Temporarily freezing defensive tarantulas for rehouse

[DamoK21]

As oready said, cant handle the T, dont own the T. Simplez

 

[BillMNJ]

Agreed, sounds like a no-no... Boy, am I glad I didn't ask this ?...

 

[spiderwomen]

just use a large cup or bowl with a lid and be careful while re housing..i agree why put it in the fridge if you already have it secure? i would never do that ever. yea if u can't handle it just trade it for a less aggressive t or something. i traded my obt because it about gave me a heart attack every time i cleaned its enclosure.

 

[paassatt]

just trade it for a less aggressive t or something.

"Defensive" would be a more appropriate word.

 

[GriffinSmith]

I can handle a defensive T, the majority of mine are OW and very fast. I have never used this method, I was just asking. Thanks for everyone's opinion

 

[JODECS]

You don't put them in the freezer compartment, you put them in the fridge to gradually cool them down. Put your T into the freezer and you'll get an immobile T, yes, but that would only be because it would be dead. Even putting it in the fridge can be risky, a bit too long and you could kill the spider. I've done it before but I quickly realised it was unnecessary, because even the most defensive of species can easily be dealt with, for me at least.

back when i was a kid we used to put our fighting spiders on the fridge (egg crate part).. basing on that experience the spider can tolerate such condition for a week ... i dont know if that holds true on tarantulas

 

[paassatt]

back when i was a kid we used to put our fighting spiders on the fridge (egg crate part).. basing on that experience the spider can tolerate such condition for a week ... i dont know if that holds true on tarantulas

A tarantula, or any spider for that matter cannot survive in a fridge for a week. That is advice not worth following for sure.

 

[JODECS]

A tarantula, or any spider for that matter cannot survive in a fridge for a week. That is advice not worth following for sure.

not advisable for a tarantula ..i wouldn't do it also... but with our fighting spiders in the Phillipines they can survive in the fridge just place them in the door part of the fridge... we do that when we were young to make the spider more agressive but that was just a false belief ... Fighting spiders here are toys for small kids and adults ...I played with it when i was 5 years old...

 

[paassatt]

not advisable for a tarantula ..i wouldn't do it also... but with our fighting spiders in the Phillipines they can survive in the fridge just place them in the door part of the fridge... we do that when we were young to make the spider more agressive but that was just a false belief ... Fighting spiders here are toys for small kids and adults ...I played with it when i was 5 years old...

Saying that you put spiders in the fridge with plans to make them fight afterwards probably won't get you too many friends here.

 

[JODECS]

Saying that you put spiders in the fridge with plans to make them fight afterwards probably won't get you too many friends here.

its a local practice here in the Phillipines when we were young its very normal here to buy and collect spiders and make them fight in the sticks... try ask anyone from the Phils about it if what im saying is true... but as of today i dont play with it anymore I'm a Doctor already im too old for that stuff... just want to share some information that you think is not possible ... (",)

 

[Comatose]

While I completely agree that one should learn to handle aggressive/defense T's if one keeps them, I've tried the chilling method in the past with success.

I worked for a distributor in 2004 and we had a shipment of fresh WC H. schmidti/hainanum and some of them had strange mites/parasites attached to them. I did some research (it may well have been here) and found that others had seen the same thing and has removed the mites with success. I tried doing it without anesthesia, and while I can easily work with Haplopelma species (15+ years and I've never been bitten by a tarantula), picking pencil tip sized mites off an upset 7 inch Haplopelma was challenging and not very efficient. I thought about anesthetizing using C02 but decieded on chilling them instead. Each one was refrigerated for 20-30 minutes and gave me about 5 minutes to work with the spider. I didn't notice any after affects after the five minute period and the mites did not return.

I would not recommend repeatedly using this method, but in extreme circumstances I feel it's safe.

 

[JODECS]

well said sir... just in case theres a need it may come in handy to put them in the fridge..tnx for the info(",)

 

[BobGrill]

Saying that you put spiders in the fridge with plans to make them fight afterwards probably won't get you too many friends here.

Yeah. I slaughter chickens for fun because it's a local practice where I live, but I'd probably keep that to myself everywhere I go.

 

[zonbonzovi]

Enough with the blanket statements. Specifically, if a spider lives in a climate that freezes for months at a time, how does one NOT expect it to survive and reproduce when it has been doing so for eons, hmmm? I personally don't care if you want to refrigerate your animals or eat them doused in marmalade, but please stop dispensing dumb generalities and misinformation.

Look around some more and you will find spiders and even tarantulas living at high elevations where cool temperatures are the norm.

 

[BillMNJ]

Saying that you put spiders in the fridge with plans to make them fight afterwards probably won't get you too many friends here.

Could not agree more...

 

[JODECS]

Yeah. I slaughter chickens for fun because it's a local practice where I live, but I'd probably keep that to myself everywhere I go.

ok... copy that... my bad

 

[Megaroach]

Seriously, the bag method works a charm. Found the same advice a while ago when worrying how to rehome my P. regalis. I am not nearly fast enough to catch a T, so I needed something quite foolproof and safe for the T.

 

[ruca49]

Yeah. I slaughter chickens for fun because it's a local practice where I live, but I'd probably keep that to myself everywhere I go.

I was wondering when someone would get around to rooster (lol can we use the c word when referring to male chickens?) fights...Same thing IMO

 

[Poxicator]

Enough with the blanket statements. Specifically, if a spider lives in a climate that freezes for months at a time, how does one NOT expect it to survive and reproduce when it has been doing so for eons, hmmm? I personally don't care if you want to refrigerate your animals or eat them doused in marmalade, but please stop dispensing dumb generalities and misinformation.

Look around some more and you will find spiders and even tarantulas living at high elevations where cool temperatures are the norm.

Thumbs up to that. Certain species rely on the cold to prompt the breeding season. Check out the temperatures found in Chile, or the high elevations of Sri Lanka where P. subfusca are found. I was told of a case where an enclosure was put out during the UK winter months when temperatures can reach below freezing only to find a P. subfusca still living. Ive even found myself making the mistake of putting an AF OBT outside for nearly a week whilst it was very cold and she survived, something I slapped my own wrist for.

When I initially got into the hobby feeding small crickets seemed a real pain, so we put the cricket tubs in the fridge for a few minutes and then fed our Avic slings by pouring some in. Sometimes they seemed dead but soon came back to activity. I'd say the same could be done for a tarantula without issue but I'd also say there are better ways to move them.

Most species will seek refuge in their hides. If you can move their hide then that's the way to tackle it. For instance, to move Poecilotheria I often disturb them enough for them to seek their hide which is often a cork tube driven into the substrate. Pack the opening up with some kitchen towel and remove the whole tube - makes for an easy rehouse. Alternatively I go outside to an open space and remove the hide with long tweezers and place it inside the new enclosure which I darken competely with a blanket. Using a ruler I can coerce it to move from the light enclosure to the darkened one without issue.

With a little ingenuity they can easily be moved but if you're still a little apprehensive then perhaps your fridge is the answer but as someone else has mentioned this will probably require the whole enclosure to sit in the fridge.

Good luck

 

[paassatt]

While it's true that some spiders come from colder climates and thus would be less affected by the temperature in a fridge, I think that overlooks the importance of only owning tarantulas that you're able to comfortably deal with. If you can't handle a simple rehouse, then you shouldn't own it, simple as that. Regardless of the spider's hardiness or immunity to cooler temperatures, using the fridge to slow a spider down when you need to rehouse it is a cop-out and throws to the wind the responsibility each hobbyist should have to only own spiders they can feel comfortable around.