Water bowls

[MrsHaas]

So the other day I had a conversation with someone about obts, and they said this species did not need a water bowl... I'm having a hard time believing that that is true...
Anyone know?

 

[Ellenantula]

I gave my OBT a water bowl and he would fill it with substrate. He webbed around it but not touching it, so I would refill with a syringe through a small hole in his webbing I made. I am told many will bury theirs or web in such a way refilling would not be possible.
I vote to try a water bowl. I did catch mine near his dish a few times, so who knows, maybe he did drink from it.

 

[cold blood]

They are tough as nails, and from a dry environment...and like Ellen said, they just bury them and web them...they disappear in a day or two sometimes. Mine aren't nearly as good with their dishes as hers are. My 2 OBTs are literally the only t's I have that don't have a water dish, its just too much of a PITA, I see no real reason to continually dig around in an OBT enclosure....I'm sure when they are re-housed I will find at least a half a dozen or more water dishes incorporated into the substrate. No more water dish donations from me...I just dribble a little water onto the webbing every week or two.

 

[MrsHaas]

Hmmm.... Perhaps I was wrong... Maybe I won't add one to mine

 

[cold blood]

It doesn't hurt to try. I think its more workable with more room perhaps. One of mine is getting re-housed in the coming days....it will start off with a dish...we'll see how long it lasts.

 

[ratluvr76]

Mine uses hers. She's in a big enclosure relative to her size though. She's under 1.5 inches.

 

[Poec54]

A tarantula in a warm/dry spell, or newly molted, can easily die from dehydration in a few days, even OBT's. There is no good reason NOT to use waterbowls. A few experienced people can get by without them, but for the vast majority of people, it's asking for losses.

 

[advan]

Tarantulas need water not waterbowls. Choose a method of providing hydration to your spiders that is easiest for you.

 

[Steve123]

Tarantulas need water not waterbowls. Choose a method of providing hydration to your spiders that is easiest for you.

Wow, I like this way of clarifying the issue. Amazing the power of language. Thanks.

 

[awiec]

I have spiders who just bury the dish so I provide water in a different manner and have raised avics and various other spider without them as well but I have some that will drink right from it. The important point is that you need to provide water for them, a water bowl is just an easy way for most people.

 

[Sharno]

I met with an expert who has thousands of tarantulas in his history. What he advised me was sticking a plunger of some sort down deep into the substrate and adding water that way every few days - even for brachys. This avoids the entire substrate getting moist and causing problems. He commented that brachys in the wild are not sitting out in the hot sun, they are burrowed underground where the temps are cooler and there's some moisture (I am paraphrasing).

I still give my brachy's water dishes, and never allow the substrate to become damp across the entire cage. For my species are terestrial I am trying this plunger method vs. water down the sides or a water bowl. Those guys web up EVERYTHING.

My brachy's are 50/50 for dumping their dishes, burying them or disrupting them within 1 half day so it's hard. Some may recall I lost an adult b. smithi to a bad molt probably caused by lack of moisture - she had a water dish and it was full. But the substrate was bone dry. My friend advised that moisture needs to be present for a good molt, and using the injection into the substrate is a good method.

Would be interested in the thoughts of others.

 

[ratluvr76]

I provide a bowl of water and when I notice they are in pre molt I wet part of the substrat too. Seems to work for me. Although I've really only been keeping T's for about ten months so arguably my experience is limited.

 

[awiec]

I met with an expert who has thousands of tarantulas in his history. What he advised me was sticking a plunger of some sort down deep into the substrate and adding water that way every few days - even for brachys. This avoids the entire substrate getting moist and causing problems. He commented that brachys in the wild are not sitting out in the hot sun, they are burrowed underground where the temps are cooler and there's some moisture (I am paraphrasing).

I still give my brachy's water dishes, and never allow the substrate to become damp across the entire cage. For my species are terestrial I am trying this plunger method vs. water down the sides or a water bowl. Those guys web up EVERYTHING.

