Cobalt blue

Jules weston

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Hi
I have a cobalt blue female & just the last day or so she has been hanging upside down from the roof of her tank. since I've had cobalt blue's in the past I have never seen them do this. can anyone advise me if this is normal as I'm getting a little concerned. she seems to be healthy & does move around but she doesn't seem to want to come down from the roof. this is making it very difficult to feed her as she is very skittish & tries to strike if I open her tank.
 

antinous

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Can you take a photo of your setup? How many inches of sub do you have? Is it moist or dry?
 
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Jules weston

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Can you take a photo of your setup? How many inches of sub do you have? Is it moist or dry?
First off, replace the screen roof, they're not a good thing to have with T's.
the substrate is moist but not damp & is about five n half inches' I had more than this at one point but found the temperature would not be warm enough. it did not rise above 60. I was advised to take out some sub as the heat couldn't penetrate to get the correct temperature. & to be honest the roof is like a very fine mesh which I don't really like. I have had her for around 2 months now & she was mainly in her burrow except at night when she would go on a hunt for food, but she has been hanging from her roof for nearly 2days,
 
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14pokies

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This is the stuff of Nightmares..

*edit* op please post pics of the entire enclosure..
 

antinous

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the substrate is moist but not damp & is about five n half inches' I had more than this at one point but found the temperature would not be warm enough. it did not rise above 60. I was advised to take out some sub as the heat couldn't penetrate to get the correct temperature. & to be honest the roof is like a very fine mesh which I don't really like.
The temp should be getting cooler as it gets deeper and 5.5 inches is nowhere near enough. I've always kept my Cyrios at 9"+ sub and they were fine. What is the temp in your room? Maybe you can switch out the roof with acrylic that has holes drilled in it?
 

Chris LXXIX

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the substrate is moist but not damp & is about five n half inches' I had more than this at one point but found the temperature would not be warm enough. it did not rise above 60. I was advised to take out some sub as the heat couldn't penetrate to get the correct temperature. & to be honest the roof is like a very fine mesh which I don't really like.
Not even 6 inches are definitely not that much for a juve/adult specimen IMO. Anyway gave her time for settle. Temperature, combined with that, play a role, keep in mind this.
 

Jules weston

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the substrate is moist but not damp & is about five n half inches' I had more than this at one point but found the temperature would not be warm enough. it did not rise above 60. I was advised to take out some sub as the heat couldn't penetrate to get the correct temperature. & to be honest the roof is like a very fine mesh which I don't really like.
Not even 6 inches are definitely not that much for a juve/adult specimen IMO. Anyway gave her time for settle. Temperature, combined with that, play a role, keep in mind this.
Not even 6 inches are definitely not that much for a juve/adult specimen IMO. Anyway gave her time for settle. Temperature, combined with that, play a role, keep in mind this.
should I put more substrate back into her tank would this be advisable' as you can see from my profile pic this is the best one I have of her tank. & as you can see she has been up on her roof like this for quite some time. as I've only had her a couple of months could this just be her settling in? she's only done this the last day or two,
 

TownesVanZandt

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should I put more substrate back into her tank would this be advisable' as you can see from my profile pic this is the best one I have of her tank. & as you can see she has been up on her roof like this for quite some time. as I've only had her a couple of months could this just be her settling in? she's only done this the last day or two,
Yes, you need way more substrate with a species like this. They are burrowers and the more substrate the merrier they shall be.
 

Chris LXXIX

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should I put more substrate back into her tank would this be advisable' as you can see from my profile pic this is the best one I have of her tank. & as you can see she has been up on her roof like this for quite some time. as I've only had her a couple of months could this just be her settling in? she's only done this the last day or two,
Well, first thing (being you I mean) I will remove those two gauges that, frankly, are useless, aside for throw those hard out of the window in the head of someone. Gauges like those are only pet shop $£ items worth nothing, that drive sometimes, sadly, the keeper to a false road.

Second (sorry but from your avatar image I can't have the whole idea) I will definitely add more substrate. Keeping the substrate moist, not wet (ja you know this) of course. She's on the "roof" because IMO she's stressed for some reason, and one reason could be a badass temperature drop change, or a inadequate temperature. After all those are Asian T's, they need a bit of acceptable warm.
 

Venom1080

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This is the stuff of Nightmares..

*edit* op please post pics of the entire enclosure..
oh gosh, theres a pic in his profile pic.

OP, that cage to put it simply is terrible, lots of things need to be changed. none of which will cost very much, dont worry.;) take off that heat pad or whatever youre using first of all. they can burn Ts and are not suitable for them. i and many other keepers here use space heaters, i highly recommend you look into this. you need much more substrate then that, 10" would suit your spider very well. i recommend sphagnum peat moss or eco earth for this. as for the cage, go to walmart or something and pick up a fair size sterlite tub, one that can hold preferably 10" of substrate, the size shouldnt be too much bigger than 3 or 4 times the spiders leg span in terms of length width. this shouldnt cost more than 10 or 15 dollars. ditch the hydrometers and temp gauges, they are not needed and are mostly useless. make plenty of vent holes along the sides of the cage and maybe a half dozen or so along the top.
 
