Question regarding my T. albopilosus

[ArachnoLad228]

I have a female adult (born in 2018) Nicaraguan Curly Hair Tarantula. 6 inches in legspan.

I'm worried if her enclosure and it's condition are poor or not. Her tank is an Exo Terra Standard Funarium Large (37 x 22 x 25 cm), her substrate is a mixture of Habistat Spider Bedding + Habistat Coir substrate with a pinch of dried-up moss. The waterdish provided is an Exo Terra (small) waterdish. The aforementioned substrate was bought and used in October 2022 and has become dried up since around Feb-March of 2023 and I'm worried if I need to rehouse her already or not. The enclosure also features a little tree oranment and a hide she occasionally digs up inside of.

Does the substrate need to be dampened every few days at a time? I saw that the humidity needs to be a 70% and the temperature at room temp (it already is if you're wondering). She had a mixed diet of crickets and dubia roaches (rarely some meal worms too), her abdomen has plumped up to a size where it's a bit bigger than her carapace... Am I overfeeding her? She hasn't eaten in nearly 2 months and refuses to eat, I'm not sure if it's pre-molt or if she's just not in the mood to eat anymore.


Apologies if this is a lot to take in, but I do worry about all aspects of what I have mentioned. Thank you for reading and all advice/info is greatly appreciated.
(Side note - second image does not contain the water dish, as I was refilling it when the picture was being taken.)

 

[Cmac2111]

I'm worried if her enclosure and it's condition are poor or not. Her tank is an Exo Terra Standard Funarium Large (37 x 22 x 25 cm), her substrate is a mixture of Habistat Spider Bedding + Habistat Coir substrate with a pinch of dried-up moss.

Sounds alright to me, although these 'spider substrates' are usually just a way to get you to spend more money than necessary on sub. Plain old topsoil does the trick (without additives).

The aforementioned substrate was bought and used in October 2022 and has become dried up since around Feb-March of 2023 and I'm worried if I need to rehouse her already or not.

Nah, these guys tolerate drier conditions, full rehouse doesn't sound warranted here at all. Just overflow the waterdish on occasion to provide a damper corner, then she can decide what conditions she prefers and you can adjust accordingly based on her behavior.

Does the substrate need to be dampened every few days at a time?

No, don't make it swampy in there.

I saw that the humidity needs to be a 70% and the temperature at room temp (it already is if you're wondering).

Humidity doesn't need to be a specific number, fixate on keeping it at an exact point and you'll drive yourself mad. T. albo are recommended as a great beginner species for many reasons, one of those is because they are extremely hardy and can thrive in varied conditions. Have a read through this it also covers temps: Humidity, Temperature, and Tarantulas | Tom's Big Spiders (tomsbigspiders.com)

She had a mixed diet of crickets and dubia roaches (rarely some meal worms too), her abdomen has plumped up to a size where it's a bit bigger than her carapace... Am I overfeeding her? She hasn't eaten in nearly 2 months and refuses to eat, I'm not sure if it's pre-molt or if she's just not in the mood to eat anymore.

From the pic she looks relatively plump. She could well be in premolt/fasting, in any case its nothing to stress over. These guys can go ages without eating when plump, and there's no way to make them start feeding again. Just make sure she has access to water and be patient

Apologies if this is a lot to take in, but I do worry about all aspects of what I have mentioned.

Try not to, tarantula keeping can be an absolute breeze when one doesn't overthink things, or a headache when one does. The sheer amount of inaccurate/outdated info online really doesn't help inexperienced keepers... many care sheets/vids will cause them to fixate on things that they needn't (I.E that a T. albo's humidity needs to be be 70%...), creating problems for both keeper & spider where none should be. This is why sites like the one you're on now are important, as it is frequented by keepers with immense experience in all aspects of tarantula husbandry. I'll link the sites beginners guide if you haven't seen it already as it contains invaluable information regarding the subjects of your thread + MUCH more, and I encourage you to research A LOT here on AB (make use of the search function up top) as not only will you learn about all the stuff you mentioned above (which has been covered here loads already), but you'll undoubtedly uncover new subjects to dig into as well
(1) Tarantula Information for Beginners (and More) | Arachnoboards

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Sounds alright to me, although these 'spider substrates' are usually just a way to get you to spend more money than necessary on sub. Plain old topsoil does the trick (without additives).

Nah, these guys tolerate drier conditions, full rehouse doesn't sound warranted here at all. Just overflow the waterdish on occasion to provide a damper corner, then she can decide what conditions she prefers and you can adjust accordingly based on her behavior.

