Maybe getting a T?

[Harmonicon]

Hello! I mostly like scorpions and beetles, but I thought about keeping a tarantula.

My mom is deathly afraid of them, but I was wondering if there was some variety of them that is "less scary"

I am O.K with tarantulas unless they are aggressive or bolts a ton.

Also, please note that I am a beginner and would love if it could fit in a 14 x 7-inch plastic shoebox (with ventilation on the sides ofc)

Any reply would help. Thanks!

 

[Colorado Ts]

If you could pick the best Tarantula for you, how would you describe it; size, color?

How would it behave?

Usually when you answer those questions, it provides us with enough information to make more accurate suggestions.

 

[EulersK]

My #1 recommendation for the vast majority of new keepers is A. chalcodes. To this day, it's actually still one of my favorite species in the hobby.

0.1 A. chalcodes

• EulersK
• May 3, 2017
• 7

One of the OG's of my collection, love this girl

This is one of the few species that can be kept on truly "bone dry" substrate. I live in one of the driest climates in the US, and bone dry works perfectly well. Being a NW terrestrial, it's not prone to bolting or biting, and frankly rarely even kick hairs. They have minimal food requirements (you'll certainly be watering your houseplants more often than you need to feed this spider). They also have negligible venom, so there's no fear in keeping them around children or pets. Their care is dirt simple - hide, water dish, and a shoebox shaped enclosure. That's all. They are the definition of a display tarantula, usually only using their hide when startled or when molting.

Best of all? They're one of the few tarantulas that are native to the US. Meaning you can pick up an adult female for under $100, moreso around $50-$75. I would recommend an adult female though, as they are quite slow growing.

 

[TwiztedNinja]

I would go with a smaller A. chalcodes since you are limited on the size of the enclosure, and my big one moves much more than a typical pet rock and its almost never in its hide (unless its hibernation time). Because of this, I gave her a 10 gallon tank, and she uses all of it (although slowly lol).

A juvenile chalcodes would live nicely in that enclosure as its not too small and you can still provide it with a good amount of substrate in case it wants to play in it

Two pics of my big one and one of my juvenile

 

[jcmbibb311]

I agree that an A. chalcodes would be great. They look good, and they are easy to find as well as relatively inexpensive. They are also very a tolerant tarantula and are much less defensive than many, even NWs, can be (with exceptions of course).

 

[viper69]

If you could pick the best Tarantula for you, how would you describe it; size, color?

How would it behave?

Usually when you answer those questions, it provides us with enough information to make more accurate suggestions.

Very true

@fishyfriends876

This is the species you need, hard to find now. H. chilensis.

AF E. sp. Red, Post-Molt

• viper69
• Aug 29, 2016

E. sp. Red, Adult Female eating 2 of 2.

• viper69
• Aug 29, 2016

E. sp. Red, Adult Female- Recent Molt

• viper69
• Aug 29, 2016
• 1
• chilensis euathlus sp. "red" female homoeomma homoeomma chilensis

 

[Harmonicon]

If you could pick the best Tarantula for you, how would you describe it; size, color?

How would it behave?

Usually when you answer those questions, it provides us with enough information to make more accurate suggestions.

I would prefer a medium size but I don’t really care about the color. I would like it to behave calmly when I open its bin to feed it and not have a threat pose every time I do. Thanks!

My #1 recommendation for the vast majority of new keepers is A. chalcodes. To this day, it's actually still one of my favorite species in the hobby.

0.1 A. chalcodes

• EulersK
• May 3, 2017
• 7

One of the OG's of my collection, love this girl

This is one of the few species that can be kept on truly "bone dry" substrate. I live in one of the driest climates in the US, and bone dry works perfectly well. Being a NW terrestrial, it's not prone to bolting or biting, and frankly rarely even kick hairs. They have minimal food requirements (you'll certainly be watering your houseplants more often than you need to feed this spider). They also have negligible venom, so there's no fear in keeping them around children or pets. Their care is dirt simple - hide, water dish, and a shoebox shaped enclosure. That's all. They are the definition of a display tarantula, usually only using their hide when startled or when molting.

Best of all? They're one of the few tarantulas that are native to the US. Meaning you can pick up an adult female for under $100, moreso around $50-$75. I would recommend an adult female though, as they are quite slow growing.

Thanks for the recommendation I’ll look into that species!

I would go with a smaller A. chalcodes since you are limited on the size of the enclosure, and my big one moves much more than a typical pet rock and its almost never in its hide (unless its hibernation time). Because of this, I gave her a 10 gallon tank, and she uses all of it (although slowly lol).

A juvenile chalcodes would live nicely in that enclosure as its not too small and you can still provide it with a good amount of substrate in case it wants to play in it

Two pics of my big one and one of my juvenile

Thanks for the recommendation!

I agree that an A. chalcodes would be great. They look good, and they are easy to find as well as relatively inexpensive. They are also very a tolerant tarantula and are much less defensive than many, even NWs, can be (with exceptions of course).

Thanks for the reply! Seems like nearly everyone thinks that A. chalcodes is a good species to start with!

 

[mellow]

Any aphonopelma would be a good choice! I would recommend buying from a local exotic pet store that sells tarantulas so you can see if that individual tarantula has that calm personality that you and your family is most comfortable with!

 

[CJJon]

Just make sure your mom knows. Her house, her rules.

 

[mjzheng]

I vote for T.albopilosus ! My girl is a treasure , relatively easy going and a little goofy . She loves rearranging her enclosure . Also cheap to find

 

[nicodimus22]

Thanks for the reply! Seems like nearly everyone thinks that A. chalcodes is a good species to start with!

