Strange Behaviors!

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
Ok, so I've been wanting a Tarantula for a while now, and as a practice pet I had a black widow. Weird I know, it died after nine months. So my brother got me a tarantula for x mas. Well I've read a lot about care and whatnot, but I have no real experience. I keep it's water full, I have two and a half inches of coconut fiber substrate, it has a water dish i keep rather full, and a broken flower pot. But it's acting weird, which I take is normal because it should be molting soon, it has this patch on it's abdomen which is kinda flaky but it's small.
Here are the strange behaviors:
Doesn't use it's hide, the clay pot, ever.
Covered it's hide with webbing so it can't get in.
Covered the whole bottom of the cage in webbing.
And now it's made this weird nest. I'll upload some pictures.

I'm not entirely sure what kind of spider it is, I think it's a chilean rose hair, but I'm not sure, and my brother is oblivious. I know that part should be in the ID section, but that's not my only question. HELP!

Sorry for the bad picture quality, used my phone.
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Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
Oh! One more thing, it dug out around the water dish. I dunno what it was doing but it actually kinda dug under it even. I don't know what that means, should i get a bigger water dish?
 

BlackVenom

Arachnopeon
Joined
Sep 28, 2010
Messages
39
Looks like a Grammostola rosea to me and it looks like shes webbing to lay a egg sac!!!
 

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
........ You cannot be serious, my black widow laid like seven egg sacks. Does my room like..... impregnate spiders? I've had her for a little over a month now, what should I do?
 

BlackVenom

Arachnopeon
Joined
Sep 28, 2010
Messages
39
You can't do much if she does drop a sac LOL!!! I would not stress her I would completely leave her alone and let her be that's is what I'd do for now.
I'm wondering where did you get her from?
 

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
From this side of the street pet center called "Sunrise Pet Center". Ugh.... can I sell the babies or something? I don't even know how old she is..... I have a weird sleep cycle and lights are on and off at random times, will that effect her? Ugh, not what I needed. Any way to tell her age? Also, I've only had her for a month.
 

BlackVenom

Arachnopeon
Joined
Sep 28, 2010
Messages
39
The pet store probably bought her gravid and sold it to you which I think is pretty awesome but I wouldn't mined having a couple hundred babies for free LOL. She looks like an adult female G. rosea. IMO the lights won't effect her much. For tonight I would wait to see what happens.
 

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
She started making the nest like 2 days ago. She dug out around the dish a week or more ago. She's working on the web right now even, lol. you want some? If you live close enough I'll give you some. Or if there is any way to mail them. Can I sell them to pet stores?
 

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
UPDATE!!! I think she's laying her eggs. Her Abdomen shrunk extremely small, and the middle of the nest is a pile of yellow goop, I'm guessing eggs.
Pics
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Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
I just got this spider last month! I love her to death but this is a really big surprise D: I will try my hardest to raise them though. I need all the help I can get though, I'm still learning about basic Tarantula care!!! Any hints would be amazing, oh update, she's making the sling. I think that's what it's called, she's ripping her nest up to cover the eggs so yeah.
 

Arborealis

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 5, 2007
Messages
221
Check out the book The Tarantula Keeper's guide. It has some good information on raising spiderlings. It gives you a lot of different options on what to do. Hope all goes well and good luck. :) You'll have your hands full soon. :clap:
 

Dexity

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 20, 2010
Messages
10
Some people try to breed spiders and fail, and you just get one and look at that.... Keep us all updated!!! Very exciting, I know it is a decient amount of work seperating the babies, then tending to them, really if you dont want to much of a headache do the only the strong survive method, let the babies eat eachother and then seperate them..... I know that sounds horrible, but they have a intense amount of young, and if you are not set up to deal with it, or you dont have alot of time to put into it, its just going to be a headache. Good luck, and that is VERY exciting, i wish someone would sell me a gravid T
 

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
Update time!!!
Ok, so the eggs survived the first night! But she isn't in her hide! This is what I was afraid of, she's just sitting by the water bowl in a shallow dug out area. Does this mean I didn't lay down enough substrate? Tell me about the "only the strong survive" technique, do I need a bigger tank?
Pics
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webbedone

Arachnobaron
Joined
Aug 27, 2010
Messages
410
No kidding i want a gravid T from a pet store none the less!!! =) caring for slings is like having children, well a couple of hundreds or thousands ! Good luck you'll need it!
 

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
That last picture is of my whole set up. That blue thing underneath is a heater I use when it gets to cold, black strip is a temp gauge(at 75 right now), water bowl, and spider. I just covered the top with some plastic sheeting to keep humidity in, is this necessary? I covered all but the the last three inches, and that is right above her. Also, I just sprayed the opposite side of the tank that she is on, since I can't very well overfill the water dish.
 
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webbedone

Arachnobaron
Joined
Aug 27, 2010
Messages
410
Rosies are from atacama desert and there are places in the atacama that never had rain in recorded history of meteorology, most they get is marine fog, so they like it dry, might want to loose the wrap off the top just the evap fro the water boul would be fine you dont need to mist her either. During the atacama durnal cycle the temperatures spikes from well over 100 degrees during the day down well into negatives at night. So room temperature is bliss to her. Rosies are very hardy and require very little but food and water, she will be just fine as long as you leave her alone try not to flip the lights on all the time and there is no need to be showing her to all your friends, tarantulas have poor eye sight but they can tell when something is looming over them other than that read up on the slings care and think about setting up an incubator.
 

Vetch

Arachnopeon
Joined
Dec 9, 2010
Messages
27
Ok thatnks, now the water bowl, I'm to afraid to fill it, it'll disturb her to much. What should I do about that? Also will she be eating any time soon? She's so small now :/
 
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