Tarantula Questions - Chilean Rose

[Whiskers]

Alright, I just bought a Rose-Hair tarantula today. I read up on their habitat and what they'll need.

I have a 5 gallon (approximately, it is made specifically for tarantulas) that he is sitting in, with plenty of "bedding" (?), some moist moss, a nice fake hollow rock for him to crawl into, and a watering dish. I also placed a thermometer inside so that I can monitor his habitat's temp to ensure he's comfortable at all times.

I do have a few questions though.

I have crickets that I will be feeding him. I put one in his tank earlier, and he hasn't touched it. It seems to be wandering around, chirping some. It seems pretty natural. Will it be OK to leave the cricket in there until my Tarantula gets hungry and decides to devour it, or should I remove it from the tank and try again in a couple of days?

Also, the temperature seems to fluctuate between 83F-92F slowly over a period of time. Will this cause the spider to become stressed, or will he be able to comfortably adjust to the gradual changes in temperature?

The watering dish is bigger than he is, but there is only about 2 centimeters of water in it. Will he be able to crawl down into the dish slightly to drink, or should I swap the dish for something more shallow?

How often should I change the bedding? Will it need to be changed at all?

How often should I spray the tank to keep the humidity high enough to keep him comfortable?

Will he be safe to handle, or is there a chance he could be aggressive? I don't plan on handling him often, just during major changes to his tank.

Anything else you could throw in as far as tips to keep him happy would be greatly appreciated. I apologize for the barrage of questions, but I want to make sure my pet tarantula is as well cared for as possible.

Thanks for your time. Any input is greatly appreciated.

 

[rockhopper]

Post some pictures up to help us know what you are talking about.

Most people suggest to leave the cricket in there for 24hrs. If it doesn't eat try again next week.

Temps are a bit on the high side. Are you providing a heat source or is it just that hot in your house?

The water dish sounds fine.

I never, or rarely change the bedding in mine. They aren't very dirty creatures relative to most things people keep in a cage.

No need to spray the tank. Keep the dish full of water and it should be good to go.

Handling is pretty much personal preference. If the tarantula feels threatened it will defend itself.

 

[Hobo]

Read this: http://people.ucalgary.ca/~schultz/roses.html

Be sure to read up on tarantula keeping myths (particularly temperature and humidity), also on his site.

 

[Whiskers]

Thanks for the replies. I was told by the "expert" at Petco that I should spray his tank every few days. I guess I should probably scrap everything she told me, especially after reading the article above.

Here is the tank. I apologize for the mediocre picture quality.

Does this setup look OK?



I also decided to keep a dim light on him for 5-9 hours each day. Does it matter what type of light source I use, or will regular bulbs for the lamp be fine? The light is very dim, it's an old lamp that sort of simulates the way the sun looks in the early morning/late afternoon.

I am full of questions, my apologies. I want to make sure he's happy and healthy.

Edit: Also, the fork and jug lid are not inside the container. I was using the fork to press the bedding down so that it wasn't so lumpy, and the lid was a potential candidate for a watering dish if the one in there was too large/deep.

 

[catfishrod69]

Ok, here goes.

Waterdish- Is fine.

Substrate- Coco fiber- make sure it is completely dry, and make sure the distance from the substrate to the lid, is no more than 1.5 times your tarantulas leg length. So, if your tarantula is 4" in leg length, make the distance between substrate and lid of enclosure 6" maximum.

Moss- Its ok to have it in there, just make sure its completely dry also. (roseas dont care much for the moist substrate)

Temp gauge- Throw in trash, if you are comfortable, so is your tarantula. G. rosea are one of the more "bullet proof" species, and tolerate the cooler/higher temps.

Humidity- The water dish will provide enough, dont bother misting. You could let a little water overflow out of the dish from time to time though.

Substrate changing- Not really ever gonna be needed with this type of tarantula, keep it dry, and remove food boluses, poop as needed.

Feeding- Its probably to early for it to want to eat, give it a week or so to settle in. Dont worry rosea are know to be varacious eaters, or they never eat. There are some that have said they know of ones going for almost 2 years without food.

Lighting- Throw that away too. All it will need is a little filtered light entering the room, just to give it a idea of day/night time.

Handling- Will be best to learn to read your rosea, try using a paintbrush to lightly coax it forward, by brushing on the spinnerets or back toes. You might get it to walk onto your hand. But, keep it very near the floor, or on a bed. (A fall more than 1.5 times its leg length could possibly lead to injury.)

Enjoy!

 

[Whiskers]

Ok, here goes.

Waterdish- Is fine.

Substrate- Coco fiber- make sure it is completely dry, and make sure the distance from the substrate to the lid, is no more than 1.5 times your tarantulas leg length. So, if your tarantula is 4" in leg length, make the distance between substrate and lid of enclosure 6" maximum.

Moss- Its ok to have it in there, just make sure its completely dry also. (roseas dont care much for the moist substrate)

Temp gauge- Throw in trash, if you are comfortable, so is your tarantula. G. rosea are one of the more "bullet proof" species, and tolerate the cooler/higher temps.

Humidity- The water dish will provide enough, dont bother misting. You could let a little water overflow out of the dish from time to time though.

Substrate changing- Not really ever gonna be needed with this type of tarantula, keep it dry, and remove food boluses, poop as needed.

