curly hair digging to China

[kayla3g]

We recently bought a curly haired 2 weeks ago. She is 3-4 years old. About 4 inches. She has been digging in her burrow for 1 week now. Every time we check on her she is inside her burrow. Is this normal? She is digging more and more. She seems to be constantly digging. She hasn't come out except to pull the dirt out. Is she staying and digging because she is unhappy or maybe the enclosure is too big? Just trying to make sure all is well with her. Here is a pic and she has dug out even more since then.

 

[kayla3g]

Here is a side shot.

 

[kayla3g]

Here is a shot of how much dirt she has dug out.

 

[Ungoliant]

We recently bought a curly haired 2 weeks ago. She is 3-4 years old. About 4 inches. She has been digging in her burrow for 1 week now. Every time we check on her she is inside her burrow. Is this normal? She is digging more and more. She seems to be constantly digging.

Many Brachypelma albopilosum will burrow if given the chance.

There's no need to worry about a collapse. They reinforce their burrows with silk, and even if the burrow did collapse, your tarantula would be able to dig itself out.

 

[KezyGLA]

Brachypelma albopilosum are nutorious burrowers when young. When they are adults they tend to stay out in the open more. Though having said that, yours may have burrowed for other reasons, such as building home, settling in or preparing for molt.

 

[Tittle13]

I would keep an eye on that half log. Looks like it's probably sturdy but would to hate to see it fall on her. Most likely no need for concern but it falling and a corner hitting her abdomen could be bad news. I love the burrow though very neat tunnel she has dug

 

[mconnachan]

It's nothing to worry about, apart from the bark hide above the burrow, be sure it's secure, you don't want your tarantula getting hurt pal, if it's sturdy then it'll be ok, just make sure.

 

[Ellenantula]

Congratulations on your new T!
I always enjoy my B albo bulldozing and rearranging his home. As mine gets older, there is much less burrowing.
I've had a couple NWs who excavated under their hides -- one hide made a slow descent towards bottom of enclosure as dirt from underneath was excavated. There was no sudden 'drop' on T; hide just slowly lowered over time as more and more substrate was removed from underneath -- no harm to my T. Eventually the hide itself was mostly covered in substrate and somewhat hidden.
Ts can only move so much substrate at one time, so it's not like they can remove a cubit inch or something in one go. Those drastic substrate changes are the result of many hours of work!

Good luck with yours!

 

[darkness975]

@kayla3g As others have said it is nothing to be concerned about. I do have an inquiry, however. Are those wood chips mixed into the substrate of the Enclosure? If so they should be removed.

 

[kayla3g]

@kayla3g As others have said it is nothing to be concerned about. I do have an inquiry, however. Are those wood chips mixed into the substrate of the Enclosure? If so they should be removed.

The wood chips are 100% natural cypress mulch. It says it's ok for Ts. What should we do? We mixed a little with the coco fibers. My husband has been a bit concerned about those as well. Will it be too stressful on her to change it all?

 

[darkness975]

The wood chips are 100% natural cypress mulch. It says it's ok for Ts. What should we do? We mixed a little with the coco fibers. My husband has been a bit concerned about those as well. Will it be too stressful on her to change it all?

Personally I would rather not take chances. Natural oils in some mulches act as invertebrate deterrents. I know cedar is a huge no-no. I am not too familiar with other mulches but I rather err on the side of caution.
http://homeguides.sfgate.com/mulch-repelling-bugs-53541.html

There is also the risk of the Spider dragging its behind across a sharp edge and acquiring an injury. Wood chips can have sharp edges or splinters that we cannot see but could pose a risk.

 

[Ungoliant]

The wood chips are 100% natural cypress mulch. It says it's ok for Ts. What should we do? We mixed a little with the coco fibers. My husband has been a bit concerned about those as well. Will it be too stressful on her to change it all?

I would replace the substrate. Pure coco fiber will work; you can also experiment with others like peat, topsoil, or mixtures of any of those three. If you buy any peat or topsoil, read the ingredients to confirm that it does not include pesticides, fungicides, or fertilizers. (Fortunately, it's often the cheaper stuff that is suitable for tarantulas.)

It may take her a while to adjust to the new substrate, but in the end, I'd take safety over not disturbing the tarantula.

 

[Nixphat]

Make sure your T has all the correct paperwork and its passport. Leaving is easy, but I hear customs on the way back can be a real pain in the opisthosoma

 

[kayla3g]

Personally I would rather not take chances. Natural oils in some mulches act as invertebrate deterrents. I know cedar is a huge no-no. I am not too familiar with other mulches but I rather err on the side of caution.
http://homeguides.sfgate.com/mulch-repelling-bugs-53541.html

There is also the risk of the Spider dragging its behind across a sharp edge and acquiring an injury. Wood chips can have sharp edges or splinters that we cannot see but could pose a risk.

Thanks for the advice. I feel bad for not getting it right the first time. Now she will have to redig her burrow. Bless! She has been digging non stop.

 

[Stugy]

For some reason I laughed so hard that I cried when I saw the title xD Thanks for the great laugh!

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Now she will have to redig her burrow. Bless! She has been digging non stop.

I wouldn't worry, she'll start again as soon as she's settled, my B. emilia is currently going on a mad one seemingly trying tunnel a full lap of her enclosure which means she's probably going to moult soon as that's usually the only reason she burrows.

 

[Moakmeister]

If B. albopilsum kept diary entries, they'd all say "My complex underground tunnel system is nearly complete!"

 

[Thelema777]

They always do that when they have to dig a burrow. Mine always builds insane tunnels and then comes out and smashes my feeder supply! Perhaps research terrestrial t's? Sorry if that sounded condescending. But no need to worry, just keep an eye out for it to surface because it'll be hungry after that much diy work. Lol