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"Rosie" The first Tarantula of Swordsville

I was getting crickets and they had this Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula for $30 including the cage so I had to get her. She's about 3" I suppose.

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I know the bark is bad for them and I will swap it out for peat once she settles in. Right now she's been hiding her face like that for an hour or so since we got home. She was active at the store and I'm sure she enjoyed the pot-holey roads on the ride home. I'm not gonna pester her and make her get out and walk around tonight. On tues/wed I will clean the cage out real well and set up a proper substrate pad, rearrange the den wood and add some silk plant leaves and see if I can get some good pics of her wandering about.

They were using cricket water or a nasty cotton wad in her water dish, not sure what it was, it was gross and I didn't touch it. I've dumped that and put in plain fresh water. I will try and acquire an aquarium safe river rock pebble for the water dish. For now it's not filled too deep, just enough (1/2 cm) that she can reach in and get some water on her palps if she wants to drink.

For Massmorels or anyone else in the know: Is that white perlite looking thing a food bolus or a T poopie? ???
 
Woooooo! Congrats!

Good luck with her. She's very "pretty."
 
Get Eco-Earth for the substrate. It comes in compact bricks, then you just add warm water. That's the best thing you can use.
Your right with the standing water. Don't worry about the river rocks. A T of that size won't drown in the water dish.
Looks like a nice female.. She'll be around for a good 20+ years.
 
Is eco-earth just coir? I have a huge bale of coir in my pantry if it's the same deal.
 
it's ground up coconut husk, peat, and something else. T's love it..
 
congrats dad on the new child , im sure she will be much happier with you ,
your very studious ,and will make a great care giver .
lots of luck , cant wait to see her on your head or some kinda of pose. LOL
 
She's finally moving around a bit, quite slowly though. More when the room is totally dark and silent but I live here too so she's gonna have to get used to my schedule. I'm thinking of hiding her shelf in the old closet alcove with a black curtain to help keep the room lights from buggin her when I get home at 5 am and flip on the lights for a few hours then go to bed only to have the plant lamps fire up from 9 am - 9 pm.
 
Well I rehoused her today into a new larger Kritter Keeper (the largest size they have is about 3 gallons) this should do her fine for another year or two. Then I will go to a 5 or 10 gallon when she's 5" or so. I added some loose silk plant leaves and made a den with the cork bark from her old tank. She's irritated with the moisture level of the new setup. She's hanging on the wall for now. I dropped a couple small crickets in there to help lure her off the wall and encourage her to check out her new digs I'll pull them out if she hasn't touched them by tomorrow.

I haven't held a Tarantula for 25 years or more when my 3rd grade teacher had one. I was almost faint, my heart was in my throat but boy she does have beautiful colors. At least on the floor under the lights of the anole tank where I did the transfer. Her head portion (prosoma) is a bright rosy pink, too bad she likes to hide her face all the time. The store said she is very agreeable with handling so I will let her be out and wander a bit and stretch her legs more often as I myself get comfortable with handling her. She seemed quite happy to go right up my arm no threat displays or anything as my hands brushed her hind leg and the other was held out to her. Feels like a little machine made of q-tips walking up your arm - wild!

I didn't hold her too long but so far I've had no reaction to the utricating bristles on her rump. She didn't kick so I probably didn't get "any".
 
They put stuff in the water dish so the crickets you let go in there don't drown. That's really the only reason there is stuff in the water dish.
 
  • #10
Yes that's true but it's unclean to do what they did using cricket water gel or cotton batting. It was NASTY looking. I have a silk leaf half in and half out so the crickets can get out if they dive in. Some people think Tarantulas will drink the cricket water gel stuff but they won't and shouldn't. Tarantulas need to drink clean water from a water dish in their late night wanderings and if they're ill hydrating them can help a lot so they need to have one available at all times.
 
  • #11
So cool!!! Look so hairy.... is tarantulas posionous? when got bitten?
 
  • #12
dude.. it's a rosie, come on, man up! You can't be in the cool club until you do.

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What's the worst that can happen?

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  • #13
Hmmmmmmm.... I feel more safe with CP :)
 
  • #14
LOL I know, just gotta ease into it is all.:D

I handled my teachers red knee all the time but that was aeons ago. Glad I didn't get a fast pokie right off like I wanted to.


I love that last picture of the two skins training the T! Maybe that could be my avatar for March? LOL


Tarantulas are not killers but a bite from any animal with sharp teeth (fangs) will of course hurt. If you know what the signs are for them not being in a good mood you leave them alone until they are in a better humor the next day. Lots of learning to be had on you tube.
 
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