I'll respectfully disagree with my peers on this one, and explain my thought process.

If my first T was an A. chalcodes, I probably wouldn't have gotten any more. All tarantulas are sedentary, but my A. chalcodes is simply a statue. Hasn't eaten in about 2.5 years. Doesn't move. Doesn't come out of her hide. Shows no signs of pre-molt, as her bald abdomen is still flesh-colored. I think they're pretty Ts, but a big rubber spider might be more active and visible.

I'd strongly recommend something in the Grammostola or Brachypelma/Tliltocatl genera as your first, depending on what you like the look of. T. albopilosus, T. vagans, and G. pulchripes are probably the best starter Ts in the hobby in terms of how many boxes they check, but many others can work equally well (but will cost a bit more.)

 

[Kitara]

Our T. albo was our first and we just loved that furry little butt. He moved around a lot and was very interesting. He rearranged his enclosure often. But he is not defensive. He's little skittish, but would just run into his hide if he got spooked. SO easy to do enclosure maintenance and feed/water. My husband was SO against us (my daughter and I) getting a tarantula. My daughter was quite scared everything bug-like so he was sure it was going to be a disaster. But the T moves so slow and is big enough to not feel like a "gross spider." Since then she's started photographing all kinds of tiny things outside and has found an interest in all kinds of "creepy crawlies"!

 

[Thekla]

If you can find one you could always get a Thrixopelma cyaneolum. They're easy to keep, don't get big, but quite beautiful and they are very friendly... mine is even waving her butt at me every time I do maintenance.

0.1 T. cyaneolum

• Thekla
• Jul 1, 2019
• 3
• cobalt red rump tarantula cyaneolum female juvenile female thrixopelma thrixopelma cyaneolum

Madame de Pompadour has a new dress and doesn't she look stunning in it?

 

[nicodimus22]

If you can find one you could always get a Thrixopelma cyaneolum. They're easy to keep, don't get big, but quite beautiful and they are very friendly... mine is even waving her butt at me every time I do maintenance.

I've been unsuccessfully looking for them for years, so don't get your hopes up very high for one, OP. Beautiful Ts, but pretty much unavailable unless you get incredibly lucky with a private collector.

The only Thrixopelma I ever see pop up for sale occasionally is ockerti.

 

[paumotu]

The curly hair tarantula is one of the cuter, hardier, and more docile species.

 

[Harmonicon]

Just make sure your mom knows. Her house, her rules.

Yea I know haha

The curly hair tarantula is one of the cuter, hardier, and more docile species.

Thank you I will look into that species too!

I'll respectfully disagree with my peers on this one, and explain my thought process.

If my first T was an A. chalcodes, I probably wouldn't have gotten any more. All tarantulas are sedentary, but my A. chalcodes is simply a statue. Hasn't eaten in about 2.5 years. Doesn't move. Doesn't come out of her hide. Shows no signs of pre-molt, as her bald abdomen is still flesh-colored. I think they're pretty Ts, but a big rubber spider might be more active and visible.

I'd strongly recommend something in the Grammostola or Brachypelma/Tliltocatl genera as your first, depending on what you like the look of. T. albopilosus, T. vagans, and G. pulchripes are probably the best starter Ts in the hobby in terms of how many boxes they check, but many others can work equally well (but will cost a bit more.)

Oh I didn't know that! Every T I've seen has a different personality though. I saw one of those in a reptile rescue and she was really active!

 

[Colorado Ts]

If you can find one you could always get a Thrixopelma cyaneolum. They're easy to keep, don't get big, but quite beautiful and they are very friendly... mine is even waving her butt at me every time I do maintenance.

0.1 T. cyaneolum

• Thekla
• Jul 1, 2019
• 3
• cobalt red rump tarantula cyaneolum female juvenile female thrixopelma thrixopelma cyaneolum

Madame de Pompadour has a new dress and doesn't she look stunning in it?

These are great spiders. Often they show up in the hobby mislabeled as Aphonopelma seemanni. Wonderful spider...I have them on my list to acquire in the future.

 

[LailaQ]

I’m adding another vote for a Tliltocatl albopilosus. That’s the species I got for my first tarantula and she totally got me hooked. As cute a tarantula as you’ll be likely to find, IMHO. They’ve got perpetual “bed head”, and are in general pretty chill. I found that mine grew from a larger sling to a juvenile, relatively quickly. And mine eats pretty well, too.

But no matter what kind you get, make sure your mom is okay with it.

Good luck, and here’s to the beginning of your rewarding and happy T keeping!

 

[testdasi]

I would prefer a medium size but I don’t really care about the color. I would like it to behave calmly when I open its bin to feed it and not have a threat pose every time I do. Thanks!

You haven't mentioned budget. And if your requirements are just "medium size", "no threat pose" and "no bolting" then you have many to choose from so it comes down a lot to budget.
As others have mentioned, the BAG genus are generally recommended for beginners.

• Brachypelma (including the spun-off Tliltocatl)
• Aphonopelma
• Grammostola

Perhaps find a few listings that are in your budget and post again and you will get much better recommendations.

 

[ColeopteraC]

Any aphonopelma would be a good choice! I would recommend buying from a local exotic pet store that sells tarantulas so you can see if that individual tarantula has that calm personality that you and your family is most comfortable with!

Depends, local exotic stores aren’t exactly consistent with good care. Get one from a online breeder and just ask about the T...