H. Lividium

veronyka

Arachnoknight
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Is it common for H. Lividiums to completely burrow themselves in? I got mine, and she has been under dirt since the morning after I put her in her cage. Kind of a bummer, she's a beautiful spider but I never get to see her. I gave her a half log but she hides underneath that only to eat, then goes back under the dirt. Do they ever come to the surface? I've had her about a week and have only seen her near the beginning of that week.
 

Lycanthrope

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mine only comes out if she hasnt eaten in a couple days. occasionally i catch her out and about at 5 am when i awake for work.
 

Botar

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I've got an H. minax that is the same way. The only reason I get to see it at all is that it's burrow goes all the way to the bottom of the cage and I can see it through the webbing. It has molted recently... but no chance I'll ever get to see the molt unless I dig for it.

Botar
 

Lycanthrope

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dont you hate that? i once spent a half hour trying to reach a molt with a pair of forceps to avoid digging up a burrow. why cant they just come out and molt?
 

Chris

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I am sure anyone would have warned you about a cobalt blue before you bought it... they are quite reculsive and spend nearly all their time in the burrow.

What you can do though is something like what I tried in my setup... I made an artificial burrow out of some white PVC pipe. I layed it on an angle and buried it then packed dirt around the entrance.

Here is the cool part... one end of it is closed off (the end at the bottom of the burrow) and the top end is threaded. I have a cap that screws on so that when its time for cage maintainance I simply screw the cap on and she can't come out to get me. This is also great if you have to move your spider... it has no idea it has been moved because it has the same burrow!

This works well for 3 reasons... reduces stress on the spider... reduces the risk of a bite... and the fact that I use white allows me to still see the spider when I look inside (gives a nice colour contrast)

I was glad because the spider adopted it almost instantly and has webbed it all up nicely to her liking. A successful experiment so far.
 

Code Monkey

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Originally posted by Chris
I was glad because the spider adopted it almost instantly and has webbed it all up nicely to her liking. A successful experiment so far.
That is a dang good idea. I don't have any burrowers and don't currently plan on getting any, but that's something I will file away for possible future reference.
 

conipto

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I was thinking of something similar to this for the burrowing T cages I am working on building. I was planning on making them roughly the same size as Martin's prebought ones in the thread that he talked about them. (Incidentally, that thread was what cursed me with the idea I need an asian burrower) Then, I was going to put a slot in one side, with a clear plastic piece I could slide in and out during maintenence. The only advantage I see to this method over yours is that the threads can't get packed with dirt, and I personally think PVC pipe is ugly ;) On the other hand, if the Burrower should widen out or close up the burrow, or decide to take up residence near the open slot (a good possiblity I would imagine with the increased airflow through it) then I obviously can't close it, without seriously pissing the T off.

Whichever way I go, when I get myself a mean burrower (probably as soon as I make the setup) I am definatley going to make some sort of gate system, as getting bitten or chasing a mean asain T around my bedroom doesn't appeal to me..

Bill
 

chaset

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Chasing Mean Asian T's

It might be the other way around with them chasing you around the room.
 

Botar

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Chris,

I love your PVC pipe idea. What size pipe are you using?

Botar
 

Chris

Arachnoknight
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Originally posted by Botar
Chris,

I love your PVC pipe idea. What size pipe are you using?

Botar
Depends on the spider... 3 or 4 inch is easy to get...and you can get special built flanges for toilets or drains that are perfect for this exact use.

Just make sure to let the glue dry lol dont want stoned spiders!
 

veronyka

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Dang.. I really like that PVC pipe idea! My spider is pretty mean, I'm sure she wouldn't mind being packed into a pipe when it's time to clean. She hates for me to be all up in her cage moving things :D I think I'm going to try that idea when it comes time to clean the cage out. But one question... how do you ensure that the spider will even use the pipe? I just found mine under layers of dirt the next morning..but I have managed to get her under a log, for now.
 

Immortal_sin

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my A genic has an elbow shaped PVC pipe and uses it. Alot of my slings get a small piece of PVC. I go to the hardware store and buy all shapes and sizes, they work really well, and the spiders seem to like using them. Chris, that is a great idea for the dead end one, I hadn't thought of that before.
 

Martin H.

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BTW, in this thread you will find photos and infos how I keep my Haplopelma species and other obligate burrowers and how to construct tanks for them in which you can see and observe them without digging them out: >>click me<<

all the best,
Martin

edit: link fixed
 
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