Getting my first T this week! Feeding, etc.

Chris LXXIX

ArachnoGod
Joined
Dec 25, 2014
Messages
5,845
Hello everyone! I recently ordered a B. vagans sling online and a small enclosure. This will be my first tarantula and I'm excited/nervous. I am nervous because I really want to ensure he/she stays healthy and happy.
This. 'nervous'. Don't be nervous, Lady. I understand but seriously. You are waiting for a Theraposidae, rejoice.

T's teach us the art of patience, they are the opposite (yes, including OW's) of the 'nervous' term.

I was nervous as well in 1992 when with my bro & a couple of friends reached Milano (no online back then nor those kinds of animal shop there) for buy our first two T's.

Nervous not for their care or such, but about a good excuse to find and sell to parents for the time of entering home with enclosure/s and everything, so I had the idea to tell to one of my friends to blame a lowlife heroin junkie addict (back then pretty popular here, those infamous needle addicted created lots of urban legends here in Northern Italy, oranges included) that "wanted to bribe us, innocent teens, on the train home" for distract Mommy while me & a friend reached our room with the T's, eh eh... while what happened is that we were the ones that scared the hell out of other people in the train, claiming that those spiders were deadly -- the lovely general ignorance of the first '90 was great :angelic:

Enjoy your sling.
 

cold blood

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jan 19, 2014
Messages
13,223
Is this because you think they are unnecessary or is there something less desirable about them? I ordered a 1" GBB so went with the juvie enclosure. I planned on moving to the adult enclosure or something like the Exo Terra Medium Low later down the road.
Its mainly because of the ventilation, but also cost and ease of use.

Slings should have less venting to maintain moisture levels. Mesh is too much and can cause it to dry fast, making for high maintenance. Ones with drilled venting would be better.

I also find them more cumbersome than a deli, but as pointed out, the more you use it the less hassle it is either way.

I like the pliable top, which allows me to feed, water and clean while essentially keeping the top still on.

Plus they are super easy to ventilate in any manner you want and they have the same 100% visibility....and you can get a sleeve of deli cups for less than one single"fancy" acrylic.

The mesh can be issue, not good ventilation without modification, and the opening can be really finicky and jerky.
I agree, i have real troubles, too...but i imagine id be smoother if i utilized them more of them.

The opening can be jerky with a deli cup too. I always have to be really slow to avoid jostling my T around when I pop open the lid. I've gotten good at it though, it just takes a few seconds.
In time it will be much less of an issue....i remember battling a few tops back in the day...lol....but it does get a lot easier to manipulate them in time.

Would a plastic food storage container work? I have a couple of those but what would be the best way to add holes? I don't have a drill.

I mainly wanted the substrate and stuff, which is why I went for it.
They work, but i dont like them....theyre a real pain to ventilate and the rigid tops are both tough to open as well as disruptive. Visibility isnt usually as good either...my advice is just to use them for food and get deli cups next time you go to the grocery store.
 

runCMD

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 21, 2017
Messages
36
Thanks! At $5 it was cheap and convienient so I figured no-brained. The GBB should grow fast so I'm already looking at the replacement options for when it gets bigger. Now if I was doing setups for more than one I'd probably worry more about price.

Do you think with a 1" GBB I need to worry about restricting ventilation? Again, sorry for hijack but I think it's relevant.
 

Suz

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 23, 2017
Messages
15
This. 'nervous'. Don't be nervous, Lady. I understand but seriously. You are waiting for a Theraposidae, rejoice.

T's teach us the art of patience, they are the opposite (yes, including OW's) of the 'nervous' term.

I was nervous as well in 1992 when with my bro & a couple of friends reached Milano (no online back then nor those kinds of animal shop there) for buy our first two T's.

Nervous not for their care or such, but about a good excuse to find and sell to parents for the time of entering home with enclosure/s and everything, so I had the idea to tell to one of my friends to blame a lowlife heroin junkie addict (back then pretty popular here, those infamous needle addicted created lots of urban legends here in Northern Italy, oranges included) that "wanted to bribe us, innocent teens, on the train home" for distract Mommy while me & a friend reached our room with the T's, eh eh... while what happened is that we were the ones that scared the hell out of other people in the train, claiming that those spiders were deadly -- the lovely general ignorance of the first '90 was great :angelic:

Enjoy your sling.
Certainly an interesting story! Thanks for sharing.
 

Chris LXXIX

ArachnoGod
Joined
Dec 25, 2014
Messages
5,845
Certainly an interesting story! Thanks for sharing.
Nah, that's what happened... the story of a bunch of Italian teens that decided to buy their first T's in early '90. IMO not interesting at all. User @cold blood fishing in 'Packerland' an old Confederate boot instead of a bass? Hell, that would be interesting :-s
 

cold blood

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jan 19, 2014
Messages
13,223
Nah, that's what happened... the story of a bunch of Italian teens that decided to buy their first T's in early '90. IMO not interesting at all. User @cold blood fishing in 'Packerland' an old Confederate boot instead of a bass? Hell, that would be interesting :-s
They would be yankee boots up here in WI;) But I can't say I have caught a boot before. We got mostly fish in our lakes up here thankfully.
 

Attachments

runCMD

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 21, 2017
Messages
36
got mine alive and well today - looks great. Hope you have similar results!
 

Jeff23

Arachnolord
Joined
Jul 27, 2016
Messages
620
Yeah, the enclosure is pretty small. It is the spiderling enclosure from Jamie's Tarantulas. I think I'll drip water down the sides. I didn't know they would eat pre-killed food either like a snake...that's good to know!

I had to look up the g. pulchripes. It's beautiful!
You can still use a water bowl for it. I use Monopoly game hotels or houses turned upside down, plastic sewing thimbles, or other small plastic objects that you can buy in craft shops.
 

Trenor

Arachnoprince
Joined
Jan 28, 2016
Messages
1,896
IS that
Don't want to hijack the thread but I feel this is useful.
Is this because you think they are unnecessary or is there something less desirable about them? I ordered a 1" GBB so went with the juvie enclosure. I planned on moving to the adult enclosure or something like the Exo Terra Medium Low later down the road.
The mesh can be issue, not good ventilation without modification, and the opening can be really finicky and jerky.
I used Jamies enclosures a lot when I started with both arboreal and terrestrials Ts. I've not had any problems with them and I never needed to mod anything on them. They worked good, though I prefer them for arboreal and moved to deli cups for terrestrials because of the amount of Ts I got. Now days I make my own cause it is cheaper to buy the boxes and drill them myself.

RUB work really good for GBBs once they get a little size IMO.
 

runCMD

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 21, 2017
Messages
36
RUB?

I modded my juvie enclosure lid with a hole to accept a thermostat probe
 

Suz

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 23, 2017
Messages
15
It took a bit to get him/her here (I am going with male for now) but little Spidey has arrived safely! I thought he was dead at first, tbh, because he was tucked into a tight ball but when I touched him, he moved. He's now exploring his cage and getting some water. I'm very happy!
 

Suz

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 23, 2017
Messages
15
Pic! I've been calling him Spidey. I haven't been able to get very many photos as he is so tiny and likes to burrow. But he crawled out for a short period after we had the light off for a while.
 

Anoplogaster

Arachnodemon
Joined
Jan 15, 2017
Messages
675
I like Jamie's enclosures for their attractiveness. But yeah, some can be a little tight to open when they're new. They're just clear containers from Container Store with a hole drilled out. Still have my little versicolor living in one, and a Latrodectus in another one.
 
Top