What do your tarantulas eat?

[CreamSicle]

I wanted to start this thread out of curiosity, first what does your tarantula’s eat? How do you feed them? Are they on a schedule? What did you do if they stopped eating etc etc etc. Tell me anything you like about your tarantula’s regarding feeding!

I’ll go first, a lot of my tarantula’s aren’t full grown yet so I don’t really have a problem feeding them. I feed mostly dubias since red runners aren’t a favorite, for the spiderlings I cut baby dubias in half and leave it outside their burrows or in their webs. I’ve noticed my red baboon prefers live prey while my sun tiger likes them already dead. My trinidad prefers the dubias dead as well. I kill the dubias by squishing the heads so they can still move around a little leg wise. I don’t have a scheduleI go by how big their butts are!

 

[Mustafa67]

I wanted to start this thread out of curiosity, first what does your tarantula’s eat? How do you feed them? Are they on a schedule? What did you do if they stopped eating etc etc etc. Tell me anything you like about your tarantula’s regarding feeding!

I’ll go first, a lot of my tarantula’s aren’t full grown yet so I don’t really have a problem feeding them. I feed mostly dubias since red runners aren’t a favorite, for the spiderlings I cut baby dubias in half and leave it outside their burrows or in their webs. I’ve noticed my red baboon prefers live prey while my sun tiger likes them already dead. My trinidad prefers the dubias dead as well. I kill the dubias by squishing the heads so they can still move around a little leg wise. I don’t have a scheduleI go by how big their butts are!

Locusts

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Mealworms, dubia. I used to occasionally feed superworms. Orange head roaches..also.

 

[kingshockey]

slings are small crickets and meal worms after they hit about an inch i feed large crickets and superworms. my isopods/ spring tails and tiny vinegaroon were fed al the cut off heads from the meal/super worms

 

[LilithArachne]

I had one who was super picky and only ate crickets.... he had a palate of a toddler!
My sling right now is on red runners till it grows more and I am gonna feed it a bunch of different stuff

 

[Stu Macher]

Hornworms and crickets. I like my tarantulas on the chunky side so I spare no expense with feeders

 

[squirl61]

Crickets fed on fluker's high calcium for my 3 yr olds

 

[gabrieldezzi]

I wanted to start this thread out of curiosity, first what does your tarantula’s eat? How do you feed them? Are they on a schedule? What did you do if they stopped eating etc etc etc. Tell me anything you like about your tarantula’s regarding feeding!

I’ll go first, a lot of my tarantula’s aren’t full grown yet so I don’t really have a problem feeding them. I feed mostly dubias since red runners aren’t a favorite, for the spiderlings I cut baby dubias in half and leave it outside their burrows or in their webs. I’ve noticed my red baboon prefers live prey while my sun tiger likes them already dead. My trinidad prefers the dubias dead as well. I kill the dubias by squishing the heads so they can still move around a little leg wise. I don’t have a scheduleI go by how big their butts are!

Currently have 9 T's in my collection, and I've seperated them into two major groups, Juveniles and Adults.
My juvie's I used to feed once every few days, a mealworm or two for some real fattening especially post-molt. If I have crickets available I'll opt to feed my more reluctant-to-eat species or if I suspect they're in premolt. That way, they can't burrow and become beetles to harm the T.

I always have water available for all my T's and offer food atleast once a week unless they just recently molted and have black fangs. I try to offer a variety of bugs when available but prefer crushed super worms because they're full of fat and will keep them fuller for longer. Sometimes again when available, I will offer crickets or dubias, especially if I'm unsure about a pre-molt.

 

[Smotzer]

first what does your tarantula’s eat?

Crickets, roaches, meal/super worms, hornworms, moths, whatever I choose at the time and species.

Are they on a schedule?

Nope there’s never a need to feed rigidly. they get fed when they get fed, when I think they should or shouldn’t based on abdomen, or when I simply decide to feed.

How do you feed them?

Preferred method for optimal bonding and gentlest feeding response is baby-bird style. They’ve grown to know me by sight and now wouldn’t dare hurt me.

What did you do if they stopped eating etc etc etc.

Absolutely nothing!! There’s absolutely nothing to do except wait.
They’ll eat when they’re ready to, likely not before that. Until then wait!!

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Preferred method for optimal bonding and gentlest feeding response is baby-bird style. They’re grown to know me by sight and now wouldn’t dare hurt me.

I want to see a video of you feeding it like a baby bird…(jk) 🦤
I feed based on abdomen size. Grabbing the appropriate pray then tossing it into the container to be eaten . Slings I chop up mealworms for until they can eat Entire pray items.

 

[Smotzer]

I want to see a video of you feeding it like a baby bird…(jk) 🦤

Don’t give me the credit, it was @viper69 that first developed and mastered this method. Tong feeding was just too impersonal so the baby bird method was developed. I only stole it out of jealousy of @viper69, while I reached for divinity

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Don’t give me the credit, it was @viper69 that first developed and mastered this method. Tong feeding was just too impersonal so the baby bird method was developed. I only stole it out of jealousy of @viper69, while I reached for divinity

I’ll let him defend his methods then.
I was watching the Olympics men’s beach volleyball and they said some guy from Australia Farms the most crickets in the country, and he eats them.. as snacks it’s considered a delicacy there.

 

[Smotzer]

I was watching the Olympics men’s beach volleyball and they said some guy from Australia Farms the most crickets in the country, and he eats them.. as snacks it’s considered a delicacy there.

Honestly they’re not bad I will admit this, and they are one of the most sustainable and highest protein sources in regards to demands of fresh water and space! Really insects have historically been a very valuable cultural food source that the modern world has gotten away from. Same with offal, which is such a shame….myself I made a ton of beef heart just last night

 

[BoyFromLA]

what does your tarantula’s eat?

• Red runner roach
• Dubia roach
• Hissing roach
• Cricket
• Mealworm
• Superworm
• Hornworm
• Butterworm
• Silkworm
• Tarantula (if breeding attempt ever goes wrong)

 

[sparticus]

My staple is dubia, from the colony I have. For variety: mealworms, flies and their larvae (maggots), black soldier flies and occasionally their larvae, sometimes fruit flies and their larvae for tiny spiders, killed isopods, rarely crickets and a couple times captive grown earthworms. I think I've used waxworms that hatched out into moths a couple times, and hornworms once or twice.

 

[Smotzer]

waxworms

Waxworms are wonderful feeders

 

[FatBadBay]

Mostly mealworms with occasional dubias. I haven't tried horn worms yet

 

[viper69]

Crix

 

[darkness975]

Crickets, meal worms, and super worms. No schedule. I feed based on abdomen size and whether or not they are approaching a molt.

 

[Arachnophobphile]

Steak dinner with a baked