Intro from new member looking to be a Desert Hairy owner

Rik Cuddy

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 21, 2017
Messages
103
Evening all. New member here. Haven't yet got a scorpion, as I've been waiting for the last few days for my substrate to dry out. Looking to buy a Desert Hairy once it has. Uploading a couple of pictures of my setup, obvs at night time. Have white LED lighting (whitepython) for the daytime also. The night red LED light is on a dimmer and I plan on only having it on its timer for a short time, at a much dimmer setting. Any advice would be much appreciated. 20170421_210104.jpg 20170421_210118.jpg 20170421_210134.jpg 20170421_210118.jpg
 
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Rik Cuddy

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 21, 2017
Messages
103
BTW the substrate is a mixture of Lucky Reptile Desert Bedding and Lucky Reptile Desert Sand (found on a care sheet. Heat mat is where you can see on the right wall. It's a 16 litre Exo Terra 45x45x30 terrarium.
 

Venom1080

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Sep 24, 2015
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bark chips are a bad substrate. cage is a waste of space for even the largest tarantula. im assuming thats whats going in the top cage.
scorp cage looks fine.
 

Rik Cuddy

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Apr 21, 2017
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I didn't mention anything about the terrarium above the scorpion one at the bottom. That's where my crested gecko lives......
 

ArachnoDrew

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Feb 1, 2017
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The picture looks deceiving lol hard to tell its 2 separate enclosures stacked. The setup looks good. Make sure you use only IR bulbs .don't use any lighting that puts off any UV rays what so ever. Will harm the scorp. I personally use a mixture of sand, cocofiber and excavator clay for my burrowing substrates
 

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Rik Cuddy

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 21, 2017
Messages
103
The picture looks deceiving lol hard to tell its 2 separate enclosures stacked. The setup looks good. Make sure you use only IR bulbs .don't use any lighting that puts off any UV rays what so ever. Will harm the scorp. I personally use a mixture of sand, cocofiber and excavator clay for my burrowing substrates
No UV, simply LED strip lighting made by Whitephython (UK company). Cheers for the reply
 

darkness975

Latrodectus
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Aug 31, 2012
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Evening all. New member here. Haven't yet got a scorpion, as I've been waiting for the last few days for my substrate to dry out. Looking to buy a Desert Hairy once it has. Uploading a couple of pictures of my setup, obvs at night time. Have white LED lighting (whitepython) for the daytime also. The night red LED light is on a dimmer and I plan on only having it on its timer for a short time, at a much dimmer setting. Any advice would be much appreciated. View attachment 237595 View attachment 237598 View attachment 237599 View attachment 237598
How much diggable substrate is in the Enclosure ? H. arizonensis is an obligate burrower and requires several inches of the appropriate sand/clay mixture substrate within which to tunnel into.
 

Rik Cuddy

Arachnosquire
Joined
Apr 21, 2017
Messages
103
How much diggable substrate is in the Enclosure ? H. arizonensis is an obligate burrower and requires several inches of the appropriate sand/clay mixture substrate within which to tunnel into.
It's about 4 inches at the front and slopes up to about 6 inches at the rear
 

Rik Cuddy

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Apr 21, 2017
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Any basic care info would be appreciated. There are lots of things out there online and some of it contradicts other info. For instance temperatures etc
 

ArachnoDrew

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Feb 1, 2017
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You have all the basic care down for the most part. Add some sort of water dish.
If the scorp you house in there is a matured adult. Temps are less of a worry, won't have to deal with molts. But a young desert hairy will need temps regulated a bit closer. Needs a tad more humidity during pre molt and will do better at higher temps.
(DON'T over think temps) they are a desert species so it gets real hot during the day and VERY cold at night. Their burrow is what helps them regulate body temps. So a good burrowing substrate is absolutely necessary for a healthy scorp
 

CreepTumorXD

Arachnoknight
Joined
Apr 22, 2016
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181
If at all possible I would get an adult, in captivity its very hard to get desert hairy's to molt properly and many deaths occur. setup looks fine, but like I said get an adult, very risky otherwise.
 

JoshBC

Arachnosquire
Joined
May 23, 2016
Messages
129
No UV, simply LED strip lighting made by Whitephython (UK company). Cheers for the reply
I have some similar stuff made by Sylvania in a couple of my terrariums. Looks great, even though I don't use it a ton. Came with a remote that lets me choose colour, brightness, etc.

I've never kept H. Arizonensis so can't offer you any care advice, sorry. Gorgeous setup though. :)
 

Smokehound714

Arachnoking
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Mar 23, 2013
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3,091
the red LED's are fine. they wont overheat. Scorpions cannot see red light.

Add more sand and clay, mix it with your fingers. Saturate, then allow to dry for a week before introducing the scorpion.

You can keep the scorpion on loose sand with a hide to scrape under while waiting for the main enclosure to dry sufficiently
 

Rik Cuddy

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Joined
Apr 21, 2017
Messages
103
the red LED's are fine. they wont overheat. Scorpions cannot see red light.

Add more sand and clay, mix it with your fingers. Saturate, then allow to dry for a week before introducing the scorpion.

You can keep the scorpion on loose sand with a hide to scrape under while waiting for the main enclosure to dry sufficiently
Thanks. The substrate already is a mix of sand and clay
 

ArachnoDrew

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Feb 1, 2017
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Do a test burrow once the first 2 inches has dried completely. Check if the substrate is too hard to dig eith your finger if not then you're all set lol

Few people have posted their realistic Desert hairy enclosures and they will burrow to the bottom of the tank every time
 
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