h. lividum question.

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Arachnoknight
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Oct 14, 2010
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my 4-inch cb is not wanting to go into her hide at all. she sits on the side of the tank, or scrunched up in the corner. she seems like maybe she's not content? is it possible that she's in a tank thats too big and she doesn't feel secure? she's currently housed in a ten gallon. would she be better in a five gallon? i have one.
or is she just adjusting to her enviornment?
 

Musicwolf

Arachnoknight
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Jul 2, 2010
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my 4-inch cb is not wanting to go into her hide at all. she sits on the side of the tank, or scrunched up in the corner. she seems like maybe she's not content? is it possible that she's in a tank thats too big and she doesn't feel secure? she's currently housed in a ten gallon. would she be better in a five gallon? i have one.
or is she just adjusting to her enviornment?
Probably just adjusting - - mine took 2 months before he decided to burrow. Then, he disappeared for about 6 weeks before making any appearance at all. Have no fear, your H. lividum will also become a pet hole :D
 

losct2381

Arachnosquire
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Dec 2, 2010
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I have 2 the same size I keep them in 2 1/2 gallon tanks with alot of substrate that they burrow perfectly I think they might need a smaller enclosure

---------- Post added at 12:18 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:17 AM ----------

But make sure that u get the good glass kind not the cheap critter keeper
 

Hobo

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my 4-inch cb is not wanting to go into her hide at all. she sits on the side of the tank, or scrunched up in the corner. she seems like maybe she's not content? is it possible that she's in a tank thats too big and she doesn't feel secure? she's currently housed in a ten gallon. would she be better in a five gallon? i have one.
or is she just adjusting to her enviornment?
The material the enclosure is made of doesn't matter, be it a glass aquarium or a plastic Kritter keeper. Ten gallons is a little big, but for burrowers like your cb, it wont matter so bo worries. These guys seem to need to burrow, and a hide isn't usually good enough.

Did you start a burrow for it? I've found this helps them settle in very quickly.
Just take a broom handle or something with about the same thickness and jam it in the sub about halfway through (did I mention your sub should be deep? At least 8" deep, preferably more) and pack dirt around it firmly. Remove the handle carefully and you should have a nice starter burrow for it. You can do it at an angle, straight down, against the glass, wherever you want. With any luck he'll take to it overnight. If not, just be patient. These guys can take a while to settle in and burrow as already mentioned.
 

gumby

Arachnoprince
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Just keep in mind that your T. does not know you intend her to hide in one place or another. Be thankful you can see her because chances are it wont last for long.
 

HAGAR

Arachnosquire
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Just keep in mind that your T. does not know you intend her to hide in one place or another. Be thankful you can see her because chances are it wont last for long.
Lol you got that right.

I havent seen my cb in , wel i cant remember the last time that i actually saw her.{D

Just see the occasional pellet lol.

The tank might be a bit big but as hobo said it probably wont matter.

Just enjoy it while you can.

Regards

Arnold.
 

EndlessForms

Arachnoknight
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well i didn't do a starter burrow. but i have a burried cave. and the sub is only about 4 inches not 8. if i move her to the 5gallon it would be deeper. since she's gonna be a pet hole anyway, would it be ok to move her into the 5gallon and use the ten for my little parahybana? or would it be best if i just leave her? she's been in the ten gallon around a month or so, i recently took her out o add more sub [still not enough GAHHH!] so would it be entirely too stressful to move her again?
 

Hobo

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well i didn't do a starter burrow. but i have a burried cave. and the sub is only about 4 inches not 8. if i move her to the 5gallon it would be deeper. since she's gonna be a pet hole anyway, would it be ok to move her into the 5gallon and use the ten for my little parahybana? or would it be best if i just leave her? she's been in the ten gallon around a month or so, i recently took her out o add more sub [still not enough GAHHH!] so would it be entirely too stressful to move her again?
Well you could probaly get away with less than 8", that's just the ideal IMO. Since it's still only 4", you can just put on a couple of more inches and try a slanted starter burrow. Heck, try it with 4" and see what happens. I've seen people keep them in less and it worked out. I tried the underground cave thing (it was a clear bottle so I could see her from the side) but that didn't work at all. They seem to need to make the burrow thier own way. I'd keep her where she is now, but try a starter burrow, probably add a bit more substrate. Aren't 10 gallons taller than 5 gallons?
 

Moltar

ArachnoGod
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H' lividum, especially WC specimens (not saying yours is or isn't wc) are notorious for taking quite a long time to get settled in. They can be fairly picky about substrate moistness, preferring not to dig much if it's too dry. It isn't unusual for a big gal to take a month or two to really take to an enclosure.

For now, i'd give her a starter burrow, plenty of time and make sure substrate is decently on the moist side without being muddy.
 

tarantulaholic

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On my cobalt blue she seems not a big fan of huge inclosure 10gallon. She seem to like smaller set-up, like those plastic tall containers at walmart, 7" around and abuot 8-10" deep with moist dirt. I normally start the burrow and 90% time shell finish it up. This species imo requires high humidity and moist dirt similar to Goliath Bird eaters.
 

Hobo

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On my cobalt blue she seems not a big fan of huge inclosure 10gallon. She seem to like smaller set-up, like those plastic tall containers at walmart, 7" around and abuot 8-10" deep with moist dirt. I normally start the burrow and 90% time shell finish it up. This species imo requires high humidity and moist dirt similar to Goliath Bird eaters.
They can be perfectly fine at regular humidity, and blondi type humidity isn't really necessary. I keep mine completely dry with no problems, though I can see that having moist sub when they are starting out to help them dig stable burrows might be necessary.
Here's my source.
The link is also good reading for the OP! :)
 

tarantulaholic

Arachnoknight
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They can be perfectly fine at regular humidity, and blondi type humidity isn't really necessary. I keep mine completely dry with no problems, though I can see that having moist sub when they are starting out to help them dig stable burrows might be necessary.
Here's my source.
The link is also good reading for the OP! :)
Good reading thanks, maybe that explains why my cobalt blue is thriving when dirt dries up. But my (2) 8" Singapore blue females both died after 1yr in captivity,not sure if old age or humidity factor.
 

bobusboy

Arachnoknight
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H. lividum is a pet hole.

Singapore blue is not H. lividum, it is Lampropelma violaceopes.
 
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