Tarantulas

[SnakeMann87]

Hey.....since I'm looking into scorps I was wondering about the tarantulas? If I'm not allowed(unlikely) to get a scorp what are some good T's to start out with?? SOmething cheap.....easy to care for.......nothing big like a Goliath Bird Eater!!!!!!!1 I see a lot of people owning the Rose Hairs?? How are they. Any pics? ANy and ALL possible info would be just awesome. Thanks in advance.

Don
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[SnakeMann87]

WOW is this the true color!!!!!!!!!!!!! HOLY POOP!!!!!!!!!
http://www.tarantulas.com/redknee.asp
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_________________
Don Meyer
I own: 1.1 Ball Python, 0.1 Colombian Boa, 1.0 Burmese Python
Visit: www.leo-land.net

	Female Female

	1.1 One Male and One Female

[Shadrach]

Your Rose Hairs are going to probably be your cheapest and easiest to care for starting out. But I kind of feel rose hairs are like Reticulated Pythons and a little unpredictable at times! I've had one for quite a while now and shes different from day to day sometime docile and other days your can't get close without a defensive posture? Anyway a little info on setups and temps

A five gallon or smaller gritter keeper will work, a deep jar lid for water (no sponge or gel stuff) and be sure to keep water in at all times Tarantulas can go long periods without food but not water they move by blood pressure and not muscles (kind of like a hydrolic system) so water is very important. And peatmoss for substrate and your set no special temps or anything. Just be sure to put several inches of peat in the bottom for digging and to act as a cushion incase it climbs and falls.
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[SnakeMann87]

Ok thank you VERY mudch that was extremely helpful. What abuot the redknees though im curious
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[zero_point_one]

First off, tarantula's might seem like really cool pets, but they are a lot of work. I have four: two curly hairs, a Costa Rican Zebra (brown stipped knee), and a rose hair. Grr, Arg, Rar, and Eek. I used to have a Pink Brazilian Beauty and a Brazilian Black and White, but they both passed away.

Every single care sheet available on tarants is exactly the same. Keeping each tarantula in the same environment is like keeping a rosy boa and an amazon at the same humidity, so your best bet is to get an indepth book on the care of tarants. Keeping tarants is all about their safe being and comfort. I don't just mean the cushion in case it falls. I actually have burrows set up for those who like to dig and foliage coverage for the rest. Like Shad said, water is very important, but if you get a smaller one, the water dish can be difficult. I have to mist down the curly tarants every day.

Feeding them: three of mine eat crickets - three each a week. My rose hair, she eats live pinky mice and could very easily take a fuzzy, but she'll take just about anything offered to her. My Brazilian B&W would only eat gerble pinkies if she was in the mood for them and at full size she would have been able to take a mouse. So some of them can be picky about what they eat.

Handling: be very very careful. They are fragile creatures. My Pink Zebra died after she took a short fall while I was cleaning her cage. I use a fish net to scoop them out of their cages and place them in deli cups to do cage maintance. I also wear rubber glove to prevent injury to me (see below).

Life span: depends on the tarantula. Some of it even comes down to the sex of the species. For some, females can live for quite a long time - 20 or more years. Males, on the other hand, once you breed them, they only have about another year left, so they only live about 5. If you don't breed them, they could live as long as the females. Don't breed them. Ever tried feeding cricket parts to anything?

Now, remember they are VENOMOUS and they do bite. There are no studies on the venom capacities of tarantulas. None. A bite from a rose hair would be very painful. It wouldn't kill you, but it would hurt. It is a spider bite. I was bitten by a stray spider in my garden (never saw it, but the bite had fang marks). The bite area was four inches in diameter, swollen, bruised, and hurt like I had stuck myself with a knife. Not to mention the constant itching. The symptoms were almost identical to a recluse, but I didn't have the bullseye. Also keep in mind that spider bites are just like bee and wasp stings. The majority of the population is not fazed by their sting, but thousands die each year from anaphylactic shock. The same could happen with tarantulas.

Now, remember, tarantulas can have up to 1/4 inch fangs and the majority that are on the market right now, have urticating hairs. Hence the use of rubber gloves when cleaning cages. Removal of urticating hair can be quite tricky and they hurt just as much as a bite would (remember my spider bite).

Yes, a red knee tarantula is quite beautiful, but keep in mind how much they cost. The cheapest one in my collection was $6 - most expensive $75. The tarantula that I want (and can't get because I have never seen on the market) is upwards of $500 for an adult. The babies for it are $75 each and I refuse to pay that much for something I could hardly see and would have to feed (remember this part) cricket parts.

So, you want
<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font class="pn-sub">Quote:</font><HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT class="pn-sub"><BLOCKQUOTE> SOmething cheap.....easy to care for </BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>

A rose hair is cheap, but tarantulas are not that easy to care for. You have to be 100% serious about it and ready for a long commitment.

Jessa Smith

PS Mexican Red Knees can run between $30 - $50 for unsexed and $125 - $150 guarnateed.

