New to T's - G Aureostriata sling questions

Flagg

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
Joined
Feb 28, 2007
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65
I've been lurking and researching for a couple weeks now, and yesterday at the local reptile/animal expo I picked up 2 1/4" G. Aureostriata spiderlings.

I think I've got most of the basics down, but I have a few questions.

1. they came in 2 oz solo cups but they don't seem to have any air holes. I was told they could stay in these containers for a while, but don't they need more ventilation?

2. The substrate looks like maybe peat moss or potting soil, but there are no hides. Is a hide necessary when they are so small? What would work well in such a small container?

3. What's the easiest way to safely transfer such tiny slings to another container, either for cleaning or a larger enclosure?

Any other tips would be appreciated.
 

midnight_maiden

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
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Jan 19, 2007
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98
Moving them to a larger container is unnecessary. They will do just fine in the small containers, anything bigger and they may have difficulty finding their food. If there are no air holes in it just take a sewing needle and poke about 5-7 holes in the top. Heat the needle a little if needed, this will make it easier to poke the holes. Just be careful not to impale your slings :eek:. They really shouldn't need hides being this small, but there was a thread started a while ago and there are a couple of ideas in there. http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=87030
I hope this helps you out! :)
 

ErikH

Arachnoangel
Old Timer
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Mar 8, 2006
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841
As was stated, a few pin holes in the lid should be sufficient for ventilation. More than likely they will bulldoze the substrate to one side of their containers and make their own hide/burrow. Use an eyedropper to leave droplets of water on the sides of the container, and give them cut-up crickets or just cricket legs if you can't find pinheads small enough.
 

midnight_maiden

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
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Jan 19, 2007
Messages
98
Flightless fruit flies will do the job for feeding also if you cannot find the tiny crickets. Anyway welcome to the wonderfully addicting world of tarantula keeping! I wish you luck with your new babies{D
 

carrieh

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 23, 2007
Messages
27
I have one that is almost an inch(i think hard to measure) any way if you find small cricket but they seem too big just kill them first and then put them in. The (T) will eat and whatever is leftover u can remove the next day.
 

Mina

Arachnoking
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Oct 4, 2005
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2,136
To start with, congrats and welcome to the boards and to the addiction, I mean, hobby.
You can take a straight pin and poke some very small holes in the lid of the containers, just don't go overboard.
No, no hides needed at this size, if they want to hide, they will burrow, and believe me, they will.
Don't. They don't need to be moved until the container is to small for them to hunt their food in, that will be quite a while. Grammostolas grow very slowly.
Get an eyedropper and about 2 times a week, drop some water down the side of their deli cups, feed them small crickets once a week, or larger crickets with crushed heads. As I said, they will hide, so don't panic if you look into their cups and don't see them. Don't dig for them!!!! Your chances of hurting them are to high, and they will come out to eat. That is about it. You most likely won't see much of them until they are an inch or better in size.
 

Flagg

Arachnosquire
Old Timer
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Feb 28, 2007
Messages
65
Thanks for the replies and welcome everyone.

They both seem to hang out on the side of their cups so it's actually not that hard to see them. Maybe the substrate is too wet? I haven't added any water, just left them as I got them.
 
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