Feeding question for newbie!

[KodiakWavingBear]

Hey all! I am a new keeper with an A. avicularia as my first T. She's about 2 inches or a bit bigger. It's been 10 days since I have had it(unsexed) and I've fed it twice (small to just about medium superworms). I wanted to ask a question about feeding. I've seen online that a lot of people do feeding schedules like once a week or a big meal every 2 weeks or a month, but after doing some searching on this forum people advise to stay away from scheduled feedings and feed based on abdomen. My question is how do I feed "based on their abdomen"? Does that mean, when I notice the abdomen becomes smaller than the carapace I feed, or do I have to maintain a certain size? How do I know if the abdomen is big enough to where I should avoid feeding it and when it gets small enough to feed it? I try to use my sisters T for reference but she has an A. chalcodes and their abdomens are way more plumped than Avics (at least from what I've seen in videos) and shes a lot bigger too. Thanks!

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

You got the idea fat Ts don’t need food . A few times I fed a t one too many prey items , some of my Ts will eat til they’re fat others won’t. Monthly was generally good for adults , and juvys for me but I stop when they get plump enough or stop eating . More information here.

Tarantula Information for Beginners (and More)

Below are some helpful resources. (Rather than having half a dozen or more pinned threads, which clutter the top of the board, we are pinning this index.) While the focus is on beginners, there are other threads on health and more advanced species that may be useful to more experienced keepers...

arachnoboards.com

 

[viper69]

I wanted to ask a question about feeding. I've seen online that a lot of people do feeding schedules like once a week or a big meal every 2 weeks or a month, but after doing some searching on this forum people advise to stay away from scheduled feedings and feed based on abdomen. My question is how do I feed "based on their abdomen"? Does that mean, when I notice the abdomen becomes smaller than the carapace I feed, or do I have to maintain a certain size? How do I know if the abdomen is big enough to where I should avoid feeding it and when it gets small enough to feed it? I try to use my sisters T for reference but she has an A. chalcodes and their abdomens are way more plumped than Avics (at least from what I've seen in videos) and shes a lot bigger too. Thanks!

You will learn what a fat Avic looks like, and a skinny one looks like over time. Search the forum for peeps asking this who have posted. There is no scientific method for this, it's subjective. DO NOT compare your species against another species!
Before you ask why, as some people do ask, think about your question critically.

 

[Wolfram1]

It means feeding them occasionally, but without a set timing.

What you must understand is basically that they build up their fat stores with every feeding, you can see that by observing how much the volume of their opisthosoma (abdomen) increases. There comes a point when the opisthosoma can no longer expand, the exosceleton is streched to its limitations.

How quickly this happens and if it happens is entirely dependant on how much you feed them and recognizing how far along a spider is on that path takes practice.

Essentially, look at pictures to see when a spiders opisthosoma is thin, normal or fat.

You want to avoid going to the absolute extremes, so if it is thin you can feed a little more often.
If it is normal there is no longer any risk of starvation and you can space feedings out more.
Then it gets to a state between normal and fat that is where you may want to reduce feedings further, and try to avoid getting to the point where it has reached the maximal expansion (fat), as it will stop eating completely.

Not only will it increase any potential fall risks, like a full waterballoon bursts much easier than a half full one, but it will also cause a fast that has nothing to do with premolt, making it harder to judge the spiders condition.

With smaller slings overfeeding isn't much of an issue as they will molt regularly, with adults defenitly avoid it.
Frequency and size of the meals depend on the size if the spider, and you will need to learn how much each meal impacts the abdomen volume to decide how you will space out the feedings.

thin:

0.0.1 Avicularia Avicularia m#2, L3

arachnoboards.com

about normal:

Avicularia merianae

2" Juvenile (3 years old)

arachnoboards.com

fat:

Avicularia Avicularia

3” DLS

arachnoboards.com

as @viper69 said, this is subjective, but a good way is to compare the size of the prosoma (carapax) to the opisthosoma (abdomen)

 

[Stu Macher]

I feed my T's until they refuse prey. All of my T's have healthy abdomens. Depending on species, you want to be careful over feeding because pre molt periods become ridiculously long. I can't speak for Avics because I don't own one, but just remove uneaten prey items after 24hrs. Nothing to sweat over though, your T won't starve.