_________________
It's not history that concerns me, it's the future. It's far more uncertain.

[SnakeMann87]

Wow thank you. I read thru the 2 times to make sure i got everything. I wa thinking about a Rose Hair and getting it a 5 gallon. I am going to go out and buy a tarant book also when i return..........and I AM getting an adult.........no cricket parst for me ONce again THANKYOU VERY MUCH.........you were very helpful

Don
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[SnakeMann87]

Ok i know with snakes you dont want a too big enclosure............but i have an extra 10 gallon at home will that be too big for one Tarantula probably a Rose Hair MAYBE a Mex. Red Knee
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[billycat215]

i hear usambara baboon T's are excellent starter T's and are quite handleable.
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[SnakeMann87]

I read about those except the destription said they will bite you if you look at them funny......LOL [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_eek.gif[/img]
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[SnakeMann87]

Here........lol
http://www.tarantulas.com/usumbara.asp
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[Blackwidow_woman]

[img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_cool.gif[/img] billycat215, who in the world told you that or where did you here that from?? As usambara baboon Ts are not beginer Ts at all and are very agressuve and can give you one nasty bite,, If i was you SnakeMann87, i would go for a nice Brazilian Black, G. Pulchra as they are very handable dont flick hairs and rarely ever try to bite.. Then there is the Chaco Golden Knee, a nice big T thats handable, the Texas tan, Pink toe, Flame knee, and the pink zebra beauty.. The tank size you have is plenty big for your T, I had a lot and i mean a lot of Ts and they were not hard to care for, they have there off days and on days, make sure you do your research on that certian T you would like befour purcashing it.. Most Ts that are the easy going handable type like the ones mentioned if they shall bite will only case some pain and swelling maybe a head ache or alittle sicky stomach, but pokies which are your arbreaol Ts like ornamentals and such can put you in the hospital and if your allergic then please be careful.. Please study as much as you can, but they do make great pets and are very intresting to learn about and watch... [img]modules/Forum/images/smiles/icon_cool.gif[/img]
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[JuliusSqueezer]

lol BWW...that was the point. snakemann is our resident petstore junky. Few if any people that know of his antics would ever honestly suggest that he purchase anything but maybe a pet rock. He seems to be addicted to thrill of obtaining a new pet but seldom keeps anything longer than a week or two.
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[Constrictor_BO]

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font class="pn-sub">Quote:</font><HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT class="pn-sub"><BLOCKQUOTE>If I'm not allowed(unlikely) to get a scorp what are some good T's to start out with?? </BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>

Hmmmm. If your not allowed to own a scopr, then what makes you believe you will be allowed a tarantula???
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[zero_point_one]

Keep one thing in mind, SnakeMann, while there may be people out there who are willing to take in snakes as rescues, good luck finding someone who will take a tarantula. You don't just wake up one day and say, &quot;I think I'll get a tarantula.&quot; A lot of thought, preparation, and dedication must go into getting one. I wanted a tarant for years before I got my first and was still undecided as to what to get until my husband decided to get me one.

And though it is unlikely that you won't be able to get your scorpian, what do you know about the care and mantainance of having one? Think really hard before getting arachnids, because once you do, they aren't as easy to get rid of. What I said before was not an encouragement into getting one, I wanted you to realize that there is more than meets the eye.

Jessa Smith

0.1 (aka Mrs. BW Smith)
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	Female Female

[SnakeMann87]

Julius PLEASE will you grow up my god. Explain why ive had my ball python over 3yrs.......my burms for 5 months and my boa for 6 months and my new female for 1 month?? ITs so freaking old
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[Squeezer]

Honestly Don, for a while it seemed like you were getting something new or at least thinking about getting something new, every couple of weeks. Also, the list of animals that you own used to be a bit longer. What happened to the rest?
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[Bry]

<TABLE BORDER=0 ALIGN=CENTER WIDTH=85%><TR><TD><font class="pn-sub">Quote:</font><HR></TD></TR><TR><TD><FONT class="pn-sub"><BLOCKQUOTE> Julius PLEASE will you grow up my god. Explain why ive had my ball python over 3yrs.......my burms for 5 months and my boa for 6 months and my new female for 1 month?? ITs so freaking old</BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></TD></TR><TR><TD><HR></TD></TR></TABLE>

WOW!!!! Is that a new personal record?


Bry
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[SnakeMann87]

I dont have to explain myself to anyone Squeezer.
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[JuliusSqueezer]

I was just stating facts. Personally, I wouldn't sell you a pet rock either just in the offhand chance someday it is discovered that rocks have feelings.
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[SnakeMann87]

you waste your time posting your beliefs and what you say mean nothing to me anymore. I have high respect for you though

_________________
Don Meyer
I own: 1.1 Ball Python, 0.1 Colombian Boa, 1.0 Burmese Python
Visit: www.leo-land.net

	Female Female

	1.1 One Male and One Female