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Jules weston

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Well, first thing (being you I mean) I will remove those two gauges that, frankly, are useless, aside for throw those hard out of the window in the head of someone. Gauges like those are only pet shop $£ items worth nothing, that drive sometimes, sadly, the keeper to a false road.

Second (sorry but from your avatar image I can't have the whole idea) I will definitely add more substrate. Keeping the substrate moist, not wet (ja you know this) of course. She's on the "roof" because IMO she's stressed for some reason, and one reason could be a badass temperature drop change, or a inadequate temperature. After all those are Asian T's, they need a bit of acceptable warm.
okay thank you for your advise I will get her sub built back up again & also could you recommend the right type of metres I should use for her temperature & hydrometer' as you said this is what the pet shop supplied me with her set up,
 

14pokies

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Why are you shooting for a temp of 60? If thats F its way to cold and if it's C it's about 60F too hot..

The hygometer and the thermometer are useless.. Its a spring inside that expands or retracts based on temp and humidity..They are completely inaqurate..

The substrate looks damn near bone dry.. Wetting the sub is likely to get her off the lid just in itself..

Get her into a catch cup fill the enclosure half way with moderately moist coco fiber or topsoil lay a slab of bark down a large water dish and put her in a room that is 78-85 F..

As for the lid wich if she was housed on proper sub with a correct depth would be almost no issue.. Just buy some lexan sheets from a craft store and use small zip ties to secure it.

The reason she is trying to abscond is because the temps and substrate..
 

TownesVanZandt

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May 12, 2015
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okay thank you for your advise I will get her sub built back up again & also could you recommend the right type of metres I should use for her temperature & hydrometer' as you said this is what the pet shop supplied me with her set up,
You don´t need any type of metres! Just keep the the substrate moist and deep and the temperatures in your room at an acceptable level. Then keep the water dish filled at all times and remember to feed your spider every second week. That´s all it really takes ;)
 

14pokies

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oh gosh, theres a pic in his profile pic.

OP, that cage to put it simply is terrible, lots of things need to be changed. none of which will cost very much, dont worry.;) take off that heat pad or whatever youre using first of all. they can burn Ts are not suitable for them. i and many other keepers here use space heaters, i highly recommend you look into this. you need much more substrate then that, 10" would suit your spider very well. i recommend sphagnum peat moss or eco earth for this. as for the cage, go to walmart or something and pick up a fair size sterlite tub, one that can hold preferably 10" of substrate, the size shouldnt be too much bigger than 3 or 4 times the spiders leg span in terms of length and same for width. this shouldnt cost more than 10 or 15 dollars. ditch the hydrometers and temp guages, they are not needed and are mostly useless. make plenty of vent holes along the sides of the cage and maybe a half dozen or so along the top.
From the wording of the post it sounded like a heating element was being used.. I couldn't bring myself to ask though.. Theres only so much I can handle before I start banging my head off a wall..
 

Chris LXXIX

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okay thank you for your advise I will get her sub built back up again & also could you recommend the right type of metres I should use for her temperature & hydrometer' as you said this is what the pet shop supplied me with her set up,
Nothing.

- moist substrate not wet (use a syringe or a plastic pipette, room temperature water, add with those water in the substrate)
- a water dish always full
- substrate, substrate, substrate

No need for other gauges or devices, when your substrate is moist you are done, when start to dry, again, add water. Temperatures, if you can reach at least (day talking) 23 - 24° C is fine IMO. The rest is time that your Theraphosidae needs once you offered those parameters/set up.

:)
 

Jules weston

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Sep 23, 2016
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oh gosh, theres a pic in his profile pic.

OP, that cage to put it simply is terrible, lots of things need to be changed. none of which will cost very much, dont worry.;) take off that heat pad or whatever youre using first of all. they can burn Ts are not suitable for them. i and many other keepers here use space heaters, i highly recommend you look into this. you need much more substrate then that, 10" would suit your spider very well. i recommend sphagnum peat moss or eco earth for this. as for the cage, go to walmart or something and pick up a fair size sterlite tub, one that can hold preferably 10" of substrate, the size shouldnt be too much bigger than 3 or 4 times the spiders leg span in terms of length and same for width. this shouldnt cost more than 10 or 15 dollars. ditch the hydrometers and temp guages, they are not needed and are mostly useless. make plenty of vent holes along the sides of the cage and maybe a half dozen or so along the top.
wow thank you very much for your advise' this is really helpful' so its space heaters I need not heat mats. I will get on this right away & find another enclosure that is suitable. many thanks for all your help & replies,
 

Jules weston

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Sep 23, 2016
Messages
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Nothing.

- moist substrate not wet (use a syringe or a plastic pipette, room temperature water, add with those water in the substrate)
- a water dish always full
- substrate, substrate, substrate

No need for other gauges or devices, when your substrate is moist you are done, when start to dry, again, add water. Temperatures, if you can reach at least (day talking) 23 - 24° C is fine IMO. The rest is time that your Theraphosidae needs once you offered those parameters/set up.

:)
thank you very much this is fantastic help & very much appreciated ' I will get on this right away bless you for your advise
 
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