Feeding- Its probably to early for it to want to eat, give it a week or so to settle in. Dont worry rosea are know to be varacious eaters, or they never eat. There are some that have said they know of ones going for almost 2 years without food.

Lighting- Throw that away too. All it will need is a little filtered light entering the room, just to give it a idea of day/night time.

Handling- Will be best to learn to read your rosea, try using a paintbrush to lightly coax it forward, by brushing on the spinnerets or back toes. You might get it to walk onto your hand. But, keep it very near the floor, or on a bed. (A fall more than 1.5 times its leg length could possibly lead to injury.)

Enjoy!

Alright, sounds great. Thanks a lot.

I'm incredibly afraid of spiders, which is why it's ironic that I decided to get one as a pet. Hopefully I'll become bold enough to let him sit on my hand while in his container. I don't mind putting my hand inside, but only because I KNOW he isn't going to launch himself at me and sink his fangs into my flesh. LOL :S

I suppose the moss/substrate will dry out some with time. I stupidly followed the advice of the Petco employee and sprayed the tank before putting him in it yesterday.

 

[catfishrod69]

Your very welcome. Yeah alot of people get into the hobby while trying to overcome their fear. I literally just held a mature male rosea like 5 minutes ago. Was pairing him with my female, and he had to make a break for it lol. Yeah it will dry, just be sure to get enough substrate in there to prevent a fall from far. Yep, petco employees are no more than underpaid/overworked kids, that no about as much about pets as the CEO of petco does.

 

[derp105]

OK the set up is fine, my friend just has a water bowl and coconut fiber bedding in a cage and it stays perfectly fine. You don't have to change the bedding (i don't) but you are welcome to do it if you want to. With the temp if you are comfortable with it, then the tarantula is also fine, and it doesn't need humidity and misting is a waist of time. The people at petco and petsmart know NOTHING about reptiles and arachnids don't listen to anything they say. And finally the worst thing you can do is worry about the tarantula it is fine.

 

[Whiskers]

OK the set up is fine, my friend just has a water bowl and coconut fiber bedding in a cage and it stays perfectly fine. You don't have to change the bedding (i don't) but you are welcome to do it if you want to. With the temp if you are comfortable with it, then the tarantula is also fine, and it doesn't need humidity and misting is a waist of time. The people at petco and petsmart know NOTHING about reptiles and arachnids don't listen to anything they say. And finally the worst thing you can do is worry about the tarantula it is fine.

Thank you

Seems like a pretty low-maintenance pet. Hopefully he doesn't escape! I don't imagine it would be a pleasant feeling to wake up one morning only to find an empty container.

 

[catfishrod69]

Haha you should have the feeling of knowing there are around 20 huntsman slings, and a Scolopendra running loose .

Thank you

Seems like a pretty low-maintenance pet. Hopefully he doesn't escape! I don't imagine it would be a pleasant feeling to wake up one morning only to find an empty container.

 

[Vespula]

Welcome to the hobby! You're taking the right steps to overcome your arachnophobia.

 

[Whiskers]

Welcome to the hobby! You're taking the right steps to overcome your arachnophobia.

I know! Just looking at him through the container, and how calm and nonviolent he seems, is actually pretty cool. I actually touched his leg earlier. I was curious as to what he felt like. ::

 

[Vespula]

I know! Just looking at him through the container, and how calm and nonviolent he seems, is actually pretty cool. I actually touched his leg earlier. I was curious as to what he felt like. ::

He felt nice, didn't he? There's nothing quite like it in the entire world.

 

[Whiskers]

He felt nice, didn't he? There's nothing quite like it in the entire world.

He felt similar to silk.

I really can't wait to let him crawl on me. I guess I just need to get over that initial fear.

 

[Vespula]

He felt similar to silk.

I really can't wait to let him crawl on me. I guess I just need to get over that initial fear.

Once you get over that, you'll be in the power. Once again, welcome to the hobby!

 

[derp105]

Thank you

Seems like a pretty low-maintenance pet. Hopefully he doesn't escape! I don't imagine it would be a pleasant feeling to wake up one morning only to find an empty container.

Just keep the lid on and dont do anything stupid and it most likely wont get out.

 

[Whiskers]

Just keep the lid on and dont do anything stupid and it most likely wont get out.

I took the lid off earlier so I could see him better, but there's no way in hell I'd leave the room with the lid off. :S

 

[derp105]

I took the lid off earlier so I could see him better, but there's no way in hell I'd leave the room with the lid off. :S

I mean its fine to take the lid off when you are there and look at him.

 

[Whiskers]

I was thinking about how cool it would be to have more than one. Maybe a female Rosea.

Would it be OK to keep them in the same tank, or should I separate them?

 

[Aviara]

You would absolutely need to seperate them. Tarantulas are extremely prone to cannibalism (except for a very few species, Grammostola rosea is NOT one of these). You will end up with one very well-fed tarantula if you attempt to keep multiple Grammostola rosea in one enclosure. The good news is, each tarantula needs only a small amount of space (3 to 4 times their legspan), so setting up a new enclosure for a second tarantula shouldn't be a problem. I would, however, recommend looking at other species - G. rosea tend to be pet rocks and can get boring. Adding new species to your collection will let you observe new behaviors.