Tarantuala care tools and supplies everyone should have?

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mrclean518

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Messages
4
Hi,

A newbie waiting for my cobalt blue to arrive. I am trying to compile books and all supplies for this hobby.
Any help would be great.
 
C

captmarga

Arachnobaron
Joined
Mar 31, 2010
Messages
339
Books - The Tarantula keeper's Guide (Schultz). There are some old books you'll find in stores everywhere - great for pictures, but many inaccuracies.

You're starting with a pet hole. H. lividums are burrowers. You won't get to see much of it. I never see my two. You'll want a Kritter Keeper or similar cage with burrowing room, eco-earth or similar sub, enough to burrow deep. Something for a water dish.

A pair of 9 or 10" tweezers. You can find them at Local Pet Stores (LPS), online on ebay, at gun shows, at Harbor Freight, etc. (I have four pairs because I will set a pair down across the room and forget I did it).

A dedicated water bottle for the T. I have over 100 Ts, so I have three 33 oz bottles just for the T's water, and two mister bottles. I mist fine-stream on the sides of the sling vials, since they are too small to have a bottle cap or water dish.

A large, clear plastic bag. I gathered mine from shipping wrappers, but recycle-clear bags (that you put your recycled stuff out on the curb in) will do. This is for transferring said T (your blue) from shipping into new home.

Those are the very, very basics. As you get more Ts, you'll have a variety of habitats (cages, enclosures) in different sizes, shapes, materials. These might be vials, clear shoeboxes, acrylic cubes, KKs, plastic jars. You may have plastic or clay flowerpots for hides. Corkbark pieces and rounds for additional hides. Temperature and humidity gauges (some people find them useful, others not). Magnifying glass. A camera is of course a must.

Don't worry too much about cage deco. The T doesn't care, and some things can be harmful to them.

Other than that, read as much as you can on the boards. Don't take remarks personally. It's an outlet for opinions.

Good luck with your new T! You may get lucky (I did, mine were easy to transfer, I've had a harder time with "less hot" Ts. My nastiest is an A. hentzi!!!)

Marga
 
JayMadison

JayMadison

Arachnosquire
Joined
Jul 7, 2011
Messages
86
Tweezer, forceps, duct tape (for ulcerating hairs), paint brushes (small) to help move T's, Deli cups to transport them arround if your T isn't very handleable. Something for the T to eat (aka feeders) is nice to get setup as well, or at least sourced. I also find a headband magnifier useful, frees up a hand.
 
G

Glossworks

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jun 21, 2011
Messages
25
^^What Marga said! Those were all VERY useful items that were mentioned. A few more things to add to the list would probably be a couple sizes of catch cups ready within arm's reach when transferring them (I've tried the clear plastic bag method on my H.lividum and it works well too). Also over and above my 2 pairs of long tweezers, I love having a plastic disposable spoon as well. Those come in handy when trying to get a larger tarantula out of a small vial (ie. catch cup) due to the curvature.

Other than that, enjoy your new Cobalt Blue! Not exactly the best spider to be starting out for a beginner (mine's fiesty as HELL!), but if you do enough research and have everything ready, you'll do just fine!
 
M

mrclean518

Arachnopeon
Joined
Aug 25, 2011
Messages
4
Everyone was a great help. I have purchased all of the books and have them in hand. Absolutely fascinating! I am very excited to learn about these animals.

Already read a quarter of the tarantula keepers guide. Outstanding care info.

I know this spider was feisty. I am up to working with her and her needs. I will keep you posted as things progress. The cage arrives this week.following the set up guide and I will be gathering all needed tools and supplies tomorrow.

Thanks again all. I will have more questions I am sure!
 
jhalla16

jhalla16

Arachnosquire
Joined
Feb 23, 2011
Messages
80
i use a spray bottle and deli containers and aquariums... that's about it. and my spiders are doing fine. you don't "need" any of the special tarantula wranglin' devices. all the money i've ever spent on my tarantulas was for they, themselves, their food, and perhaps one bag of coconut fiber as substrate. i use things i can find around my house as makeshift tools lol, i am not going to spend 10 dollars on a pair of forceps
 
catfishrod69

catfishrod69

Arachnoemperor
Old Timer
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
4,400
my camera is a fujifilm finepix s700, 7.1 megapixel, and a 10x optical zoom, i can take pictures where i touch the object to the lens then barely pull off of it, or pics that are a mile away, or anywhere in between, and they turn out breathtaking, especially some iced over grape vine curlies that i got pics of in winter..will have to post some..
 
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