got a spiderling sent to me ,help !!!

missy

Arachnopeon
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Jan 21, 2007
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got a spiderling sent to me free of charge, man it is small, what can it be fed , i know pinhead crickets but how the hell do you get them out, of those tubs into its pot without losing half of the box, is there something abit easier i can give it, also how big a container should i have it in ? the spiderling is a brachypelma vagans, cheers
 

Windchaser

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As far as its container basically any small bottle will work. Pill vials or deli cups seem to be the norm. Just make sure that your air holes are small. If they are too big then the sling can escape. I generally use holes that are 1/32" or 1/16".

For small slings (under 3/4") I pre-kill my prey items. To grab them I use forceps with a rather sharp point. It takes practice but after a while you get pretty good at grabbing them. I have a small, plastic gold fish bowl that I use as my feeder container. My crickets are kept in other enclosures normally but when I feed I dump a bunch into the fish bowl. This helps to restrict the crickets movement and makes it easier to grab them.
 

Rizzolo

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also, you can put them in the refrigerator or freezer for a few seconds. you will have to calibrate it, so you don't kill them. If you are going to kill them, it is better to do it with forceps as Windchaser says. i found that even with teeny Brachys, they can take down pinheads, but don't leave them alone with the crickets. Better to use nymph B lateralis roaches, since they can't hurt your spiderlings and you can leave them in the container if you have to. your spider can easily take out nymph lats.
 

Windchaser

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i found that even with teeny Brachys, they can take down pinheads, but don't leave them alone with the crickets.
I agree, they are definitely capable of taking down small crickets. However, in the past I have lost some slings to hungry crickets. I prefer to be cautious now and pre-kill the crickets. Or at a minimum, crush their heads enough so that they are no longer a threat to the sling.
 

missy

Arachnopeon
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Jan 21, 2007
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35
hi this is the enclosure that she is in at the mo.

do reckon it is ok ?
she came today, when do you reckon we should start feeding her ??
 

cheetah13mo

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As soon as you get ahold of a small cricket to feed it, give it a try. If the T doesn't start eating within 10 or 15 minutes, take the cricket out and try again tomorrow.
 

cliff

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I raised a tiny N.chromatus which absoultely refused live prey on prekilled pinheads and pieces of mealworms. It actually seemed to like the mealworms best. It is hard to tell if it is eating the mealworms because it seemed to eat from the open wound and left the casing. Just watch it's abdomen and if it looks plump everything is ok. Careful about leaving mealworm parts in the enclosure for more than 24 hrs. they are subject to mold. My B.vagans sling which was about 3/4 inch, took live pinheads right away.

Cliff:)
 

Mushroom Spore

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also, you can put them in the refrigerator or freezer for a few seconds. you will have to calibrate it, so you don't kill them.
Actually, killing crickets with the freezer is perfectly fine, and I've been doing it as long as I've owned tarantulas. :) You can buy a bag of cricks at the pet store, stuff it in the freezer for an hour, then empty the bodies into a little tupperware that stays in the freezer. There you go, you're set for weeks.
 

Selenops

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With really small s'lings whom haven't achieved natural colors through molting/growth yet, I usually use a vial or pillbox or small deli cup. And punch 10-20 ventilation holes into the lid with the sharp end of a sewing needle.
 

Windchaser

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Actually, killing crickets with the freezer is perfectly fine, and I've been doing it as long as I've owned tarantulas. :) You can buy a bag of cricks at the pet store, stuff it in the freezer for an hour, then empty the bodies into a little tupperware that stays in the freezer. There you go, you're set for weeks.
Wouldn't freezing them for an extended period of time (weeks) tend to dehydrate the crickets? If so, it would diminish the amount of water the tarantula will get from it.
 

Mina

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If you only have larger sized crickets, just lightly crush the crickets head and give it to the sling. My B. vagans would eat crickets twice her size when she was very tiny, I would just crush the cricket and put it in with her. It was really cute, she would drag the part of the cricket she hadn't yet eaten around with her, it took her about 3 days to eat it completely. I did try early on to take one away before she was done with it and it was a fight. She got very indignant and we ended up playing tug o' war. I finally let her keep it. Just keep an eye on your sling and don't let uneaten cricket remains stay in with it for long.
 

Mushroom Spore

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Wouldn't freezing them for an extended period of time (weeks) tend to dehydrate the crickets? If so, it would diminish the amount of water the tarantula will get from it.
I dunno, they always look normal to me. :? Except for a couple that have been in the tupperware for months, they tend to look freezerburnt. I keep my slings hydrated through moist substrate, though, so if it DOES dehydrate the crickets I guess I wouldn't notice a difference in the Ts. :)
 

missy

Arachnopeon
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Jan 21, 2007
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do you have to thaw them out , like you do pinkie mice ? ie in warm water, or just as they are if they are frozen ?
 

cheetah13mo

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You should let them get plyable before serving them up. Awfully hard to eat frozen.
 

Mushroom Spore

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do you have to thaw them out , like you do pinkie mice ? ie in warm water, or just as they are if they are frozen ?
If you tried to put one in water, it would turn to mush. Just put in the frozen cricket, it'll thaw right there on the dirt in like five minutes. My slings have always been happy to sit there patiently next to it and wait for it to become edible. :)
 
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