Getting anxious, must pass the time...

[LCDXX]

Well my payment has cleared and after several weeks of waiting and more waiting, I'll finally be getting my new Ts on Tuesday next week from Midwest Exotic Pet Center (www.midwestexoticpetcenter.com).

Sadly, one of my two most anticipated new additions will not be among in the shipment - the Avicularia purpurea. Apparently the little guy didn't survive his recent molt and since he was the last one I'm just gonna have Midwest credit me the cost and hold me one as soon as they get more.

On the lighter side of things, everything else is coming:

1" C. thorelli/schiodtei -- next to the A. purpurea, this is THE coolest looking T I've ever seen - the color is amazing and unique, the size is a plus... I always thought "thorelli" sounded cooler and was easier to pronounce, but oh well...

1/2" A. versicolor -- got tired of everyone gushing over their versis so I decided to join the club, do I get a members-only jacket now?

3" H. lividum -- I asked for a female, I hope that's what I get - Art?

1" Poecilotheria ornata -- my first Pokies! the ornata seems to be the "staple" of the Pokey selection, or so I justified it...

1/2" Poecilotheria rufilata -- can we say "different"? because the coloration and markings on this T are incredible and to top that off, this wonderful wrapper contains that loveable Pokey demeanor...

And as a courtesy of Midwest, Art is tossing in a L. parahybana(sp?) for free!

<sigh>... I'm torturing myself with this post... why does 4 days seem like eternity?

What do you guys/gals do while writhing with anticipation over new critters... is there a way to pass the time? I can't stop thinking about them!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!!!

Hey! I know! I'll post some pics! Here's one of my new s'ling-atrium-thingies. I give all props for the design idea to someone else on this board (I'm sorry, I can't recall who you are or where the thread is at) who did the exact same thing and sparked my creativity - these acrylic boxes are PERFECT!

 

[greensleeves]

Wow!

That is an awesome little box! Where did you get one? I want one to have for my avic sling when it gets here - looks perfect!

Greensleeves

 

[LPacker79]

Congrats on the new T's! I got a C. thorelli/C. schiodtei from Art on tuesday (along with P. platyomma and T. cupreus) and that little bugger is quite the webber. It's corkbark looks like a tent from all the webbing, plus it's burrowed underneath the corkbark. Very cute little sling, you'll really like yours!
Hope they get yours soon. In my case, I sent the money order out saturday, then monday I got an email from Art telling me it had been shipped. I honestly thought it would take longer than it did, but I was relieved they came so quickly.
Make sure to post lots of pics when they arrive!

 

[LCDXX]

Glad you like... I bought the boxes at Hobby Lobby - they are display boxes commonly used for putting Beanie Babies in them for flea markets and that sort've thing... I pay $1.50 for the larger ones and they go down to 50 cents from there...

I took the advice of someone on here and used a wood-burning tool with a soldering attachment shaped in a fine point and just melted the holes in the lid. The concept is really nice because the box is actually upside-down allowing for the sling to web up high yet I can still remove the substrate with less disturbance.

Here's a shot of all of them together...

Can't wait to put my new babies in these!

 

[rosehaired1979]

Congrats on the new additions! And on the A.Versicolor club jacket sure you can have one.

 

[LCDXX]

Seriously, though... I have and A. Avic and I love him to death - he's the best T in the world as far as I'm concerned. But they sit silently in the shadow of A. versicolors in terms of popularity. I figure there must be something to this - perhaps the coloration? I don't know, but damn they're pretty.

I've taken steps to make sure my current selection of Ts and scorps don't feel neglected by all the new comers once they arrive. Currently I have 3 Ts situated in 2 partitioned, 10gal tanks (the empty half is where the H. lividum is going). My scorp collection is around 35 now, mostly scorpling H. longimanus and P. imperators with a few adults in there for good measure - all adults live communally in one 10gal (Emperors and Asian Forest scorps can cohabitate nicely!).

All the scorplings are in deli cups at the moment with the exception of lucky #13 who I'd left in the tank with all the adults for 2 months and survived - I put him in one of my new little boxes seen in this thread. All the other boxes are reserved and labeled for my new slings!

As they get larger though I've made further accomodations with a number of 5 gallon cylindrical and hexagonal fish tanks.

I'm going back to Hobby Lobby tonight to get more acrylic boxes so I can use them to sell my scorplings... sure they can't ALWAYS live in one, but it makes their $20 price tag seem like more of a value, plus they look really snazzy! I'm just selling them locally to my friends and family... perhaps even a locally-owned petshop or two.

LCDXX

 

[Jeff_C]

LCDXX,

Nice set-ups. I have been using these boxes since I start with Ts (late last year) and I have a suggestion for you that will make care and feeding easier:

Hot glue the bark and the plants into the upper-half (formerly the bottom-half) of the enclosure. This way everytime you feed by dropping off the bottom-half the webbing remains as is.

