Supposedly "wild" T's that turned out being calm...

Tentacle Toast

Tentacle Toast

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The flip-side to the other member's thread, here...
What alleged lunatic did you THINK you were getting into, that turned out being calm as a bomb?
For me, it was basically the poecilotheria genus as a whole (that I've been able to keep, so far)...
I got into them WAYYY too early in my T keeping "career," was (justly) admonished for jumping the gun, & THOROUGHLY warned of what madness to expect (along with their ability to "teleport"), LoL.
I've got an affinity for two genus; Avicularia (& everything under that umbrella), & Poecilotheria...& In my own personal experience, the Avics are BY FAR more of a loose cannon than the pokeys, LoL...
Fast, yes, but Pokeys (in my opinion) are predictable, whereas the "beginner" genus of Avicularia is NOT. Sure, you can gage individual's proclivities, but the pokeys all seem to read from the same script (my one rufilata being the single apparent exception, though it's still young)...
Anyone else surprised by how CALM a spider they're working with is?
 
Mustafa67

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My
Tentacle Toast said:
The flip-side to the other member's thread, here...
What alleged lunatic did you THINK you were getting into, that turned out being calm as a bomb?
For me, it was basically the poecilotheria genus as a whole (that I've been able to keep, so far)...
I got into them WAYYY too early in my T keeping "career," was (justly) admonished for jumping the gun, & THOROUGHLY warned of what madness to expect (along with their ability to "teleport"), LoL.
I've got an affinity for two genus; Avicularia (& everything under that umbrella), & Poecilotheria...& In my own personal experience, the Avics are BY FAR more of a loose cannon than the pokeys, LoL...
Fast, yes, but Pokeys (in my opinion) are predictable, whereas the "beginner" genus of Avicularia is NOT. Sure, you can gage individual's proclivities, but the pokeys all seem to read from the same script (my one rufilata being the single apparent exception, though it's still young)...
Anyone else surprised by how CALM a spider they're working with is?
Click to expand...
My M balfouri’s surprisingly calm compared to most of my NW’s, my Chilobrachys huahini is easy to deal with too

Nhandu coloratovillosus turned out to be a lunatic for me, my T albo has become a wild thing since it became a mature male too
 
Mustafa67

Mustafa67

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Tentacle Toast said:
LoL, you're not the only one to have said this... I've never had the pleasure of knowing this genus myself
Click to expand...
All other members of the Nhandu genus I have are well behaved :rofl: . I love Nhandus, triepii is awesome and beautiful, chromatus (former Nhandu) is cool and carapoensis is sweet. But the coloratovillosus is a naughty boy (or girl).
 
HoneyOilers

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It’s too early to really say, but my H. Pulchripes sling is pretty calm, but bold, will stay out on the web even if the enclosure is disturbed
 
spideyspinneret78

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Mustafa67 said:
My

My M balfouri’s surprisingly calm compared to most of my NW’s, my Chilobrachys huahini is easy to deal with too

Nhandu coloratovillosus turned out to be a lunatic for me, my T albo has become a wild thing since it became a mature male too
Click to expand...
Yes, Nhandus are pretty crazy from my experience. My N. coloratovillosus is by far the most defensive, even outright aggressive, tarantula I've ever had. She's been that way since she was a tinysling. She's the type of tarantula that'll rear up, venom dripping from her fangs, when you gently lift up the lid of the enclosure. She WILL bite. She's attempted to bite me several times while doing routine maintenance like refilling water dishes. Thankfully I always use tongs and a bulb syringe so I heard her fangs bouncing off the metal. She's an insanely beautiful spider though, and since she's always defensive, her behavior is predictable. She's one of my favorite spiders, actually. My N. tripeppi is still defensive, but not quite as much as the coloratovillosus.
 
spideyspinneret78

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I was pleasantly surprised by P. murinus. My first specimen was a male that had a calm temperament and was easy to work with. The female that I have now is more spicy but she only really acts that way when she feels cornered outside of her burrow. I find their reputations to be mostly exaggerated. If they're housed correctly they tend to be more shy and skittish. Of course, there can be large variations in temperament between individuals.
 
