Haplopelma lividum

[T o m]

Hi, im a nooby here and fairly new to the world of maintaining 8 legged creatures! i have looked after my Eupalastrus campestratus - Pink Zebra and my Avicularia avicularia - Pinktoe for just over a year now both are feeding well and seem to be happy...anyway a few days ago i decided to step up my game and went to my local exotic pet store where i fell in love with the cobalt blue which was there on display and as it was at such a good price including the tank(i think the shop assistant was scared to move her ) i couldnt resist but buy her for £35...So far she has been very well behaved and has not gone for me whilst giving her fresh water and spraying the tank, anyway getting to the point of my post now...i have done alot of research into this spider but internet sites can only give you so much info about maintaining this beautiful creature...id like some feedback from anyone who owns one or has a vast knowledge on this species please.

She is a mature female

1. On the websites i have checked it mentions not to let the humidity fall below 65 and about 80 would be ideal..the guy in the store was adamant that a quick spray everyday or every other day was enough
2. How often and how much should i feed her
3. I was always told to remove dead cricket, if she takes them into her burrow do i need to clean the tank more often than my other species to prevent mold etc.?

 

[Chris_Skeleton]

http://sites.google.com/site/tarantuladb/care-sheets-2/h-lividum

Read that.

And... 2-3 crickets a week is fine.

 

[micheldied]

1. Just keep the soil moist, and keep a water dish in there.
They're pretty hardy Ts.

2. I usually feed enough such that they're not skinny, but not have huge abdomens (not a fan of big butts in the adults...).
I say you have to be the judge on that one.

3. I've never gotten the remains from my H. Lividum because they're all in her burrow, which is 10 inches deep. (Don't go ripping a part the burrow to remove the remains)
I've never had a mold problem, because the enclosure is well ventilated.

 

[darkavenger]

1. Just keep the soil moist, and keep a water dish in there.
They're pretty hardy Ts.

2. I usually feed enough such that they're not skinny, but not have huge abdomens

I've never had a mold problem, because the enclosure is well ventilated.

i agree with this.... when i got mine she wasnt in too good of shape so i constructed an artificial burrow for her out of a deli cup, clear plastic tubing and a pvc elbow. I glued the elements together with non toxic hot glue, poked holes through the sides and top of the deli cup and completely submerse all but the spout of the elbow below the substrate. she adopted the borrow within the first night and has webbed it to her liking and has since become a very healthy very beautiful T. the up side to this in my opinion is you can easily unbury the lid and uncap the deli cup and do maintainence/check on the T periodically with very little stress to the T. Ive always kept it moist around
60-80% humidity but i let mine drop down to 50% every so often befor i give a good mist when its been on the damper side for a while. ive noticed she is a bit more active when it is on the dryer side of the optimum range (60-65%) compared to the higher humiditys around 80-85%. my pet room is at 85 degrees during the day and around 75 at night. they are gorgeous spiders but very very reclusive and secretive. I see mine only in fleeting glimpses in the dead hours of the night its part of their mistique...

 

[T o m]

thanks for all the feedback, her current burrow is only about 3 inches deep despite having about 6-7 inches of substrate to play with she has webbed the entrance nicely and i can only assume she is happy how it is...