No, don't make it swampy in there.

Humidity doesn't need to be a specific number, fixate on keeping it at an exact point and you'll drive yourself mad. T. albo are recommended as a great beginner species for many reasons, one of those is because they are extremely hardy and can thrive in varied conditions. Have a read through this it also covers temps: Humidity, Temperature, and Tarantulas | Tom's Big Spiders (tomsbigspiders.com)

From the pic she looks relatively plump. She could well be in premolt/fasting, in any case its nothing to stress over. These guys can go ages without eating when plump, and there's no way to make them start feeding again. Just make sure she has access to water and be patient

Try not to, tarantula keeping can be an absolute breeze when one doesn't overthink things, or a headache when one does. The sheer amount of inaccurate/outdated info online really doesn't help inexperienced keepers... many care sheets/vids will cause them to fixate on things that they needn't (I.E that a T. albo's humidity needs to be be 70%...), creating problems for both keeper & spider where none should be. This is why sites like the one you're on now are important, as it is frequented by keepers with immense experience in all aspects of tarantula husbandry. I'll link the sites beginners guide if you haven't seen it already as it contains invaluable information regarding the subjects of your thread + MUCH more, and I encourage you to research A LOT here on AB (make use of the search function up top) as not only will you learn about all the stuff you mentioned above (which has been covered here loads already), but you'll undoubtedly uncover new subjects to dig into as well
(1) Tarantula Information for Beginners (and More) | Arachnoboards

I have Two around the size next molt I can gender I’d them hopefully around 3” . I keep the enclosure dry except for overfilling the water dish occasionally. Either on accident or on purpose. Mine been pet rocks lately sitting at the same spot, but are about the size I can get them a bigger enclosure soon. One of mine is fat enough to not be fed until next molt, so don’t be worried if they refuse food. Water is more important imo.

 

[TechnoGeek]

As the gentleman pointed out in the post above, things with catchy names like spider bedding are usually a waste of money. You can use a ton of cheap and readily available things for substrate. Here are a few things that I've used for Ts over my 5 years in the hobby:

1. Cocoa fiber.
2. Cocoa fiber + sphagnum peat moss mix.
3. Sphagnum peat moss + silica sand + cocoa fiber.
4. Top soil
5. Top soil + sphagnum peat moss
6. Top soil + cocoa fiber.

I probably forgot a few mixes lol. But you get the point, just grab a bag of top soil from your local garden shop for 2 bucks and you should be good. You have to make sure there are no additives tho (pesticides or fertilizers etc). They'll work for any species of T that I'm aware of. I use sphagnum peat moss in the mix with things like Theraphosa species cause they tend to be moisture dependant, and moss makes the substrate slightly acidic (obviously but enough to bother the T) which makes it more mold resistant. For your T you don't need to worry about it.

Humidity is one more thing I used to obsess over when I was new. It generally doesn't matter, with very few exceptions. For a curly hair T just overflow the water dish for a few seconds once or twice a week depending on how quick it's drying and that'll do the trick.

I don't see a need to redo the enclosure and the T looks fine to me.

 

[viper69]

Humidity- stop worrying now or you’ll kill it
Looks fine, my AF didn’t eat for over 1.5 yrs

 

[Jesse607]

T. albopilosus is a species able to tolerate a variety of conditions. In the wild they live in areas that experience wet and dry seasons, although the dry season isn't so dry and long as to cause desertification. I happen to keep mine on moist substrate at all times, and have done so for their entire 18 years (I have 3 eighteen year olds and 1 six year old). They have also been in the same enclosures with the same substrate for at least the last 12 years...so don't stress about rehousing. I let the substrate dry out a bit before gently pouring more water into/on the substrate to re-moisten.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

T. albopilosus is a species able to tolerate a variety of conditions. In the wild they live in areas that experience wet and dry seasons, although the dry season isn't so dry and long as to cause desertification. I happen to keep mine on moist substrate at all times, and have done so for their entire 18 years (I have 3 eighteen year olds and 1 six year old). They have also been in the same enclosures with the same substrate for at least the last 12 years...so don't stress about rehousing. I let the substrate dry out a bit before gently pouring more water into/on the substrate to re-moisten.

Mine both seem to have half the enclosure on damper side the rest dry . Do they do better if sub is all damp ? Mine are getting close to size for a better container.

 

[Jesse607]

Mine both seem to have half the enclosure on damper side the rest dry . Do they do better if sub is all damp ? Mine are getting close to size for a better container.

