So I just ordered two T's from the spider shop

[saturnthegrey]

I've just purchased a 2" chromatopelma juvie and a 1/2" B. Vagans sling. I'm expecting them to a arrive in a bout a week. I feel pretty confident care. wise with the GBB but I have a lot of worries when it comes to the B. Vagans sling. I've never owned a sling and it's a little scary. I know that death of a sling is very common for many reason but I want to be able to do everything I can to keep this one alive and thriving. How difficult is the care for one of these slings? I know they like it dry but I hear slings require more humidity.

Please feel free to throw all your info at me (anecdotes and all. )

 

[z32upgrader]

Don't worry too much. They're pretty hardy. One big mistake is that new keepers will underestimate how small they have to make ventilation holes for them. They can squeeze through some very small holes at that size. Make your holes with a hot pin, not a drill bit. As far as keeping it hydrated, as long as there's a moist spot in the substrate, the spider can drink from the dirt. Feed it well, pre-killed bugs are probably best at this stage and it'll grow up in no time!

 

[Chris LXXIX]

First, those two Theraphosidae are great. Good choice. Brachypelma vagans is one of my favourite among that genus. Not always, ok, but among genus Brachypelma they have IMO a bit of "attitude"

Don't worry. Just do things in little (little enclosures, especially. Slings doesn't need too much big cages). Slings are more delicate than juvenile & adults, that's true, but i can guarantee you that Chromatopelma cyaneopubescens are (in general) hardy even as slings.

I always housed (i don't buy anymore slings because i have a ethic code, i can't permit to end with mature males, due to the particular situation of T's keeping here in Italy, a very but very controversial issue) slings in little enclosures. Without water dish of course (there's no room for one, with slings i've always worked in little) with a good ventilation, and part of the substrate slightly moist (here depends of course by the T's in question, needs/genus etc). I have also to say that i never used decor of all sorts with tiny... only substrate (for instance, i've raised a lot of Psalmopoeus cambridgei and a lot of those, as slings, loves to burrow)

Pinheads crickets for food. Then after some molts, a re-house in a more bigger one with a (appropriate size) water dish.

Curiosity: "Spider Shop" in general... or the one, and quite famous, UK based? Didn't know (if this last one is correct) that they ship international.

 

[Ghost Dragon]

Nothing to fret over, Saturn. Slings do tend to have a higher mortality rate than juvies, but that's the way it goes.

I raised a B. vagans from a sling, also only about a 1/2 inch. She started off in a clear pill bottle, filled almost to the top with Eco-Earth (so she couldn't fall). She ended up making a whole bunch of really cool tunnels. I fed her one pin head cricket per week (crushing its head before putting it in) and a few CC's of water, waiting until the soil looked like it had almost dried out before adding more. Two years & a few enclosures later, she is a healthy 4 inches.

If you've never owned a B. vagans, they are one of the more skittish of the Brachys. Well worth it, though, when they get a little older, with their velvet black bodies & fiery red abdomen.

Good luck!

 

[saturnthegrey]

So a 2 inch wjde and two inch high Tupperware container would probably work? And they dont need a hide or anything?
And yes chris it is the famous UK based spider shop. They seemed like a very good place to get my T's from. Anyone order from them before? I havent seen any bad reviews, only good things.

 

[Angel Minkov]

First, those two Theraphosidae are great. Good choice. Brachypelma vagans is one of my favourite among that genus. Not always, ok, but among genus Brachypelma they have IMO a bit of "attitude"

My female has much more than a bit of attitude. If I touch her hind legs with tongs she will immediately rotate, throw a threat pose and start biting. I have members of the genera Poecilotheria, Cyriopagopus, Haplopelma etc and never see threat poses from them (aside from my 2 P. subfusca lowland slings), but my vagans female takes no prisoners.

 

[TownesVanZandt]

So a 2 inch wjde and two inch high Tupperware container would probably work? And they dont need a hide or anything?
And yes chris it is the famous UK based spider shop. They seemed like a very good place to get my T's from. Anyone order from them before? I havent seen any bad reviews, only good things.

Yes, I have ordered from them a couple of times. The spiders was packed really well and arrived from the UK to Norway in less than a week both times. I didn´t know that they shipped during winter though. At least here in Norway it is way, way too cold to ship a tarantula even with a heat pack this time of year.

 

[z32upgrader]

And yes chris it is the famous UK based spider shop

So did you just place an international order? You're in Texas, no?

