tarantulas for pets.

um can some one who has expeirience with tarantulas tell me which one is the best as far as temperament and also how long it will live and can u direct me to some good care sheets. i might get one my momsays they are cool becuz they are fuzzy. so she said i might be able to get one in a few months(which really means abotu 10 months) also can u tell me how often the species eats.

They're really not very fuzzy; their bodies are covered in urticary (I believe that's the word) hairs that can actually really hurt if you get them stuck in your fingers.
Just a heads-up...they're not that cuddly. :)

chilean rose taratulas are great for beginners and pretty common. i have one and she is very sweet. never flicked hairs at me or bitten or anything. feed crickets, mealworms, etc. once or twice per week. if they do not eat the prey within 24 hours make sure to remove it so it doesn't cause stress. keep a shallow dish with water in it for them to drink from at all times. they like temps between 75-85 degrees and humidity of around 80%. use a red infrared bulb for heat--they are nocturnal spiders. i use toilet paper rolls and a half hollowed out coconut for hides and reptibark substrate in a 10 gallon tank. they like to burrow, so a good depth of some sort of loose substrate is needed. really they are very easy to take care of. just do a little research and you'll find all you need to know. :)

hey how much are they and what is flicking hairs sounds painful.

they can rub their back legs together and "flick" hairs at you. it's not the most comfortable thing from what i have heard (this hasn't happened to me personally). maybe like little needles getting stuck into you all of the sudden. they only do it if they feel threatened or really stressed. like if a dog came up and was sniffing it, then it might flick or throw hairs at the dog's nose as a defense mechanism.

i'm not sure exactly how much they cost. i got mine from a friend who was moving and couldn't take her with him. maybe $30? rose hairs aren't expensive as far as tarantulas go.

rose hairs cost around 10- 20 dollars. the urticulating hairs are hairs on their rump that they kind of flick at you when agitated. in nature these hairs get into the face area and nasal passages irritating the would be predator. some t's flick more than others. rose hairs are generally docile. but i would get the seller to hold it first to check the temperment. i would start with a rose hair or a pink toe tarantula. they are venomous, there have been no deaths recorded from tarantula bites. if you happen to be allergic to their venom you may have a problem. like people that are allergic to honey bees. tarantulas are low maintenance pets, you can hold them but they are best for display! hope this may help!


thanks

vaughn

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kavmon

tarantulas are low maintenance pets, you can hold them but they are best for display!

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that is a good point. i don't hold my tarantula much at all. they don't really enjoy handling the way other pets do. and they are so fast that you can lose them in a second. if they were to jump off of your hand (and they certainly can jump) and hit the floor or something hard their abdomen would probably burst, resulting in death. they are actually fairly delicate. so if you are looking for something that you can get out and play with, a tarantula isn't it.

oh heck no. i would never hold a tarantual unless it was for cleaning the tank oh yeah do they poo or pee or make any kind of mess in that matter and how often do i ahve to clean the tank.

they have little white deposits kind of like urates in snakes. i keep mine in 5 and 10 gal. tanks. i completely clean out tanks 3 or 4 times a year., spot clean when needed. they aren't really messy, i only feed once a week. when doing tank maintenence i use a 2 liter bottle to catch the tarantulas. cut the bottom out of it, use it like a funnel to catch the tarantula then use a flat piece of cardboard or something similiar to cover the bottom up. you can tape the cardboard to the bottle to keep the tarantula in there while you clean. if you are wondering i don't do this for rose hairs or pink toes, i just hold them. this method is for the goliath birdeater,columbian blue bloom,indian ornamental, and the columbian red leg all are aggressive.

thanks

vaughn

hold up so the rose hair and pink toes are kinda small?

they are generally between 4-6 inches total legspan!

yeah they are big so how long do they live?

females live on average of 10-15 yrs. males about half that on average. if you want a large one that is calm the chaco golden knee aka chaco yellow stripe it is in the rose hair family is cool
they get 6-8 inches and are calm

cool i will check that one out.

there is a site its called arachnopets or arachnoboard.com they have a ton of info on t's and some real experts there. if you want to get in to t's it's a great place for research

thanks

vaughn

man e i want the chilean rose hair i am set on it. now i just got to bug my mom in about 7 months(5 months i get the new vision cage for my bp and that gives me 2 months to come up ewith the money.)

good luck , you can get a rose hair at a local show for around 10 bucks or less. the visions are nice cages too, i use them for my green tree pythons

