Just a few questions

magicmed

Arachnobaron
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Jun 4, 2016
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Hey all Ive got a couple questions, first off my manager ordered the wrong type of 2 oz portion cups, so he told me I could buy the box of 1000 cups, and lids for 25 bucks. That a pretty solid deal? I figured they would be great for water dishes, and when I do try to breed it would be nice to have a stock of them already started. They're the perfectly clear type so bonus for me.

Now as for the breeding thing, what species would you guys recommend for a first attempt? I was thinking some type of hobby beginner classic so I could keep a few, and it would be easy to sell the ones I didn't keep. (Or give away if I wasn't able to sell, not stick in the freezer like ol crazy lol)

Also on that note, if it turns out i had a knack for it, how would this community feel about a new breeder? I know you have to earn report and I certainly wouldn't want to step on anyone's toes and go undercutting everyone, especially since you guys really got me into this hobby, and I respect a lot of you greatly. Just thought it would be something I would really be into, and why not make a little off working with the animals you love? (This is not a get rich quick scheme...just reiterating that)

Anyway, hope im not disrespecting anyone asking these quesrions. :)
 

Poec54

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A lot of people have figured out that by breeding they can offset some, or all, of the cost of their collection. None of them worry about what anyone else in the hobby thinks about it. You have as much right to breed your spiders as anyone else. Pick species that have a value, which rules out OBT's and LP's.
 

SausageinaNet

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A lot of people have figured out that by breeding they can offset some, or all, of the cost of their collection. None of them worry about what anyone else in the hobby thinks about it. You have as much right to breed your spiders as anyone else. Pick species that have a value, which rules out OBT's and LP's.
Not sure about the US but in Europe you won't make much if any money from breeding. Apart from things that do cost actual money like enclosures food etc. you also have to factor in the time it takes to feed/water 100+ slings. If you have a sac with maybe 300 slings it might take you years untill you got rid of all of them.
 

Andrea82

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Not sure about the US but in Europe you won't make much if any money from breeding. Apart from things that do cost actual money like enclosures food etc. you also have to factor in the time it takes to feed/water 100+ slings. If you have a sac with maybe 300 slings it might take you years untill you got rid of all of them.
Just take a look at the classifieds and prices on here...breeding T's is a very lucrative business in the US.
 

Vanessa

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Do you have any established breeders close by who already have a good customer base? Maybe check with them to see if you can forge some sort of partnership with them.
Even someone who you can make a bulk shipment to. You might not make money that way, but you can probably make a trade deal.
 

magicmed

Arachnobaron
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A trade deal would be great, especially to start out to build my collection. Honestly I don't think there are any breeders around me, at least notable ones. @cold blood is the closest serious one and he's states away lol. I know I check craigslist frequently and I have seen literally 0 T adds in the last few months, keep in mind my town isn't tiny, around 200,000 people, so I think there could be a decent customer base here that sadly is relying on pet store tarantulas haha
 

EulersK

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So long as you don't flood the market with OBT's, B. albopilosums, LP's, and the like, I don't see how you'd be stepping on anyone's toes. No one owns the market - you're free to do what you want. If someone gets upset, that's their own issue. It's called competition. If/When I get my P. striata sac, I plan on selling them for dirt cheap. An arboreal guy I am not, and I'd rather have them in a good home. I'm primarily doing it for the experience. That being said, I'll be way undercutting the "big time" breeders. I doubt they'll even notice.
 

magicmed

Arachnobaron
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So long as you don't flood the market with OBT's, B. albopilosums, LP's, and the like, I don't see how you'd be stepping on anyone's toes. No one owns the market - you're free to do what you want. If someone gets upset, that's their own issue. It's called competition. If/When I get my P. striata sac, I plan on selling them for dirt cheap. An arboreal guy I am not, and I'd rather have them in a good home. I'm primarily doing it for the experience. That being said, I'll be way undercutting the "big time" breeders. I doubt they'll even notice.
Haha that does make me feel a bit better. I wasn't even considering obt, lp, or albo. Albo just because I've seen the sac size...that's not a beginner breeder T lol. I was thinking something along the lines of a B. Vagans/smithi, or maybe A. Seemani as a first breeding project
 

Vanessa

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A trade deal would be great, especially to start out to build my collection. Honestly I don't think there are any breeders around me, at least notable ones. @cold blood is the closest serious one and he's states away lol. I know I check craigslist frequently and I have seen literally 0 T adds in the last few months, keep in mind my town isn't tiny, around 200,000 people, so I think there could be a decent customer base here that sadly is relying on pet store tarantulas haha
Maybe take a free ad out on Craigslist and ask your local people what tarantula that they are looking for and are willing to pay for? You might get a lot of different species, but it will give you an idea of how many people close to you are even in the hobby at all.
 