I can't say for sure if they do better since I never compared. As long as they have an area of moist substrate, seems like they should be fine. I never offered them water dishes until a few years ago, but they grew quickly and seemed healthy and fine the first 15 years or so. I imagine the moist substrate prevented desiccation, just like it does "in the wild".

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

I can't say for sure if they do better since I never compared. As long as they have an area of moist substrate, seems like they should be fine. I never offered them water dishes until a few years ago, but they grew quickly and seemed healthy and fine the first 15 years or so. I imagine the moist substrate prevented desiccation, just like it does "in the wild".

Hard to say I had a male one over 10 years ago I can’t even remember if it was kept on wet or half dry susbstrate or all dry . My current ones are growing way slower than it did .

 

[ArachnoLad228]

Hi all, I would like to thank everyone above for the info given, it does mean a lot to me.

One thing I've noticed is that she (my Curly Hair) is on a burrowing-frenzy! She's like a bulldozer...

She's burrowed to a point where it now reaches the very bottom of the enclosure (bear in mind that the substrate is about 7 inches deep), and I'm wondering if that is okay? Or would it become a problem that she is now resting on a plastic surface instead of substrate. Would her burrow collapse...? Apologies if I may sound a bit too anxious, I just want the best for my Ts!

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Hi all, I would like to thank everyone above for the info given, it does mean a lot to me.

One thing I've noticed is that she (my Curly Hair) is on a burrowing-frenzy! She's like a bulldozer...

She's burrowed to a point where it now reaches the very bottom of the enclosure (bear in mind that the substrate is about 7 inches deep), and I'm wondering if that is okay? Or would it become a problem that she is now resting on a plastic surface instead of substrate. Would her burrow collapse...? Apologies if I may sound a bit too anxious, I just want the best for my Ts!

Any pics ? It depends on the spiders size, as long as the substrate holds its form well it may be fine. Bigger spiders are less likely to get trapped by a collapse I assume it’s larger it’s fine .

 

[ArachnoLad228]

Any pics ? It depends on the spiders size, as long as the substrate holds its form well it may be fine. Bigger spiders are less likely to get trapped by a collapse I assume it’s larger it’s fine .

Unfortunately not right now, but I can provide some tomorrow. She's a fully-grown Curly Hair, roughly a 6-inch leg-span? The substrate is somewhat dry, but does seem to hold together pretty decently. I added some sphagnum moss awhile back, but you can barely see it anymore after she decided to be a bulldozer!

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Unfortunately not right now, but I can provide some tomorrow. She's a fully-grown Curly Hair, roughly a 6-inch leg-span? The substrate is somewhat dry, but does seem to hold together pretty decently. I added some sphagnum moss awhile back, but you can barely see it anymore after she decided to be a bulldozer!

Dang shes probably fine but yeah pics eventually just for an idea what it looks like no rush. yeah mine are both tiny 2.5-3” I gotta sex the next molts I think atleast one is female hadn’t looked much at the second.
I just gave one deeper substrate and the other one I’ll do when I buy more coco fiber. I’ll see if it burrows .. I’m trying to make the enclosures more natural than my old one’s always open to new ideas.

 

[cold blood]

. The aforementioned substrate was bought and used in October 2022 and has become dried up

This species does fine when kept dry.

I'm worried if I need to rehouse her already or not.

you never, I repeat, NEVER need to just re-home a t. Spot cleaning is all you need to do...these aren't dirty animals and substrate doesn't just go bad.

Does the substrate need to be dampened every few days at a time?

NEVER EVER EVER dampen sub on a schedule....if you dampen the sub, just dampen part of it, and when it dries, and only when it dries, should you dampen again.....your ambient humidity in your home and your ventilation will dictate how often that willl be.

I saw that the humidity needs to be a 70%

this is a straight up lie....stop reading care sheets. They, like most ts, have absolutely no humidity requirements.

the temperature at room temp

this is misleading, as we all have temps we like and you could ask 10 people what that is and get 10 different temps......your t simply needs a temp of at least 65f (and it can drop below that at night or for short periods) and it can be as high as the mid-90's....a huge range...temp is not something you should be concerned about.

. Am I overfeeding her?

Probably not...ts stop eating when full typically.

She hasn't eaten in nearly 2 months and refuses to eat,

A fat t requires NO food. Once a t gets the amount of food it requires for its molt cycle, it will stop eating and fast until after its next molt.

I will say, the heavier your feeding schedule (the faster its plumped), the longer its going to fast before molting. Fasting isnt a concern, even if it fasts for a year or more.