Has my Tarantula Outgrown her Enclosure

[Atabby]

My Avicularia A.
I've had for about 3 years I think, she's in a 11.5 x 7.5 enclosure, here is a picture.
Do you think she needs a larger one?
She can almost span from one side of the front face side to side, what would you suggest?

 

[Brewser]

I would rehouse more space and give more vertical structure/hides, room to stretch out.

 

[darkness975]

I would rehouse more space and give more vertical structure/hides, room to stretch out.

This.

 

[Atabby]

Ok well a new enclosure will be on the way soon. And then crossing fingers, eyes and toes we can get her to transfer with no tantrums on her part or mine.
Since her last molt she is very defensive. I open the door to water and feed and she slaps the upper story webbing and tells me off harshly.

 

[darkness975]

Ok well a new enclosure will be on the way soon. And then crossing fingers, eyes and toes we can get her to transfer with no tantrums on her part or mine.
Since her last molt she is very defensive. I open the door to water and feed and she slaps the upper story webbing and tells me off harshly.

I'm worried about when I have to transfer my GBB to a larger enclosure. She's very skittish and super fast.

 

[IntermittentSygnal]

Ok well a new enclosure will be on the way soon. And then crossing fingers, eyes and toes we can get her to transfer with no tantrums on her part or mine.
Since her last molt she is very defensive. I open the door to water and feed and she slaps the upper story webbing and tells me off harshly.

That may be because she needs more places to hide. As @Brewser said, more structure. She needs bark and lots of leaves to create web tunnels in.

 

[darkness975]

That May be because she needs more places to hide. As @Brewser said, more structure. She needs bark and lots of patience leaves to create web tunnels in.

Agreed.

 

[cold blood]

yes, but its not at a critical point by any means.

 

[viper69]

Agree with above

 

[TheraMygale]

It might have a different behavior in its new enclosure. At that size, if you have a top opening enclosure, it should be easy to get her to a catch up. And even if it just opens in the front. Just get a bigger juice container.

 

[Atabby]

It might have a different behavior in its new enclosure. At that size, if you have a top opening enclosure, it should be easy to get her to a catch up. And even if it just opens in the front. Just get a bigger juice container.

It just has a front hinged door on the front. And when I transferred her over from the round cylinder she was in, I thought about how difficult it might be in the future to move her.. Hahahaha :/
But So far I've not had that many problems with rehousing.

I had one, a Tilitacotl a. glom onto the inside of a half coconut shell hide and refuse to let go. I wasn't going to put that hide in the new enclosure but she insisted. Was easy to pick up and install her and her "hut" right in.
It's a little small for her but she is still squeezing her way in and using it. Although most of the time she is sitting on top of it.

 

[Atabby]

Alll Righty ,
We have our Avic. rehoused. It was a bit of a nightmare. ngl. She is now in an 12 x18 large arboreal enclosure.
I can post about all of the headache she put us through, but. Right to the point.
She is now hanging out in one spot on the side of the acrylic in the front above the door and seemingly not exploring. I have 2 new cork barks with plenty of space behind then to hide And her old cork bark with pretty much all of her webbing on it. She spent 1 day on the new bark in the open and now for 3 days it's been on the acrylic. She will move around in an area of about 3 inches but that is it. She has 2 crickets in the enclosure. At least I think they are still there, and plenty of water. Plus I sprinkled some of her old substrate over the new layer of substrate.
This morning I blew very very gently into the air vents and she reacted like the current was a prey item and seemed very excited for a few moments.
So why isn't she hiding or making new web? I know they sit and "vegetate" for the most part but this is way different behavior than what she has exhibited in the past. Yes I am being a worry wart..
Any suggestions or insight?

 

[goofyGoober99]

Tarantulas taking awhile to settle in isn't abnormal. My B emilia moved about and inch in the first week I had her .
I would remove the crickets if she hasn't shown interest in them yet.

I don't own any arboreals but a common recommendation I've seen on here to make avics more comfortable is to add more foliage near the top of the enclosure That might help her settle in.

 

[Spinnenfritzi]

So why isn't she hiding or making new web?

as has allready been said it can take some time.
But i think the setup of your new enclosure isn't very good.
The bark should reach nearly to the top of the enclosure
+ more hiding spots in the upper areas ( like some foliage as goofyGoober99 mentioned) would make her feel more secure.

This is much more important than old hides or old webbing and please stop intentionaly blowing in the ventholes.

 

[Atabby]

as has allready been said it can take some time.
But i think the setup of your new enclosure isn't very good.
The bark should reach nearly to the top of the enclosure
+ more hiding spots in the upper areas ( like some foliage as goofyGoober99 mentioned) would make her feel more secure.

This is much more important than old hides or old webbing and please stop intentionaly blowing in the ventholes.

Yeahh, we didn't realize how big the enclosure actually was! All the cork bark we had was shorter than what is optimal for an arboreal.We have some longer pieces on the way. And some plants that we are going to add.

As I had stated I blew "very very softy" to see if that would get her moving.. it's NOT like I had a leaf blower aimed at her and was blasting her hairy little legs off.

 

[Atabby]

Well, an update on my Avic.
She has still not moved anywhere other than the side of the enclosure and has made no attempt at webbing or much exploration.
I don't know if she has gone behind the artificial foliage or not.
I've fed her 1 mealworm and have misted one side of the enclosure a few times and she has drank from it, I make sure the water dish is full at the bottom.
So it's now been 2 months since I rehoused her and she is just hanging out on the acrylic.
What now? Including a picture

 

[Olan]

I’ve had some adults take a very long time after rehousing to settle in.
But now that it’s winter, I suspect that she likes that spot because it’s the closest to a heat source. If you turn the enclosure around for a while she might find a place she likes in the foliage.
What are temps like in the room?

 

[Atabby]

In the winter, highest is 70, summer, in the mid 70s to mid eighties.

We had to move her to the end of the enclosures, a
Because where she was before the space. only allowed a hinged door and this one is a slide. No, way to open it where she was before,
Sometimes she looks weirdly saggy, and almost like she will fall or slide to the bottom of the enclosure.

Yesterday she did do grooming though.
My husband speculates she doesn't like how big the container is, or is cautious about the fake foliage, but she had the same kind of stuff in her old house and I transferred all of the old foliage to the new.

 

[TenebrisAvicularia]

I've noticed that in winter, if the room goes below 72 fahrenheit that my Avic would rather stay in one spot. Sometimes he'll hide for weeks at a time, or until I turn on a spacial heater in the room. It seems that A. avics like it around 74+ degrees F. Normal activity resumes once warm. Your T could just be a tad chilly. I may be wrong though.