Poecilotheria care

miss moxie

Arachnoprince
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Jun 13, 2014
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There are generalizations, but there is also individuality that doesn't always follow with the "norm". Ornata are known for being more defensive...mine (and others) is one of my calmer pokies. Regalis tend to be calmer over-all, but one of mine (out of 4) is super skittish...striata is known for being more skittish, but we have one keeper here who's striata is among his calmer specimens. Vitatta tend to be calm, but my AF is easily the biggest escape risk in my entire t room....but she's never been defensive.

Formosa and tigrinwesselli tend to be more high srttung...but that doesn't mean there aren't calmer examples out there.

In general though, pokies seem to rely on their camo, which makes for a generally calmer, more confident t.....especially as they gan size.
My P. striata girl is rather calm. If she's hanging out of her cork tube I can usually open the glass doors without her bolting back into her den. It's an exo-terra so to unlock it there is a rather rough 'click' that I know she has to be able to feel the vibration from and she still doesn't react.

I'd say my P. regalis are all pretty calm, as are my P. subfusca HL slings. It's my P. metallica slings that are super-skittish. Look at the enclosure wrong and they begin to run all over their enclosure. Whereas -every- other pokie I have will run back to the hide, these two go absolutely nuts. My P. tigrinawesseli is also very skittish, but they go for the hide instead of spastic darting like the two P. metallica slings.
 

octaJon

Arachnopeon
Joined
Feb 10, 2018
Messages
29
There are generalizations, but there is also individuality that doesn't always follow with the "norm". Ornata are known for being more defensive...mine (and others) is one of my calmer pokies. Regalis tend to be calmer over-all, but one of mine (out of 4) is super skittish...striata is known for being more skittish, but we have one keeper here who's striata is among his calmer specimens. Vitatta tend to be calm, but my AF is easily the biggest escape risk in my entire t room....but she's never been defensive.

Formosa and tigrinwesselli tend to be more high srttung...but that doesn't mean there aren't calmer examples out there.

In general though, pokies seem to rely on their camo, which makes for a generally calmer, more confident t.....especially as they gan size.
Thanks cold blood, I've read multiple comparisons of Poecilotheria temperaments (ornata and fasciata were more defensive, regalis were calmer and better starter pokies, etc.). Always interesting hearing different keepers' experiences. Perfect examples of Ts following their own individualistic set of rules.

My P. striata girl is rather calm. If she's hanging out of her cork tube I can usually open the glass doors without her bolting back into her den. It's an exo-terra so to unlock it there is a rather rough 'click' that I know she has to be able to feel the vibration from and she still doesn't react.

I'd say my P. regalis are all pretty calm, as are my P. subfusca HL slings. It's my P. metallica slings that are super-skittish. Look at the enclosure wrong and they begin to run all over their enclosure. Whereas -every- other pokie I have will run back to the hide, these two go absolutely nuts. My P. tigrinawesseli is also very skittish, but they go for the hide instead of spastic darting like the two P. metallica slings.
"Adrenaline starts to flow. You're thrashing all around. Acting like a maniac. Whiplash!"
Miss Moxie, maybe it's just a Metallica thing ;-) tyfs
 
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Venom1080

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Sep 24, 2015
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If we could get some experienced pokie breeders chiming in with any general tips, that'd be great. :)

I haven't done alot breeding wise with the genus yet. Yet.
 

miss moxie

Arachnoprince
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Jun 13, 2014
Messages
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Mine is like that as well, takes a minute or so to calm down after a disturbance. My subfusca LL juvie is chill though, usually just stays where he is or walks back to his cork bark.

View media item 47260
I was sort of stunned when I housed my four P subfusca HL slings. They were so calm. They still are very calm. I can pick up their enclosure while they're out of their hide and they just stay there. When they do go back to their den they take their time, no darting.
 

CWilson1351

Arachnobaron
Joined
Jan 23, 2017
Messages
454
Thanks cold blood, I've read multiple comparisons of Poecilotheria temperaments (ornata and fasciata were more defensive, regalis were calmer and better starter pokies, etc.). Always interesting hearing different keepers' experiences. Perfect examples of Ts following their own individualistic set of rules.
My fasciata is extremely calm. If disturbed at all she just makes her way (slowly) to somewhere she feels safe. Never a defensive posture or attempt to bolt.
20180225_211048.jpg
 

Nightstalker47

Arachnoking
Joined
Jul 2, 2016
Messages
2,612
If we could get some experienced pokie breeders chiming in with any general tips, that'd be great. :)

I haven't done alot breeding wise with the genus yet. Yet.
Very easy to breed IME. The females never showed any aggression towards the male, they were surprisingly laid back. I had one start frantically tapping minutes after the male was introduced, always good to see clear signs of interest. That alone was enough to put me at ease.

With poecs the courtship can be long and stretched out, so the odds of you catching the insertion are very slim. I left them together for the night(both pairings) and removed the male in the morning. I have heard of some people cohabing them for weeks, but I didn't see the point. As the old saying goes " leave two horny spiders in an enclosed dark space for the night, and they will get it done''.

I can't say that I have been successful yet though, pairings were done fairly recently, no sac has been dropped yet. Both females are getting fed heavily now...time will tell. Next up are the lowlands.
Show off :p
 

Ultum4Spiderz

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Oct 13, 2011
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Mine are all just skittish, tho ornata used to frantically run Around in its cage , When scared. It used to be more defense, but I never go near it.
 

Venom1080

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Sep 24, 2015
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I'd like to update with a few things I've learned since writing this article:

Poecilotheria do just fine dry. Metallica I keep drier than the rest. But remain quite tolerant of humidity. In the wild they experience heavy fluctuations in humidity. As they have a monsoon and dry season in their natural habitat. This has made them very adaptable animals.

Another point is breeding. In the wild Poecilotheria generally breed in spring, which is the start of the wet season there. The whole idea is to have the babies while prey is still abundant, and humidity is still high. So, in captivity. Alot of serious pokie breeders will try to mimic the wild conditions. They will keep the female cooler and dry for a time, I think about a month or two. Then flood the cage and increase temps over a couple weeks to simulate the wet season starting. Then pair. People report similar results without bothering to go through this process, however. Something to keep in mind.

Also, kind of important, I no longer heat wood from outdoors to kill off bacteria to try to prevent mold. Doing this literally has the opposite effect. Best to avoid this entirely. Merely collect from a region you trust. This was a mistake to do at all.

And more pics. I recently acquired my seventh species of the genus. All females.
IMG_20180716_210343_183.jpg
IMG_20180711_141427_679.jpg IMG_20180705_185035_685.jpg
Note* this subfusca has slowly darkened with age. I found it interesting that some "Highland" would be so dark and mine which shared many features was so light. I didn't take age into account. Hope others will now too.

More breeding info available here:

http://www.theraphosidae.be/en/category/poecilotheria/
 
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Glorious Baboon

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Oct 20, 2018
Messages
95
How long is it between molts for your vittata I have one that’s suspected female I just purchased it’s 5 1/4” I tried to get a pick of the underside but my lightings horrible and I’m a terrible photographer I also keep it around 72-80 and overfill the water bowl once a week so similar to some of you

This I said T
 

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Venom1080

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How long is it between molts for your vittata I have one that’s suspected female I just purchased it’s 5 1/4” I tried to get a pick of the underside but my lightings horrible and I’m a terrible photographer I also keep it around 72-80 and overfill the water bowl once a week so similar to some of you
Give it a year or two. It'll be around 7" by then.
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