Quite a mouthful

I was "hand"feeding my T from tongs the other day because somone gave me their unwanted small mealworms. They were a little too small for him to find easily and he kept getting a mouthful of dirt. So I started handing them to him on the tongs and he just continued to shove them in his mouth. Then he went after a cricket. No matter how many food items came near him, he wouldn't drop what was already in his mouth; he just kept grabbing more and more.

I thought it was funny. The greedy bass-turd...

Two mealworms and a cricket all at once:
http://c2.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/i...4eb770d081.jpg

funny! what kind is it?

Be very careful about over-feeding like that. They will continue to eat and eat.

What makes you say that? I keep 5-10 crickets in the enclosure at all times so that he can eat when he's hungry. I keep cricket food and water and places for them to hide as well so that they don't go after the T. I've never had any problems, and there are always crickets hopping around until the end of the week. If they were the type to eat and eat and eat then wouldn't all of the crickets be gone on the first night?

First off, I think the picture is a good pic imo :D I would personally never leave crix in with any of my T's. It stresses them out having them run around. On feeding day I throw in one cricket. If they eat that one I throw in another. As soon as they show no intrest I take that cricket out and they are done for that feeding session. None of mine will personally just keep eating if I keep throwing them in there. I crush the heads and tong feed the smaller one's, those that don't take it from the tong I just drop it in there and they eventually eat it. That is also to reduce stress of the cricket running around it's cage. This is just what I personally do...

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Originally Posted by Mindibun

What makes you say that? I keep 5-10 crickets in the enclosure at all times so that he can eat when he's hungry. I keep cricket food and water and places for them to hide as well so that they don't go after the T. I've never had any problems, and there are always crickets hopping around until the end of the week. If they were the type to eat and eat and eat then wouldn't all of the crickets be gone on the first night?

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The T's I have seen will keep eating, I seen one rose hair eat like 13 crickets. I usually feed 3-5 a week.

Also it's not very good to keep crickets in the enclosure at all times. Like B said, it will stress your T out very bad, and even though you have stuff for the crickets, it's still not a very good practice.

Well, then I guess my next question is: how can you tell if a T is stressed?

And how do they avoid this stress in the wild when there are bugs wandering around all the time?

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Originally Posted by Mindibun

Well, then I guess my next question is: how can you tell if a T is stressed?

And how do they avoid this stress in the wild when there are bugs wandering around all the time?

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I'm not going to really get into it with you, because it seems like your basically questioning our advice. Ask any breeders if they keep any crickets/mealworms/supermealworms/roaches in the tarantula's tank 24/7.

I have 5 T's and have never keep crickets in with them. I feed them two or three crickets a week. I always take the cricket out if they dont eat it.

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Originally Posted by Neal

I'm not going to really get into it with you, because it seems like your basically questioning our advice. Ask any breeders if they keep any crickets/mealworms/supermealworms/roaches in the tarantula's tank 24/7.

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How can you tell a T is stressed? Sounded like a fair question to me...

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Originally Posted by Hulihzack

How can you tell a T is stressed? Sounded like a fair question to me...

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It was a question, but with the 2nd question that follows, it seems like to me that it wasn't just a question.

I'm going to play devil's advocate here because I feel that Mindibun's questions were not sarcastic, but rather someone trying to gain knowledge. Usually a T shows stress by behavior that is different than normal. Constantly moving, climbing the walls of their enclosure, etc. It is nor uncommon for crickets that are left in the enclosure may injure a T.

i have some tarantulas that will keep on eating, and some that will only eat a few a week and then lose interest. even then each one only gets 3-5 crix a week. i dont keep crix in with them because it will stress them out and can injure your tarantula.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mindibun

What makes you say that? I keep 5-10 crickets in the enclosure at all times so that he can eat when he's hungry. I keep cricket food and water and places for them to hide as well so that they don't go after the T. I've never had any problems, and there are always crickets hopping around until the end of the week. If they were the type to eat and eat and eat then wouldn't all of the crickets be gone on the first night?

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PLEASE DO NOT LEAVE CRIX IN THE CAGE!!!!!
they will chew on your T like leaving a rat with a snake.
it can kill your T

Hello there :D It looks like you own a G. Rosa??? they are known to keep eating due to the fact of food being scarce where they come from so they tend to gorge in times of plenty. So if food is introduced all the time you spiders instinct is telling it to keep feeding. This species will fast as well...I would cut back on the feeding for a while trantulas are built to survive on few meals it is actually better in the long run. Obesity is common in captive collections. regards Matt I almost forgot when was the last time your spider molted???:cool: