obesity----opinions

[arachnopunks]

We have noticed that alot of people like to keep their T's fat rumped. We don't generally plump up our T's because of the possibility of shortening the life span of the T's. There has been discussion on the subject before on other forums. Our opinion is that fat is not necessarily healthy. If a person becomes obese they run the risk of shortening their life span via heart disease, diabetes, stroke, etc. If T's are kept obese we feel this can prove detrimental to the T's. Tarantulas do not generally overeat as can be a fatality with scorps but obesity has to affect them in some adverse way. What do the rest of you think?

 

[JacenBeers]

I like having a fat rumped tarantula. I fatten mine up and they all look great and eat well and are healthy.

 

[Chris]

I would say its highly un-natural to be too fat... none of the wild specimens I see in pics or in person look overly large.

I always try to keep my T's proportionate to the rest of their body because it looks better plus they seem to be more agile when making a kill if they are smaller as well.

 

[petitegreeneyes]

You know I never thought of it in those terms. It's true however that obesity isn't good for humans but I've never had any of my T's seeming to be bothered by overeating. I would have to give this a lot more thought. I like to feed my good eaters though, plus it helps the smaller ones grow faster.

 

[Henry Kane]

The first concern I would have would be the higher likelyhood of an abdominal rupture. A larger abdomen is undoubtedly more delicate and obviously heavier for the spider. PLus, as mentioned above, the shorter lifespan is a drag, especially with males. If there are any other bad effects of T obesity it may not be that apparent with a specimen in captivity. I'd guess that an obese T in the wild would be at a serious disadvantage with predators, (probably slower and not as evasive, limited only to cracks and crevices it can fit it's big butt into to escape. ) the elements, (sharp rocks and debris would pose a greater threat) etc. which is probably why it doesn't occur naturally.
My T's are definitely bigger butted than any T in the wild but I personally don't like to powerfeed mine either. They look nice and healthy but not oafish. lol. Also, it's a little easier on the invert food bill.
Atrax

 

[The_Phantom]

My pinktoe is soooooo fat. Like seriously ! I really hadnt planned on her getting fat, she just kinda ballooned before my eyes. After she poops and molts though, I will try to keep her at a more reasonable weight. She really is a lard butt ! But cute. Like, totally. Is it true that aboreals have tougher butts ?

 

[Henry Kane]

Arboreals are indeed more resiliant to falls and such. That's not to say that they're bulletproof or anything though.

Atrax

 

[Cronoss]

I agree with the Arachnopunks,

I like my T's to be plesently plump.but not overly fat.
but i have found that fat t"s seem to be less aggressive.
Bryan

 

[conipto]

I like to keep mine with well-shaped and defined abdomens. No shrivelness at all, and preferably a nice round shape. I don't like to balloon them out, my B. smithi did that and until she molted I thought she looked kind of funky :/

Bill

 

[Devildoll]

there have been numerous studies on how limited calorie diets lengthen lifespans of arachnids.

i'm a firm believer in keeping a my spiders in healthy condition... i refuse to overfeed.

it's great that people have these really pretty spiders that look so fat and healthy... but thats not actually the way they're supposed to look.....

 

[rknralf]

When you talk about overfeeding, how often do you all feed?
With adults, I generally try and feed twice a week, with 1 to 2 crickets at a feeding. If they don't eat it by the next day, I remove it until the next feeding.
I am trying to do the same with all my spiderlings, but sometimes, I will give an extra feeding during the week if they eat the crickets immediately.
With my juveniles, this is where I get into problems. At the 1 to 2 inch size, I've been feeding every other day, 1 cricket at a feeding.
I've been thinking of going to once a week feeding, but am looking for suggestions on what you all do?
Ralph

 

[arachnopunks]

We do find that we end up feeding our spiderlings and juvies more often than our adults. We usually feed our adults once a week, but sometime do it every 2 weeks. We keep them real medium sized. Never shriveled and never super-plump.


-Jill

 

[rknralf]

On the adults that are fed once a week.
How many crickets do you feed?
I've get several adults and I have been feeding 4 crickets a week in 2X2 seperate feedings.
Would they do fine on 2 crickets a week?
All of my tarantulas are chunky, and I would rather they live longer and be healthier.

 

[atavuss]

where is Joy? I want to see her reply to this thread!

personally I like the way a well fed t looks, and that is a good thing because a lot of my t's are very well fed. two other t enthusiasts were here last sunday and more than a few times they said "damn! that is big/huge/plump/fat!"
Ed

 

[arachnopunks]

We feed about 2 crickets a week to the adults. Feeding depends on size of rump, if it gets to be much we'll cut back to every 2-3 weeks (and sometimes longer) between feeding. The juvies and slings get 2-3 crickets a week and sometimes more. The young T's seem to metabolize their meals faster and they grow fast. Our A. seemani hasn't had food for about 2 weeks now.

 

[Joy]

Originally posted by atavuss
where is Joy? I want to see her reply to this thread!

personally I like the way a well fed t looks, and that is a good thing because a lot of my t's are very well fed. two other t enthusiasts were here last sunday and more than a few times they said "damn! that is big/huge/plump/fat!"
Ed

And here I was trying to stay out of this discussion! I'm starting to feel self-conscious on the size issue

In fact, I don't feed most of my mature specimens more than 1-4 times a month. Most of them get a pinkie once a month and superworms for the remainder of their feedings, if any. My blondis, crawshayis, and a few others get a higher proportion of vertebrate food, and there's a few who prefer crickets to anything else so they get those. Small immatures I try to feed at least a couple times a week, but some get fed only once ever 7-10 days as I have a LOT of little spiders right now. In fact, I am thinking of advertising for a spider nanny =D

Joy

 

[arachnopunks]

Originally posted by atavuss
where is Joy? I want to see her reply to this thread!

personally I like the way a well fed t looks, and that is a good thing because a lot of my t's are very well fed. two other t enthusiasts were here last sunday and more than a few times they said "damn! that is big/huge/plump/fat!"
Ed

You can keep your T's however you want, the rump police are not going to break down your door, but just because someone is impressed by the oversized rump doesn't make it a healthy thing. I'm impressed to see people weighing over 350 pounds but it's still not healthy. In the almost 10 years I've been keeping Tarantulas, it's been my practice not to overfeed. If you have alot invested ($) in a collection or hobby wouldn't you want to make sure to do everything to maintain the collection so it is with you as long as possible. It may be biologically possible for the T's rump to get enormous (as can dogs, cats, and people also) it just doesn't seem healthy.