Ultum4Spiderz

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Tentacle Toast said:
The flip-side to the other member's thread, here...
What alleged lunatic did you THINK you were getting into, that turned out being calm as a bomb?
For me, it was basically the poecilotheria genus as a whole (that I've been able to keep, so far)...
I got into them WAYYY too early in my T keeping "career," was (justly) admonished for jumping the gun, & THOROUGHLY warned of what madness to expect (along with their ability to "teleport"), LoL.
I've got an affinity for two genus; Avicularia (& everything under that umbrella), & Poecilotheria...& In my own personal experience, the Avics are BY FAR more of a loose cannon than the pokeys, LoL...
Fast, yes, but Pokeys (in my opinion) are predictable, whereas the "beginner" genus of Avicularia is NOT. Sure, you can gage individual's proclivities, but the pokeys all seem to read from the same script (my one rufilata being the single apparent exception, though it's still young)...
Anyone else surprised by how CALM a spider they're working with is?
Click to expand...
I’ve had pokies escape never avics . I got sold a sick s cal from pet shop it died a month afterwards.
 
Tentacle Toast

Tentacle Toast

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spideyspinneret78 said:
Yes, Nhandus are pretty crazy from my experience. My N. coloratovillosus is by far the most defensive, even outright aggressive, tarantula I've ever had. She's been that way since she was a tinysling. She's the type of tarantula that'll rear up, venom dripping from her fangs, when you gently lift up the lid of the enclosure. She WILL bite. She's attempted to bite me several times while doing routine maintenance like refilling water dishes. Thankfully I always use tongs and a bulb syringe so I heard her fangs bouncing off the metal. She's an insanely beautiful spider though, and since she's always defensive, her behavior is predictable. She's one of my favorite spiders, actually. My N. tripeppi is still defensive, but not quite as much as the coloratovillosus.
Click to expand...
The pretty ones are always nuts, LoL
spideyspinneret78 said:
I was pleasantly surprised by P. murinus. My first specimen was a male that had a calm temperament and was easy to work with. The female that I have now is more spicy but she only really acts that way when she feels cornered outside of her burrow. I find their reputations to be mostly exaggerated. If they're housed correctly they tend to be more shy and skittish. Of course, there can be large variations in temperament between individuals.
Click to expand...
I wonder sometimes it shy/flighty is mistaken for aggression. A T darting around can seem intimidating to some people..
Ultum4Spiderz said:
I’ve had pokies escape never avics . I got sold a sick s cal from pet shop it died a month afterwards.
Click to expand...
I would be terrified if ANYTHING escaped, much less a pokey. I've got a lil' doggie to consider...
 
l4nsky

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Almost all TBH, but it's more about how they're setup, how you approach them initially, and how you interact with them.

If you can truly understand how a tarantula percieves and interacts with the world around it, you can learn how to influence their behaviour in most situations.
 
jennywallace

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My first P. regalis was really calm, always just sat there whilst I dropped in feeders or filled the water dish. My current lot of Pokies are a bit more spicy.
 
Arachnophobphile

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My female P. irminia defies what most keepers report their irminia behavior. Mine is mostly out on display and is super chill. Only received a threat pose once which she held for 15 to 20 minutes. That was only over removing her eggsac which she tagged the catch cup multiple times followed by the threat pose.

I will say this, that appearances are deceiving. Just because a tarantula seems docile doesn't mean it is. I do not mess with my T's enclosures, sticking my hands in, moving them around or doing anything to disturb them.

At any given moment upon opening their enclosure for feeding, water or maintenance things can change fast. I learned never to get over-confident and never to assume that what appears as a docile tarantula and predictable that it can change on a second's notice.

So my irminia appears chill and docile it's deceiving. Opening the front door to remove a bolus or remove the water dish she could rush and tag me. She has never done that yet for years but I'm aware she could at any time I open her enclosure up.
 
Mustafa67

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Ratmosphere

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Not so much a "wild" T but I once had a GBB who never flicked hairs at me... which was kind of nuts. I've had so many GBB's and hair flicking is classic. Sure, you get some individuals that will do it less than others but to have one that never did it was pretty cool.
 
Arachnophobphile

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Ratmosphere said:
Not so much a "wild" T but I once had a GBB who never flicked hairs at me... which was kind of nuts. I've had so many GBB's and hair flicking is classic. Sure, you get some individuals that will do it less than others but to have one that never did it was pretty cool.
Click to expand...
My female gbb never once kicked UrS at me. I received her at 1 inch and she's 6 inches now.

When she was around 3 inches she would strike at the side of her enclosure if she sensed any disturbance. She would bolt, rather fast when I took the top off her enclosure for maintenance. Now she doesn't even move when I do this.

I never knew kicking was a main trait of gbb's until you mentioned it 😆
 
Nitroxide

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My second P. Murinus for sure! First one I ever kept was a hellspawn, hated everything the light touched. Had a little adventure once during a rehousing back in the first years of starting with T's. I ended up missing his spiciness and got a second, and he was just the calmest thing ever, no cares to give in the world - never struck a pose, calm feeding response, easy to manage. Always expected him to switch but he remained docile throughout the years!
 
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