nemo wrote: ... I'm somewhat new to the hobby, & it seems I'm hooked! ...
Did I do this with you on another forum? I checked on this one and couldn't find an intro. Regardless...
BINGO! YOU SAID THE MAGIC WORDS!
To make sure that you're starting out on the right foot and have been introduced to all the basic issues, I'm going to begin with my soon-to-be-world-notorious
NEWBIE INTRODUCTION. If I'm mistaken, I apologize. But, even if you aren't a newbie I suggest that you read through it for review. (I just
LUVS doing this!)
Please stand by while I load the canned message.
HEY PEOPLE! WE'VE GOT ANOTHER NEWBIE HERE!
Cue the mariachis, the confetti, and the clowns. Let's start the party! :drunk:
Nemo, please don't be offended! I've been messing with tarantulas longer than most people on this forum have been alive, and I still consider myself a newbie. I'm just having a little fun with you.
:happy:
Okay, let's get down to business. First, the pleasantries:
"Welcome to the hobby!"
"Welcome to these forums!"
Now, to get you started on the right foot I urge you to read the following webpages.
Stan's Rant
- A little initial boost in the right direction.
BE SURE TO READ AND HEED THE WARNINGS! They'll save you a bundle of cash and maybe a few dead tarantulas!
BE SURE TO READ THE BOOKS! The books will not only answer all your questions, but will also answer all the questions you hadn't thought to ask!
Myths, Misconceptions, and Mistakes Perpetuated by Tarantula Enthusiasts
- A growing list of bad information in the hobby.
Be sure to explore all the links.
And then, you should read
Substrate
to get to the
down and dirty of the situation. :blush: :laugh:
Additional Thoughts:
Good Starting Philosophy:
Most newbies start out trying to make tarantula care as complicated as possible, fretting over all sorts of silly things. For the beginner at least, and for most of us experienced aficionados as well, the best philosophy is,
SIMPLE IS BETTER! As long as it supplies the basic necessities, the simpler your tarantula's cage is, the less there is to go wrong.
The Search Function:
Don't take this as a criticism, but if you don't already know about it, please learn to use the
Search function at the top of the page. It'll save us all a lot of time and effort. Most novices and even many seasoned enthusiasts fail to appreciate that 95+% of all tarantula issues have already been addressed, sometimes
ad nauseam, on these forums. All you need do is look for the discussions.
A Basic Operating Principle:
If you can't find an answer to your concern using the
Search function (after all, search engines are far from perfect), by all means ask us. Remember,
"The only dumb questions are the ones you don't ask."
"And, dumb questions are always easier to deal with than dumb mistakes!"
Fire away! "We aims to please."
Also, has no one told you?
THE TARANTULA KEEPER'S LAMENT
Like those potato chips,
you can't have just one!
But, you already know about that, don't you?
:laugh:
(And, we offer a tip of the ol' hat and our profound thanks to the
Frito-Lay Company
for institutionalizing the progenitor of this little joke.)
Visit the webpages. Read the warnings. Read the books. Watch these forums. Do the searches.
DON'T DO ANYTHING ANYBODY TELLS YOU UNLESS ITS CONFIRMED IN ONE OF THOSE BOOKS, OR WE CONFIRM IT HERE!
IGNORE THE !@#$%! CARE SHEETS!
Then, get back to us with any concerns you may have. We're here to help.
Again, you need to read, READ,
READ!
Lastly, the photos of your tarantulas were great, but it would help a lot if you would also post several photos of their cages
from several different angles. A picture is worth 1000 words! Besides,
"We LUVS pichers!"
End Canned Message
nemo wrote: ... Got my 1st T :spider: (Greenbottle Blue) in January 2012 & my collection has grown since...
So, it's taken you a little while to find us?
nemo wrote: ... Honestly speaking, I was terrified of spiders, but I've always wanted a tarantula, just to help break my fear.
Result = Success! (I'm still a little skittish from time to time :blush: ) ...
We're gonna fix that!
nemo wrote: ... My current collection: ...
I add some comments here. First, as adults all of these species will adjust quite nicely to an arid cage. I note that you're keeping live plants with at least some of them. Keeping them on damp substrate is tantamount to being on your knees, begging for trouble. Keep them dry, but make sure they have a water dish. Use plastic aquarium plants or silk plants instead.
1 x Greenbottle Blue (Chromatopelma Cyaneopubescens); 5-6cm - A desert species! Doesn't merely prefer a dry cage, it
REQUIRES one! You can see their natural habitat in some of the following links.a
Green Bottle Blue feeding
Rick C. West in Paraguaná, Venezuela looking for GBBs
Paraguaná xeric scrubland (home of the GBB)
2 x Chaco Golden-Knee (Grammostola Pulchripes); 2cm & 3cm - These come from the
Gran Chaco
region of South America, a hot, dry area in the rain shadow of the Andes.
2 x Mexican Fireleg (Brachypelma Boehmei); 3.5cm & 8cm - A somewhat skittish species (unusual for a
Brachypelma) from a small region along the southwestern (Pacific) coastal regions of Mexico, in the state of Guerrero. Their habitat is deciduous tropical forest. Anything but rainforest and a damp habitat.