 

[darkness975]

Also if their abdomen is too large it can drag and rupture , causing damage.

 

[KodiakWavingBear]

a good way is to compare the size of the prosoma (carapax) to the opisthosoma (abdomen)

When I compare what am I really looking for is my main question I guess. How much bigger should the abdomen be compared to the carapace?

You got the idea fat Ts don’t need food . A few times I fed a t one too many prey items , some of my Ts will eat til they’re fat others won’t. Monthly was generally good for adults , and juvys for me but I stop when they get plump enough or stop eating . More information here.

Tarantula Information for Beginners (and More)

Below are some helpful resources. (Rather than having half a dozen or more pinned threads, which clutter the top of the board, we are pinning this index.) While the focus is on beginners, there are other threads on health and more advanced species that may be useful to more experienced keepers...

arachnoboards.com

I actually went here and used Venom1080's guide to set my enclosure up. I just wanted to see how I could start developing skills to feed my tarantula without having a feeding schedule since in Venom's guide he mentions one: "i feed 2-5 times a week, once they hit 2" plus, i cut that back to once or twice a week. larger juvis and subadults, no more thn once a week."
I feel like feeding without a schedule would be a good skill/good habit, but idk if I am just thinking too much into this and it's probably not a big deal since my T is a juvenile.

 

[cold blood]

When a t molts, its at its thinnest and will also be at its hungriest....at this time you can feed more often or larger prey, as you feed, you will see the t plump up, as it plumps, it will need less food, less often and once very plump, its food needs will become zero...this is what people mean by paying attention to abdomen size......its size compared to when it had just molted, not compared to other spiders, or species or anything like that....its all about the perspective of the individual spider.

I feed my T's until they refuse prey. All of my T's have healthy abdomens.

this is one of the huge misnomers in the t hobby, and I cannot stress this enough...THERE IS NO HEALTHY SIZE ABDOMEN. When a t molts, its abdomen is thin, this is normal and perfectly hea;thy....when it nears molting and has a large over-size rump, this is just as normal and healthy...as is everything in between.

When I compare what am I really looking for is my main question I guess. How much bigger should the abdomen be compared to the carapace?

Compare it to what it was after molting, don't compare it to other unrelated body parts.

I could start developing skills to feed my tarantula without having a feeding schedule since in Venom's guide he mentions one: "i feed 2-5 times a week, once they hit 2" plus, i cut that back to once or twice a week. larger juvis and subadults, no more thn once a week."

Look, 50 people could give you 50 different feeding schedules, and every darn one of them will raise the same healthy t....so no matter what you hear, just know no one has it right, just as no one has it wrong despite the huge variations you will read.

 

[KodiakWavingBear]

When a t molts, its at its thinnest and will also be at its hungriest....at this time you can feed more often or larger prey, as you feed, you will see the t plump up, as it plumps, it will need less food, less often and once very plump, its food needs will become zero...this is what people mean by paying attention to abdomen size......its size compared to when it had just molted, not compared to other spiders, or species or anything like that....its all about the perspective of the individual spider.



this is one of the huge misnomers in the t hobby, and I cannot stress this enough...THERE IS NO HEALTHY SIZE ABDOMEN. When a t molts, its abdomen is thin, this is normal and perfectly hea;thy....when it nears molting and has a large over-size rump, this is just as normal and healthy...as is everything in between.

Compare it to what it was after molting, don't compare it to other unrelated body parts.


Look, 50 people could give you 50 different feeding schedules, and every darn one of them will raise the same healthy t....so no matter what you hear, just know no one has it right, just as no one has it wrong despite the huge variations you will read.

Ooohh I see haha. I guess I am looking too much into this, I got it. This makes a lot of sense to me, appreciate it!