My brachy's are 50/50 for dumping their dishes, burying them or disrupting them within 1 half day so it's hard. Some may recall I lost an adult b. smithi to a bad molt probably caused by lack of moisture - she had a water dish and it was full. But the substrate was bone dry. My friend advised that moisture needs to be present for a good molt, and using the injection into the substrate is a good method.

Would be interested in the thoughts of others.

I do the "plunger" method with my pamph and phormic as I like to make sure the water is evenly spread out and I can get crazy busy so the slower water evaporation allows me some peace of mind. My P.muticus won't stand for a water cap so I just drip some water down the hole and it stays hydrated and doesn't have some of the common molting problems some people seem to have with them.

 

[Poec54]

I met with an expert who has thousands of tarantulas in his history. What he advised me was sticking a plunger of some sort down deep into the substrate and adding water that way every few days - even for brachys. This avoids the entire substrate getting moist and causing problems. He commented that brachys in the wild are not sitting out in the hot sun, they are burrowed underground where the temps are cooler and there's some moisture (I am paraphrasing).

I still give my brachy's water dishes, and never allow the substrate to become damp across the entire cage. For my species are terestrial I am trying this plunger method vs. water down the sides or a water bowl. Those guys web up EVERYTHING.

My brachy's are 50/50 for dumping their dishes, burying them or disrupting them within 1 half day so it's hard. Some may recall I lost an adult b. smithi to a bad molt probably caused by lack of moisture - she had a water dish and it was full. But the substrate was bone dry. My friend advised that moisture needs to be present for a good molt, and using the injection into the substrate is a good method.

Would be interested in the thoughts of others.

Injecting water to the bottom of the substrate isn't necessary, and it's easy to get things soggier than you realize when it finally gets absorbed. I just randomly sprinkle water on the substrate to moisten it.

Yes, burrows are cooler than the outside daytime temps in the wild, but then, how many of us are keeping their spiders at 90+ degrees like much of the tropics and subtropics is, where they'd need a cool spot? I'm in Florida and most of the state is just above sea level; we start hitting the 90's in April and and it finally starts to cool again in late October. Summer night lows are mid 70's to low 80's (yes, we have days when it's 82 at sunrise). A cool burrow is a great way to escape the heat. But few of us are keeping our spiders that hot. Most are at room temp, which is typically mid 70's to low 60's depending on the time of year, and a cool, wet burrow isn't nearly as appealing for tropical species from a low elevation habitat. Most prefer drier conditions with cool temps. In fact, as temps get down to the mid and low 60's, moist cages can be a problem for some species (just as plants, and other animals take cold much better dry than wet).

 

[PRE66 6TART]

When I brought my tarantula home from the pet store, I was surprised to see it go straight over to the water bowl and spend a good long while drinking within seconds of me filling it. I'm thinking they must not have been giving it water and it was dehydrated.

 

[Poec54]

I've seen many pics posted here of tarantulas drinking out of water bowls, including Avics and other arboreals. It's hard to gauge how thirsty a spider is, especially for beginners. If you're off by a day, you can have a dead spider. Lack of a water bowl puts more responsibility on the owner to monitor their spider cages. If you get tied up at work or things going on at home and fall behind, water bowls are invaluable. All it takes is once.

 

[los3r]

My obt has a water bowl since it's just safer than risking dehydration.

 

[Blueandbluer]

When I brought my tarantula home from the pet store, I was surprised to see it go straight over to the water bowl and spend a good long while drinking within seconds of me filling it. I'm thinking they must not have been giving it water and it was dehydrated.

Most likely. Especially if it was drinking for a long time. LPS have no idea how to care for Ts, *sigh*.

 

[MrsHaas]

I guess I'll try a bowl. If she webs over it, should I just spritz her more often than the other (whom I spray twice a week)?



--J.Haas

 

[Chris LXXIX]

I can't imagine, nor tolerate, a T'S enclosure without a water dish (always full) and a piece of cork bark, no matter the T species/region/temperament