What not to feed a T?

[Larry Shone]

My T seems happy with crickets but isnt a varied diet better? I was wondering what creatures I shouldnt give to my T. I tried putting woodlice in as theyre easy to find(too flippin easy!) but she turned her nose up at them. Now theyre in the tank as hopefull cleaners! (My Tegenaria isnt impressed with woodlice either, I wonder if they exude a repellant chemical!)

My tegenaria does like Daddy long legs and flies, but im not sure about the T, who has only just started eating.

[Neil Richardson]

I wouldn't use any insects from outside unless you can guarantee they are pesticide free.

Also wouldn't use anything that could fight back, including bees, wasps, ants and termites.


Mine get a diet of mainly cockroaches, with the odd pinkie / fuzzy mouse, or locust or waxworm/moth.

[Adam Smith]

I have fed a woodlice to one of my juveniles once before and took it straight away where as others havent bothered. They are good for eating waste though. There are many insects to feed and some people feed meet like chicken to Ts, I havent tried it myself but people come up with new items to feed all the time.

[J M Clegg]

Feeding

I try and vary the diets of all my spiders. Crickets are usually good, Locusts some will take other dont. Cockroaches - So far all of them like a fat juicy roach. I have 4 colonies Lobster (Small and plentyful), Orange Head, A Medium Sized Roach (Again good breeders), Deaths Head (Large Roach) and then Giant Madagascan Hissing Roaches.
The great thing about roaches is they breed easy meaning you don't have to buy a full tub of crickets every week, and nutritionally they are excellent. You feed the roaches with good quality food and then this is passed to your Tarantulas. It mimics the natural cycle and food chain.
Bigger spiders take bigger roaches and less frequently. You manage your roach supply to your spider collection.
I personally never feed my spiders anything wild caught, in reality any insect carrying insecticide will more than likely die before it gets to your spiders, but other parasites could be a risk. If I ever catch a fly or daddy long legs it goes in with a praying mantis.

[Daniel Carpenter]

I have tried my T's on the commen garden cricket. But have found that they are very agressive, this... in one case injured one of my T's only once but i would strongly advise aganist it. Might be possible to feed to large and adult T's though.
Dan.

[Larry Shone]

The only creatures i can find on a regular basis are moths, daddy long legs and house flies.
My Tegenaria eats these with relish but my T has only recently started eating and supply of crane flies and moths has dried up with the cool weather!

[Mike Todd]

For my smaller species slings, like the C.elegans. I do use termites sometimes. You just have to crush the heads of the workers and make sure they come from a pesticide free area.