 

[Chris LXXIX]

My female has much more than a bit of attitude. If I touch her hind legs with tongs she will immediately rotate, throw a threat pose and start biting. I have members of the genera Poecilotheria, Cyriopagopus, Haplopelma etc and never see threat poses from them (aside from my 2 P. subfusca lowland slings), but my vagans female takes no prisoners.

I completely agree, mine the same, ah ah. Remove her water dish for clean is always a fun.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

So a 2 inch wjde and two inch high Tupperware container would probably work? And they dont need a hide or anything?
And yes chris it is the famous UK based spider shop. They seemed like a very good place to get my T's from. Anyone order from them before? I havent seen any bad reviews, only good things.

I've always read positive feed from their customers.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

Yes, I have ordered from them a couple of times. The spiders was packed really well and arrived from the UK to Norway in less than a week both times. I didn´t know that they shipped during winter though. At least here in Norway it is way, way too cold to ship a tarantula even with a heat pack this time of year.

My man, lost 500 Euro yesterday thanks to Roma, they can't even beat Hellas Verona, lol those choosy. Hope they have their a.. kicked out of Champions League now

 

[Chris LXXIX]

So a 2 inch wjde and two inch high Tupperware container would probably work? And they dont need a hide or anything?
And yes chris it is the famous UK based spider shop. They seemed like a very good place to get my T's from. Anyone order from them before? I havent seen any bad reviews, only good things.

It's up to you (hide, i mean). I never offered one to mine because they were very little, in very little enclosures. But i know people who offered them one. For the GBB, you can add however a fake leave (a little one, better).

 

[saturnthegrey]

The weather here in texas has been pretty warm the last month or so. I was waiting for warmer weather incase the cold would conflict with caring for a sling.
I placed my order and paid for it and I havent gotten an email telling me they dont ship over seas. I hope I don't haha, I put alot of time into finding the right T's at the right price and I would have to be let down when I want them so bad.

 

[z32upgrader]

There are plenty of domestic sellers of both species. How much did you pay for sending them across the pond?

 

[saturnthegrey]

About ten dollars for the shipping upgrader. I didnt see an international option so im assuming the shipping price remains the same

 

[TownesVanZandt]

My man, lost 500 Euro yesterday thanks to Roma, they can't even beat Hellas Verona, lol those choosy. Hope they have their a.. kicked out of Champions League now

Sorry for you loss, my friend, even though I cannot say to be sorry for AS Mer*a 1927 only getting a point against Hellas Verona at home!

The weather here in texas has been pretty warm the last month or so. I was waiting for warmer weather incase the cold would conflict with caring for a sling.
I placed my order and paid for it and I havent gotten an email telling me they dont ship over seas. I hope I don't haha, I put alot of time into finding the right T's at the right price and I would have to be let down when I want them so bad.

Is the price of tarantulas considerably cheaper here in Europe than in America? Keep us updated with your order!

 

[Nosiris]

The forecast temperature for London tonight is -3 degrees. Possibly not spider shipping weather, I would suggest. I don't order creatures to be delivered in the winter months in the UK, heat-pack or no.

 

[saturnthegrey]

Towns yes they seem to be a decent amount cheaper, ive searched countless sites for better deals but they have the cheapest ones I can find with most of their species.

 

[cold blood]

The weather here in texas has been pretty warm the last month or so. I was waiting for warmer weather incase the cold would conflict with caring for a sling.
I placed my order and paid for it and I havent gotten an email telling me they dont ship over seas. I hope I don't haha, I put alot of time into finding the right T's at the right price and I would have to be let down when I want them so bad.

Hold on, you are in Texas, and ordered 2 spiders from the UK? Why? Wouldn't you need to get import permits of some sort?

These spiders are readily available to you in Texas. Heck a 1/2" vagans sling might not even cost you $5.

I'm really scratching my head on this one...am I missing something?

$10 shipping, that doesn't even make sense IF its a legal international t shipment.

 

[saturnthegrey]

Why does the shipping price not make sense? Good luck finding those two T's anywhere in the region around texas. I may as well order from the UK than from wisconsin or Minnesota.
Even with the shipping cost its still saving me near half what I would spend on one here. Both of these are hard to come by where im from. A few months ago one of the pet shops here actually had a GBB but it was a hundred dollars for a 1/2" sling while the spider shop has a 2" sling for fourteen. No matter how expensive the shipping may be, it makes alot more sense for me to look abroad rather than purchase over priced T's from here.