If it is your first T you should look into getting a G. rosea (Rose Hair) they are very docile and they arent prone to flicking bristles. Here is one of my favorite sites on Ts http://tarantulas.differentdawn.com/ they have a bunch of caresheets there. Also remember that no T is a good hand pet. If you are gonig to handle your T make sure you do it over a soft surface like a bed. Ts are VERY fragile and even being droped from 2 or 3 feet could kill them. Ts are very good pets as they do not require much mainteance. Good luck in the world of Ts

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kavmon

there is a site its called arachnopets or arachnoboard.com they have a ton of info on t's and some real experts there. if you want to get in to t's it's a great place for research

thanks

vaughn

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heres the site........ http://www.arachnoboards.com

avic avic's are docile and nice.
vaughn's right .........all you need is there.

hey wendy i noticed you have a p. metallica, whow that is a nice one, is it a really intense blue yet?

A. avicularia............yes they are docile but they are really fast. I dont think it really matters if a T is docile or not Ts really arent meant to be held. Infact the only time I hold my Ts are for photo shoots or if one tries to crawl out of his/her tank. Also a P. Murinus is a good novice T becuase they are very hardy.

no, not yet,but they are still pretty. mine are from the 2nd shipment....my buddy john has some from the first. his big females are wicked blue..looks awesome w/ the yellow...we r hoping for a male soon. a blue pokie .....who would of thought? in a few days i should have some pic's up.

last year vince from regal had a 1 1/2 inch one, i was tempted. i'll wait for the price to come down, i like sub-adult females. i don't think i have the patience for a hatchling!

but do you have the loot for sub-adult females....IF you can get them at 975.

Grammostola rosea aka "Chilean Rose" is probably the most common starter species as far as tarantulas goes. They are a new world species, and as mentioned, they do have urticating hairs all over their body. They use these hairs for defense. When they feel threatened, they will launch these hairs in to the air. And what this does is imbeds into your skin and so forth and is very irritating. It itches. Bad. And sometimes will not letup for months, dependingo on the species that gave them to you. The hairs are barbed and some believe contain a protein that is the culprit for the irritation. Some new world species hairs are more severe than others. The most irritating and painful are belong to the Theraphosa blondi & the Pseudotheraphos apophysis (or so I hear).

The G. rosea typically is pretty tolerant of newbie mistakes. They are hardy. They are a terrestrial species that will burrow.

The Avicualaria avicularia is an arboreal species. Meaning, they live in trees. So should you decide to get an arboreal species, your setup needs height, not floor space. They won't come to the ground except to drink, and that's rare in itself.

As far as a Pterinochilus murinus, I wouldn't reccomend that for you to start with. Although they are beautiful, they are an old world species (no urticating hairs) and are much defensive and won't hesitate to bite you should you make them feel threatened. This is typical of old world species. And lightning fast runners too. Let me tell you! If one gets away, you will have quite a time catching it without hurting it.

I would highly reccomend the following links:

http://www.e-spiderworld.com/

http://www.atshq.org/

http://www.goldenphoenixexotica.com/

http://www.birdspiders.com/


The above links are to some of the most reputable people in the tarantula business. They are at the top of the information and knowledge food chain on this subject.

I'll be happy to answer any other questions you may have to the best of my ability.

And if you'd like to see my collection, click the "WEBSHOTS" link below my name.

Take care and good luck!

Those hairs are a lot like getting raw fiberglass under your skin - irritating doesnt begin to describe it lol.

Pass me a flame-knee or l.parahybana please!

thanks for all the help but i am just getting more excited about getting one. man 8 months *sigh* maybe by that time we will finally be in a house to make room for a tarantula and finally a rosy boa and then when i am 17 a burm lol.

^ Are you planning on going to college, Brian? DEFINITELY wait until you're out to get a Burm, most campuses are much more willing to tolerate a 5' snake than a 10' one.

oh yeah than 21 it is for the burm and that is in 7 years *sigh* man being young sometimes really sucks and it is even worse when ya don't have a job.

well without a job you couldn't afford to feed and house more than one snake anyhow, so you're better off waiting. it's something good to look forward too though.

i can't get a job till next year.(i have some connections with weekend jobs at starbuck mwahahahaha) but i have to wait to get my working papers till i go to my new school. man and this year is gonna suck because i am going to a really bad school. it is fine academically but man the kids their are horrible. i really dislike NY.