How to feed prekilled to slings?

[FlamingSwampert]

Hello,
I'm a first time tarantula keeper, and I've heard that people feed cricket legs and prekilled prey to their small slings. How do you do this? Don't tarantulas rely on movement to find prey? Do you have to wiggle it with tongs, or will they find it if you leave it on the top of the substrate?

Thank you all.

 

[ladyratri]

Hello,
I'm a first time tarantula keeper, and I've heard that people feed cricket legs and prekilled prey to their small slings. How do you do this? Don't tarantulas rely on movement to find prey? Do you have to wiggle it with tongs, or will they find it if you leave it on the top of the substrate?

Thank you all.

They will find it if you leave it. Put it close to their hiding spot, and leave it for 24 hours, then remove. Repeat like twice a week or so.

Example:

 

[FlamingSwampert]

They will find it if you leave it. Put it close to their hiding spot, and leave it for 24 hours, then remove. Repeat like twice a week or so.

Thank you!

 

[Jaycooks1]

Ya my psalmo victori loved cricket drumsticks till he got bigger he found everything I dropped in his spot

 

[viper69]

Hello,
I'm a first time tarantula keeper, and I've heard that people feed cricket legs and prekilled prey to their small slings. How do you do this? Don't tarantulas rely on movement to find prey? Do you have to wiggle it with tongs, or will they find it if you leave it on the top of the substrate?

Thank you all.

Small>>> we are NOT mind readers

 

[The Grym Reaper]

Just leave pre-killed/parts of prey outside the burrow, tarantulas don't rely 100% on movement/vibration, they have chemoreceptive setae in their feet and slings will happily scavenge dead insects they find

 

[Wolf135]

Leave it in there and take it out the next day, chances are youll see them eating later or find eaten food with a fat T.

 

[Dementeddoll]

Hello,
I'm a first time tarantula keeper, and I've heard that people feed cricket legs and prekilled prey to their small slings. How do you do this? Don't tarantulas rely on movement to find prey? Do you have to wiggle it with tongs, or will they find it if you leave it on the top of the substrate?

Thank you all.

I feed mine small baby dubias. I get then with tongs. I smash their head until I hear it pop. They still move their legs and I put it either inside their burrow or if it’s really webbed right on top. I smash the head to ensure babies don’t get bit. They eat like little piggies. Lol, I don’t really like feeding crickets because I get scared they can get parasites. But you should be fine also if it’s a worm and it’s cut in pieces one piece will do. I feed mine every 2 days.

Also to slings it’s natural they know they can’t really hunt something their size it’s too dangerous so they scavenge. Once they hit a decent size you can start throwing small live roaches or whatever your preference is. If you don’t see them eat it within a day or so I would remove it because also it could be going through premolt. Slings have very good appetites.

 

[tarantulas118]

My juvenile B. boehmei is a total wimp with live prey so I kill a mealworm drop it in 2 inches next to the tarantula and somehow it finds it. Also we’re not tarantulas so we’ll never know how they find it who knows maybe they have better vision than people say

 

[arthurliuyz]

I feed mine every 2 days.

TBH, that's a lot. I feed mine bigger meals every one to two weeks.

 

[cold blood]

I've heard that people feed cricket legs

They do work, but there is minimal "meat on the bones", so they arent really good for fattening them up

and prekilled prey to their small slings. How do you do this?

Just drop it in and walk away. I find diced up mealworms to be the best option.

nom nom (Nhandu chromatus)

• cold blood
• Jun 8, 2018
• 1
• brazilian red and white tarantula chromatus feeding nhandu nhandu chromatus sling

Don't tarantulas rely on movement to find prey?

slings will readily scavenge

 

[Dementeddoll]

TBH, that's a lot. I feed mine bigger meals every one to two weeks.

Slings? The hell, they aren’t adults. You’re suppose to feed them more than once a week to two.

 

[FlamingSwampert]

Thank you all, this has been some great advice!

 

[ladyratri]

Slings? The hell, they aren’t adults. You’re suppose to feed them more than once a week to two.

Depends on the size of the sling and the size of the meal...this is why feeding schedules don't really work. I was feeding my 1" avic sling crickets almost its own size for a while (which it took down like a boss, zero problems there) and more than about one a week would've had it fattened up and fasting for two months before a molt. Spreading out the meals has kept the pre-molt fast down to 3 weeks or a little less...which if nothing else, is better on my nerves and means I get to see it out and about more before it slams the door in my face.

 

[cold blood]

Slings? The hell, they aren’t adults. You’re suppose to feed them more than once a week to two.

feeding every 2 days with small feeders or once every 2 weeks with large prey are essentially the same.

 

[Dementeddoll]

Depends on the size of the sling and the size of the meal...this is why feeding schedules don't really work. I was feeding my 1" avic sling crickets almost its own size for a while (which it took down like a boss, zero problems there) and more than about one a week would've had it fattened up and fasting for two months before a molt. Spreading out the meals has kept the pre-molt fast down to 3 weeks or a little less...which if nothing else, is better on my nerves and means I get to see it out and about more before it slams the door in my face.

Ah ok I use smaller feeders than the size that they are. I like feeding them like that because I like watching them be feisty little boogers.

 

[Zoopy]

Piggybacking off this topic, are house flies nutritious enough for Ts? Obviously not wild caught. I have tons that always go to waste because my jumping spiders don't eat that many. I ripped one's wings off and my new sling immediately went for it.

 

[Denthead]

Piggybacking off this topic, are house flies nutritious enough for Ts?

To my knowledge, yes. Not sure if anyone has a different opinion, but based on everything I've dug up fruit flies are a pretty basic food source for the tiniest slings, so house flies would likely be decent enough for the larger ones if you know where they've been.
I would vary it up with scavenged bug pieces, but I've never had a sling that small anyway so I can't definitively tell you.

 

[ladyratri]

Fruit flies have little nutritional value for a T -- better off with pre-killed/chopped crickets, mealworms etc. As far as house flies, I have no idea if they're any more nutritious than fruit flies, but I'm glad you specified not wild caught. Just want to emphasize that point for anyone else reading. I can't possibly know what pesticides or other chemicals my neighbors/town are using nearby, so it's never worth the risk to feed my T's something wild caught.

I haven't noticed any posts of folks feeding their slings flies, so I suspect they aren't great. Not sure if others will weigh in, but piggybacking the question in here may lead to some more knowledgeable folks missing it.

 

[FlamingSwampert]

Fruit flies have little nutritional value for a T -- better off with pre-killed/chopped crickets, mealworms etc. As far as house flies, I have no idea if they're any more nutritious than fruit flies, but I'm glad you specified not wild caught. Just want to emphasize that point for anyone else reading. I can't possibly know what pesticides or other chemicals my neighbors/town are using nearby, so it's never worth the risk to feed my T's something wild caught.

I haven't noticed any posts of folks feeding their slings flies, so I suspect they aren't great. Not sure if others will weigh in, but piggybacking the question in here may lead to some more knowledgeable folks missing it.

I've seen people mention fruit flies as feeders for tarantulas, but every time the person who mentioned them uses something else.