1 x Mexican Red-Knee (Brachypelma Smithi); 2cm - from two disjunct regions along the southwestern (Pacific) coastal regions of Mexico. One population straddles the border between the states of Colima and Michoacan. Another one, farther to the south surrounds Acapulco in the state of Guerrero. Their habitat is deciduous tropical forest. Anything but rainforest and a damp habitat.
1 x Brazilian Red & White (Nhandu Chromatus); 11cm - Native to the savannas of southern Brazil and Paraguay in habitat very much like some places in southern Africa.
1 x Brazillian Black (Grammostola pulchra); 3cm - Taking delivery this afternoon! :woohoo: - These come from Brazil, but I've not been able to find much about either their locale or habitat. Regardless, ample experience has clearly shown that these will adjust quite well to an arid cage.
nemo wrote: ... I've got a few more that I'd like to get, but will do so in time...
We told you! We told you! :tongue:
nemo wrote: ... As this was my 1st winter with my T's, I was extremely worried about having the right conditions, but I managed & they are all eating well & molting. ...
You really need to read
Temperature...
.
nemo wrote: ... I mainly feed them crickets, but I've introduced roaches as well to the bigger ones. ...
Everybody overfeeds their tarantulas. And, virtually all long term captive tarantulas are obese. Although everybody has their own opinions about whether this is bad, irrelevant, or good for our tarantulas, we generally take a middle-of-the-road stance, and recommend feeding virtually every species you mention no more than 2 adult crickets (or their equivalent in body mass) to each tarantula per week.
One last item to consider. Baby tarantulas are cared for differently than the corresponding adults in most cases. That immediately begs the question of when and how to go about changing them from baby conditions and care to adult conditions and care. Thus, I offer the following little essay. As soon as I can stop spending so much time on these forums, I'll eventually write it up as another webpage on my website.
CAVEATS: Note that the following rules of thumb apply to nearly all tarantulas except a few obligate swamp dwellers, and to the arboreal species, and those are addressed towards the bottom.
BABY TARANTULAS: Those younger tarantulas with a diagonal leg span (DLS) of about 1.5" (3.8 cm) or less should be kept in a relatively closed container that heavily restricts ventilation. The substrate should be kept slightly damp. All this maintains a constant, elevated (but not excessive) humidity. Do not mist; instead, reread the last few sentences carefully. Do not spend a lot of time, energy, effort, or money on fancy containers. Like humanoid babies, these will outgrow their containers soon, thereby wasting all your finest efforts over and over again.
SPIDERLINGS TO ADULTS: Those younger tarantulas with a DLS of about 2" (5 cm) and larger should be kept in cages with dry substrate and supplied a water dish with clean water. Keep almost all of these as arid species. (See the exceptions below.)
TWEENS: Those tarantulas BETWEEN the aforementioned two sizes should be gradually acclimatized to a dry cage over a period of 2 or 3 molts. Gradually allow the container/cage to dry out, but be very sure to supply a water dish with clean water. You're gradually removing the higher humidity and substituting a water dish as the primary water source. In response, the tarantula develops a thicker, more impervious waxy layer to prevent excessive water loss from its body. All it needs is a little time to adjust.
Note that many tarantulas from semi-arid and arid places like the American Great Plains and the Kalahari Desert can make this transition much earlier in life than these recommended times. But, it does them no harm to wait a little longer either.
SWAMP DWELLERS: These are tarantulas like the species of Theraphosa, Ephebopus, Hysterocrates, Megaphobema, and a few others. These do not have the impervious, water retentive exoskeletons of the other tarantulas and require a constant, high humidity. Keep these in "baby" style cages for their entire lives, adjusting for increased size of course.
Enthusiasts are discovering that wild caught "swampers" will gradually develop a somewhat greater resistance to slightly drier conditions if the transition is done slowly and over an extended period of time. And, those swampers that are bred in captivity fare much better and can tolerate drier cages much better than their wild caught brethren.
ARBOREALS: Wild caught arboreals (assumed to be adults), particularly members of the genus Avicularia often fare poorly when first brought into captivity, partly because of "shipping shock" and partly because of the sudden change in environmental conditions. To combat this, they should be initially set up and cared for as babies for the first few weeks (initial recovery period), then quickly switched to a "Tweens" care regimen (secondary acclimatization period) for the first one or two molts. Thereafter keep them as adult, arid tarantulas but maintain a slightly elevated humidity by slightly restricting ventilation. Always supply them a water dish. (In the middle of the night as they hunt for food they'll pussyfoot down to the water dish and take a sip. And being sound asleep, you'll never, EVER know it happened!)
Captive bred arboreals (assumed to be babies or very young spiderlings) usually do not suffer the acclimatization problems that the wild caught ones do, but sometimes suffer shipping shock from bad treatment during transportation. When first received they should be kept as babies (see above) for two or three weeks, then they can be quickly changed over to whatever care regimen is appropriate according to the schedule given here, depending on their size and age.
As I stated earlier, all of your tarantulas will do best if kept as arid species.
There! I've done enough damage. Best of luck!
YOU NEEDS TO DO YOUR HOMEWORK!
Your little 8-legged buddies are going to be giving you spot quizzes daily!
:laugh:
And once your hooked, every bit of cash looks like a new Tarantula :spider: enjoy your Ts they rock!!!