Poec54

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Not sure about the US but in Europe you won't make much if any money from breeding. Apart from things that do cost actual money like enclosures food etc. you also have to factor in the time it takes to feed/water 100+ slings. If you have a sac with maybe 300 slings it might take you years untill you got rid of all of them.

Breed the right species and sell to the right people you don't have that problem. The way I do it is give them a couple good meals at 2nd instar and them price them to move, before you get bogged down in maintenance. I like to move out sacs quickly. You get a sac of 100 & sell/trade them to a few dealers for $5 each. That covers a lot of cages and food. Produce a few sacs a year and it adds up. Even if that species typically retails for $20, you come out ahead, as retail means lots of little orders, packing, and trips to the shipping office. In the meantime you have to feed and water the rest for months. That's where you start to lose money and tie up a lot of time. To me it's not worth it. Let the dealers contend with that.
 

magicmed

Arachnobaron
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Maybe take a free ad out on Craigslist and ask your local people what tarantula that they are looking for and are willing to pay for? You might get a lot of different species, but it will give you an idea of how many people close to you are even in the hobby at all.
Great idea actually, will do that

Breed the right species and sell to the right people you don't have that problem. The way I do it is give them a couple good meals at 2nd instar and them price them to move, before you get bogged down in maintenance. I like to move out sacs quickly. You get a sac of 100 & sell/trade them to a few dealers for $5 each. That covers a lot of cages and food. Produce a few sacs a year and it adds up. Even if that species typically retails for $20, you come out ahead, as retail means lots of little orders, packing, and trips to the shipping office. In the meantime you have to feed and water the rest for months. That's where you start to lose money and tie up a lot of time. To me it's not worth it. Let the dealers contend with that.
That's what I was thinking, say I do have a sac of 100, raise them to one or two meals, trade 80-90 to a breeder for another species I want, and raise the remaining to sell or trade as juvie/subs.
 

Poec54

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Just take a look at the classifieds and prices on here...breeding T's is a very lucrative business in the US.

No, not lucrative for most when you figure all the costs and time, but you can certainly get back all the money you ever put into the hobby, and be able to get new species you never could afford before. Make it pay for itself so it's not a black hole you keep pouring money into. It's easy to do.
 

viper69

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B. Vagans
Bad idea unless you plan on volume selling. Even dealers sell them for a few dollars each at times, or as freebies.

If you are going to breed, breed something that is common/somewhat common, but not THAT common. For example, GBBs. They are "always" around, but not all the time, and they always hold their value pretty well compared to the all the common Mexican species many of us have already.

An even better example, would be to breed A. minatrix, B. klaasi, or B. albiceps

If you are doing solely to produce Ts and free early X-mas gifts, breed whatever you want.
 

edesign

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In the meantime you have to feed and water the rest for months. That's where you start to lose money and tie up a lot of time. To me it's not worth it. Let the dealers contend with that.
I'm sorta dealing with this and the whopping thirty C. gracilis scorplings I suddenly found myself with. It was cool at first but after a couple months it's getting to be a chore checking on all of them all of the time plus feeding and stuff (it can take me 90+ minutes to go through just those. I'd hate to imagine 100+ slings!). I spoke to a local pet store who said they would take some "when they get bigger" as long as they're not from Arizona (don't ask, tangential topic). I'm a bit paranoid to ship anything because I don't know how much x-raying and scrutinizing the local authorities are doing with outbound mail and packages due to the legal status of MJ here. I thought I read somewhere that FedEx allows scorpions to be shipped just not T's for whatever reason. I'd have to verify that though, sleep deprived, brain not working great.

Anyway, my point was that Poec54 is right on the money about you probably wanting to get rid of the slings before you get bogged down in maintenance even if it means selling at wholesale prices. Spider egg sacs yield a lot more specimens than scorpions so easier to make money that way.
 

Poec54

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As it is, I've got a couple hundred tarantulas set up in deli cups (ones I've bred or traded for) in addition to the rest of my collection. There's time and work involved.
 

viper69

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get rid of the slings before you get bogged down in maintenance even if it means selling at wholesale prices
There was a recent sac count of an LP, the guy produced about 1100 slings. Imagine feeding all of those!!
 

Otis Driftwood

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That actually seems mediocre compared to other sacs I have seen, but more than a headache nonetheless. You can barely give those away.
 

viper69

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That actually seems mediocre compared to other sacs I have seen, but more than a headache nonetheless. You can barely give those away.
I wasn't suggesting the size was large or small for that species, only providing info so the potential breeder can add up the time involved, nothing more.
 
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