Jeff

 

[LCDXX]

Jeff--

Thanks for the tip! I think you were the one who posted this concept a few weeks ago and I instantly fell in love with the idea - it's nicer looking than a regular old deli cup and a bit more functional as well.

I'll pick up some hot glue sticks right after work and try that out!

It's amazing how creative you can get in this hobby - I find myself looking for new and interesting ways to solve all kinds of T-related issues (not necessarily problems). These little boxes are the best yet!

LCDXX

 

[Cooper]

where can you get those plastic containers, are they those ones for beanie babies?

 

[LCDXX]

Jeff--

I have another question - how many holes do you usually melt into the box and where?

I situated my holes toward the top and I think (doing mental count here) I put 13 holes in all; 9 on the very top and one on each side about 1/2-1 inch from the top.

I think I might melt a few more holes towards the bottom in increase air circulation from the substrate on up. I want to be able to retain humidity, but not at the cost of stagnation.

Got any pics you could post?

LCDXX

 

[nemesis6sic6]

hey

Congrats on your new little ones.
Thoes boxes are cool,
I'm going to get some now............Ok I'm back, any ways
welcome to the versi club.
In this club you will find out that versi colors are the coolest Ts with the best colors.
Every molt is a suprise, and since I'm broke(buying more Ts) I cannot provide you with a jacket sorry.
Well any ways good luck with the little ones and
have a nice day

geo

 

[Jeff_C]

Well my methodolgy for holes has been rather unscientific so far because I regulate humidity within my enclosure :

Anyway, In general I drill holes as follows:

Top Surface - 3 in each corner and then 1 in the middle of each edge
Side surfaces (top section only) - 1 in each corner including the open end and sometimes 1 in the middle of the upper edge (for higher airflow).

I don't drill holes in the bottom section at all and I adjust the number of holes based on airflow needs (i.e. A versi).

Also, for the larger 4x4x8 boxes I drill 3/16" or 1/4" holes and for the smallest boxes I use 1/16" drill bits.


I will post some pics showing the details of my enclosures this weekend.

Jeff

 

[Hairyspider]

I got tons of thos

My mother and I used to collect beanie babies, the bears for me. your pics got me to thinking and foolin around, with a couple of mine,(the cube that is) May I suggest something, to flip the container over and use the smaller portion as the lid, would make it easier to open it when its time to feed.
Like this

Later

William

 

[Hairyspider]

another

notice my Avic munchin out on a cricket (rt side behind the cube)

 

[vulpina]

It is always an anxious time waiting for new T's to arrive. Hopefully everything is alive and well when you receive them.

Andy

 

[rosehaired1979]

I know how ya feel I am getting my 8 t's hopefully on Fri

 

[Jeff_C]

LCDXX,

As promised here are two shots of my aboreal enclosures:

As you can see I glue the bark towards the top so that the T can have a place to hide when I need to remove the top.

Important side note:
Up till now I thought this to be pretty fool proof except tonight while I was in the middle of removing the top of my blue fang's enclosure, and placing it on the desk, the little bugger dropped and bolted. I couldnt believe it. The gap couldn't have been more than 1/8 inch between the bottom of the plastic and the desk. The worst part was I thought it went between two sections of the dresser. Just as I was about to start ripping apart the whole wall unit, I noticed the little guy hanging out under the bull nose. It took some coraling but I eventually retrieved it. Whew. Lession learned: Have a piece of cardboard handy to slip between the top sections before removing the top


Good luck with the new additions,
Jeff

 

[LCDXX]

Jeff--

Great pics and awfully nice setups you got there... I just got back in town this evening and immediately started working on these cubes again. I'm gonna have to take some new pics and post 'em up tomorrow evening.

Hairyspider--

The orientation could really be seen as a matter of preference - perhaps if you were housing a burrowing species as opposed to an arboreal. By putting it upside-down for arboreal Ts makes it easier to maintain without damaging the webbing... on the other hand, rightside-up would be super convenient if you had to deal with a rather small H. lividum.

In any case, nice little setup you got there.

Sheeesh... can Tuesday get here any quicker?

LCDXX

 

[Hairyspider]

re

thats true, I'm setting mine up for some terrestrials. going to a show next week end.

Sheeesh... can Tuesday get here any quicker?

tell me about it I'm waiting on an order from midwest to be delivered tue. also.

Hope things go well with the delivery.

Later

William

 

[LCDXX]

Re: re

tell me about it I'm waiting on an order from midwest to be delivered tue. also.

Well, then I guess we'll both have "new Ts!" threads going on here soon, LOL!

1 day to go!

LCDXX