My tarantula is barely moving. Should I be worried?

[quyen]

I have an approximately 3in to 3.5in T. It is a chilean rose hair. It barely moves in its tank, it only moves when the tank shakes from me shifting the tank to another side of my desk. It also stays on the side of the tank as well. Stays on the side as in just being close to the wall or corner, but she isn't climbing on it or anything.
But the thing is that today, when I took the tank out in my backyard to replace the soil with drier soil, i let her out of her enclosure and placed her on my large patches of dirt, and I saw a whole new side of her. She was walking and climbing and roaming around. But then again, when I placed her back into her tank, it stopped being active.

An hour ago, I tried feeding it a cricket, the cricket was trying to crawl under her, and so she rose up from her stance and raised 2 of her legs as well, just so the cricket can pass through under her. And then she stood in the same exact stance, with her 2 legs in the air and everything for a straight 2 minutes. She's still standing in the same spot, but her 2 legs arent up now. Should I be worried?

The tank is 12in w and 12in l, and 5in in height.

 

[Toff202]

Welcome to the ownership of a Grammostola rosea. They are knows for being "pet rocks".

 

[ArachnaeEsoterica]

Tank size sounds fine. They're supposed to sit there and be pet rocks. You have a normal rosy. Leave her alone and stop shaking her.

 

[quyen]

Welcome to the ownership of a Grammostola rosea. They are knows for being "pet rocks".

Hahahaha. So my t always hanging on edge of the tank isn't something I should be worried about?

 

[Haksilence]

Show us a picture of the specimen and the enclosure, but yeah that's mostly normal behavior for most new world terrestrial ts. They sit there for hours and hours. Grammostola are also notorious for fasting for long periods of time so them not taking food shouldn't be a concern, they just do that

 

[BorisTheSpider]

Welcome to the ownership of a Grammostola rosea. They are knows for being "pet rocks".

I have one that leans up against the side of her enclosure with two three legs jacked up against the glass . She will sit there for hours
on end .

 

[8legsletsbefriends]

My porteri is either sitting on top of her hide or inside the hide. She don't do much until i put food in there then she comes alive!

 

[quyen]

Tank size sounds fine. They're supposed to sit there and be pet rocks. You have a normal rosy. Leave her alone and stop shaking her.

I didn't mean to shake her, I was just shifting her tank to the other side of my desk.

 

[quyen]

I have one that leans up against the side of her enclosure with two three legs jacked up against the glass . She will sit there for hours
on end .

Exactly! I see mine do that as well! Haha

 

[mistertim]

Can you either provide a picture or describe your setup? How much sub? A hide? What is the water source? Any heating mats, etc?

Her hanging out right on the side of the enclosure isn't a big deal UNLESS there is a heat mat there. If that is the case, remove it immediately.

 

[quyen]

So my habitat is 12in w by 12in l by 5in h. Before I had 3 inches of substrate, but she wasn't burrowing at all, so I decided to take away some substrate, making it a height of 2 inches on substrate. I have to 2 wooden planks leaning onto each other in one corner as a hide for the t, and then I have a small leafy plant next to the hide. I also have a small water dish filled with a few marbles in it (so she doesn't drown), and water from bottled water, across from the hide.
She doesn't seem to use the hide and just stays at the walls. Not literally on the walls, but just stands next to them. Sometimes a few of her legs are on the wall while she is standing next to it.
There is no heat mat, I use a heater once in a while in my room.

 

[mistertim]

Ok, then its just a rosea being a rosea. They're called pet rocks for a reason.

And you can take out the marbles...tarantulas won't drown unless you try really really hard to drown one. Though sometimes people will put small rocks or something in the bowl so crickets won't drown.

 

[Haksilence]

Your tarantula will never drown, that can be almost guaranteed. Your tarantula is probably just resting, I've noticed my Grammostola and brachypelma do this the most, scutched up against the glass with a leg or two up on it. That's a tarantula version of an lazy boy chair.

 

[quyen]

Ok, then its just a rosea being a rosea. They're called pet rocks for a reason.

And you can take out the marbles...tarantulas won't drown unless you try really really hard to drown one. Though sometimes people will put small rocks or something in the bowl so crickets won't drown.

Ok, cool. Thanks

 

[quyen]

Your tarantula will never drown, that can be almost guaranteed. Your tarantula is probably just resting, I've noticed my Grammostola and brachypelma do this the most, scutched up against the glass with a leg or two up on it. That's a tarantula version of an lazy boy chair.

hahahaha cool. thank you

 

[cold blood]

While they may burrow in the wild, they rarely do in captivity, in fact they rarely use their hides much if at all, either...The ones that do seem to be the exceptions. Its been well over a decade since I have seen mine use a hide or even move substrate.

 

[Vanessa]

I have lived with a G. rosea/porteri for almost 17 years. They are on this earth to teach us patience. Your girl is fine, please don't let her outside to roam around. If there are any pesticides or insecticides being used locally, they might do damage to her. Please use store bought substrate.
She is acting perfectly normal. You get used to it... to a certain extent. You learn to live with it.

 

[quyen]

I have lived with a G. rosea/porteri for almost 17 years. They are on this earth to teach us patience. Your girl is fine, please don't let her outside to roam around. If there are any pesticides or insecticides being used locally, they might do damage to her. Please use store bought substrate.
She is acting perfectly normal. You get used to it... to a certain extent. You learn to live with it.

I will remember that. thanks!