GBB Waterbowls?

Nephrite

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Mar 1, 2016
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So I have a little 3/4" GBB in a tiny AMAC box. I recently rehoused it, and as GBB's do, he webbed up his enclosure. Problem is whenever he goes on a webbing spree, he also covers his waterbowl, to the point he can't access it. How you guys provide water to GBB's? I know they like substrate bone dry, but it's still a small sling and it probably still needs water/moisture somehow. What to do?
 

Flexzone

Arachnodemon
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Mar 1, 2015
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I usually just add a couple small dribbles of water directly on the web with a pipette on a weekly basis, won't do much harm to the sling. I'd prefer housing them in 16oz deli's.
 
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Haksilence

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I usually just add a couple small dribbles of water directly on the web with a pipette on a weekly basis, won't do much harm to the sling. I'd prefer housing them in 16oz deli's.
This, basically when I rehouse my small gbbs I give them a bottle cap and when they inevitably web over it Im just like
"Well, was nice while it lasted" and go to dropping water on sphagnum moss (which is also probably under the web) and a sprits on the webbing/sides of the enclosure twice a week or so.
 

EulersK

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Feb 22, 2013
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Even slings enjoy a bit of humidity.

Don't be afraid to use a spray bottle to provide drinking water. This is how all of my slings get their water until they are large enough for a proper water dish. Your life gets a lot easier with a species that webs a lot such as this - water makes perfect droplets on webbing. Just spray their webbing, watch out for scurrying T's, and you'll be fine. I spray my slings every week or so. They will get the majority of their water from their food. When I know that they're in premolt or postmolt and unable to eat, I spray every 3 days or so.
 

TownesVanZandt

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May 12, 2015
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I just remove the webbing and refill the water dish. GBB´s are quite active spiders, so they´ll web it up again shortly afterwards. Then I remove the webbing again, and refill the bowl, and so it goes on and on and on. It´s a task for Sisyphus!
 

Poec54

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So I have a little 3/4" GBB in a tiny AMAC box. I recently rehoused it, and as GBB's do, he webbed up his enclosure. Problem is whenever he goes on a webbing spree, he also covers his waterbowl, to the point he can't access it. How you guys provide water to GBB's? I know they like substrate bone dry, but it's still a small sling and it probably still needs water/moisture somehow. What to do?
I poke a hole in a webbed-over water bowl and fill it. They can silk suck water thru the silk. If the silk gets real think, poke a few holes in it. You don't want moist substrate with that species.
 

8Legs8Eyes

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May 8, 2014
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126
While smaller I would just add water directly to the web. There are other webbers, such as balfouri, that will make you do the same.

When larger, I either tear out the water dish (if easy to do so) or give them a new one. I think it is burrowers that can be more of a pain with water dishes though. Once rehoused a g pulchripes with 4 watercaps in her enclosure because she insisted she needed them for her burrow.
 

ratluvr76

Arachnodemon
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Jul 12, 2014
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So I have a little 3/4" GBB in a tiny AMAC box. I recently rehoused it, and as GBB's do, he webbed up his enclosure. Problem is whenever he goes on a webbing spree, he also covers his waterbowl, to the point he can't access it. How you guys provide water to GBB's? I know they like substrate bone dry, but it's still a small sling and it probably still needs water/moisture somehow. What to do?
when I got my GBB's they were 1/2 inch DLS. Sling care is often different from juvenile/adult care. Although they don't like bone dry enclosures, slings do need a little bit more humidity in their enclosures. What I did was kept a bottle cap as a water dish, I kept it as far away as possible from it's hide/burrow and moistened the substrate around the bowl.. about 35-40% of the available floor space. Moist, not damp. When they, inevitably, web over the water dish, I simply take it out and replace it with a new cap. Issue solved. I'm one of those that really believes that access to actual freestanding water is essential for spiders, particularily with the inexperienced keeper. (a group to which I still feel I belong). There are some users on here that never have freestanding water in their enclosures and do just fine. Ultimately, that will be at your discretion. :)
 

Vanessa

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Mar 12, 2016
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I have two sub-adult/adult females and they have two water dishes each and they web them both up. I just rip the web off the top and syringe some water in. They just web them back up again, so don't worry about that too much. Think of it as a fun game. ;)
 

Andrea82

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Jan 12, 2016
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I have mine in an enclosure that is slightly bigger than I would normally give slings. Added lots of leaves and branches on one side, and the other side is clear save for the waterdish. They have webbed the cluttered part, but leave the dish alone save for drinking.
 

Smileyboy

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Jul 6, 2014
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for my female i keep a nice size water dish. would she web it up? hell yes!!! all the time. once a week i dig it out and refill it, i was lucky enough to watch her drink out of it sometimes. she would think the water was a prey item so she ran towards it, then realize its water and then start drinking it.
 

KezyGLA

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Apr 8, 2016
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I usually just add a couple small dribbles of water directly on the web with a pipette on a weekly basis, won't do much harm to the sling. I'd prefer housing them in 16oz deli's.
Spot on! Thats exactly what I started to do because I was so annoyed having to carefully rip through its webbing to retrieve it, just to have to go through same process few days later haha.

Droplets of water on webbing is the best bet. Don't overdo it though as a humid enclosure can be dangerous for Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens.
 

DannyH

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Apr 27, 2011
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350
For mine, as a sling I just gave it some drops of water until it was big enough for one of those little water bottle caps.
 

Poec54

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Mar 26, 2013
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for my female i keep a nice size water dish. would she web it up? hell yes!!! all the time. once a week i dig it out and refill it, i was lucky enough to watch her drink out of it sometimes. she would think the water was a prey item so she ran towards it, then realize its water and then start drinking it.

My Chromatopelma web over their water bowls, as do a few other species (P irminia, Chilobrachys, etc). I only dig them up if they're fouled. Normally, after using a flashlight to verify it's clean, I just poke a hole in the silk a pour water in. They can suck water thru the silk.
 
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