ship a larger tarantula you can trap it in a corner of the bag and twist-tie it off from the rest of the bag and then pack the tarantula with amazing padding. i do this for individuals that are fatter than i am 100% sanguine about shipping

 

[prey]

my wife will feel validated when she sees your pics -- she suggested the same thing when I was having a near H. mac escape with a bottle

 

[Alice]

i usually just put some type of plastic container over my regalis when i have to move her. your method would be great for fast species, i'd be careful about using it with agressive specimen, though. they can easily tag you through the bag, and i really would want to avoid a pokie bite .

 

[cacoseraph]

i usually just put some type of plastic container over my regalis when i have to move her. your method would be great for fast species, i'd be careful about using it with agressive specimen, though. they can easily tag you through the bag, and i really would want to avoid a pokie bite .

the spiders definitely can easily bite through the bag... but the trick is to manipulate them in such a way as they never get a chance


i MUCH prefer this method to fridging/chilling spiders, which i think might have long term effects that are somewhat difficult to see

 

[Alice]

huh? who would chill their ts to make them slower? :?

i didn't say this method is bad, i would just be too afraid of getting bit that way. that's why i perfer the plastic container/cardboard method.

 

[Mina]

I have a question about step 5. Coax the T from the container into the bag with your forceps. Okay, how? You already have the bag sealing up the entrace to the T's old home. If you open it to prod the T, you will have escaped T.
I'm asking because we just tried something similar with my N. chromatus. We just turned his old house on its side and placed it in his new house. He would not come out, we finally had to prod him out with the top off both the old house and the new, not the most secure way to move a T, but the only one we could by then.

 

[cacoseraph]

I have a question about step 5. Coax the T from the container into the bag with your forceps. Okay, how? You already have the bag sealing up the entrace to the T's old home. If you open it to prod the T, you will have escaped T.
I'm asking because we just tried something similar with my N. chromatus. We just turned his old house on its side and placed it in his new house. He would not come out, we finally had to prod him out with the top off both the old house and the new, not the most secure way to move a T, but the only one we could by then.

i do that by sneaking a wire hanger (with NO SHARP POINTS for gods sakes!) in the side of the bag. i also either just hold the bag to the container neck or use a couple pieces of tape so my method differs slightly from this

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

This method sounds great and and I've done something similar with a 5 inch P. murinus, but what do you plan to do when you have a lightning fast 7 inch P. regalis?

 

[cacoseraph]

This method sounds great and and I've done something similar with a 5 inch P. murinus, but what do you plan to do when you have a lightning fast 7 inch P. regalis?

i packed a 5-6" P. irimina mature male using this method. works fine. you have to control the spiders movements, is all.

 

[chrispy]

this is a great idea. One question- will or has the T (aggressive) tried to rip through the plastic once its cornered in the bag.If it bites through and notices a way through by ripping it up,have they gone spaztic trying to rip through.I will definately try this with a thick mil plastic bag.

 

[ErikH]

Hmm.... I should have tried this with the a. geniculata I just rehoused last night. I wound up putting it's old enclosure inside the new one, and coaxing it out with a paintbrush. At one point, it grabbed the brush and held on with a strength that somewhat surprised me. It finally decided to walk out into the new enclosure, no problem. I did the whole procedure inside of a laundry tub with a cup handy just in case of an escape. I may try it this way the next time around though.

 

[bonesmama]

huh? who would chill their ts to make them slower? :?

i didn't say this method is bad, i would just be too afraid of getting bit that way. that's why i perfer the plastic container/cardboard method.

I and many people I know have chilled out their T's-- and there are absolutely no ill effects as long as you are careful and move them as soon as they are immobilised. It is alot less stressful to both of you when you are moving or packing a T for shipping that doesn't want to be packed- and there is no danger of hurting the T while trying to coax it into going somewhere it doesn't want to go. I once was trying to pack up an adult L. parahybana to ship out for breeding, and the poor guy just would not go out of the soda bottle top no matter what -- this went on for a long time, and we were both totally stressed, and I was afraid I was going to hurt him.....as a last resort I put him in the fridge, and in just @15- 20 mins he was immobile and I was able to pack him up without hurting him or stressing either of us out any further......
I don't use it all the time, but it is a good way to move a problematic T.

 

[BooyaTarantula]

I have never heard anything negative about chilling T's either, since all it does it slow their metabolism significantly enough to reduce their movement speed. I really like this method of transfer though, not really much risk as long as you keep your eye on where the T is during the process. Good thread, good pictures!

 

[ballpython2]

alright i did this bag transfer idea and it worked great he was kind of frantic but he's cool now here is a picture of his old enclosure (the critter keeper) to the new one ( the jar)

 

[Python]

Couldn't you put the new enclosure inside the bag with a rubber band around the top of it? It would sort of be a tube leading from one enclosure to the next really. If the lid was in the bag as well, the T would never be exposed to the outside so unless a hole opened up in the bag for whatever reason, there would be no way at all the T could escape.

 

[hotflakes2]

This is a very neat trick, I'm gonna try it later. lol

Thanks!

 

[aLDoDarK]

wow this's just an awesome tips, thanks for your post, but I just afraid that the Ts will fall down on the step 8, guess that I can't put the plastic up side down when moving the terrestrial species

 

[Storm76]

I'll definetely have to try that one out some time when I have to rehouse my more defensive ones...