owners views

[John chambers]

Hello.
I would like owners views on the following,
mexican redknee (B.smithi ) - mexican red leg (B.emilia)- mexican blood leg (Aphonopelma bicoloratum)
I'm trying to get a better idea to how much each of these t's are like each other.
so if you keep or kept these please have your say..
Because it's one of these three I will hope to own so give as much info as you can as too many books make t's in to stereotypes.
so info on age you got it,cost,moods they have..ect will really help me and others in the future..

Thank you for reading and taking the time to post.

Regards.
John.

[Larry Shone]

Mexican Red Knee-B.smithi, is THE tarantula that the lay person imagines when you say the word tarantula. Its also the first T that I handled way back before I even imagined owning one. Mine was very docile, handleable but really was a pet rock! Just sat there all day hardly moving and seemed to have a fear of crickets! I kid you not!
Of the three you listed its the only one I've owned but I have my eye on one of the other two, either B.boehmii or B.auratum, because altho they dont do mch they make good display Ts.

[John chambers]

Mexican Red Knee-B.smithi, is THE tarantula that the lay person imagines when you say the word tarantula. Its also the first T that I handled way back before I even imagined owning one. Mine was very docile, handleable but really was a pet rock! Just sat there all day hardly moving and seemed to have a fear of crickets! I kid you not!
Of the three you listed its the only one I've owned but I have my eye on one of the other two, either B.boehmii or B.auratum, because altho they dont do mch they make good display Ts.

thank you Larry ... and what age was your b.smithi when you got her?.

[Larry Shone]

thank you Larry ... and what age was your b.smithi when you got her?.

not sure as she was bought for me a couple of years ago as a gift. I think it was a male,close to maturity I think which I'm presuming is why he died.

[Stephen jordan]

Hi, I have an adult female mexican bloodleg, and she's very docile, good feeder... nice spider all together.

[Larry Shone]

Hi, I have an adult female mexican bloodleg, and she's very docile, good feeder... nice spider all together.

Bloodleg, is that auratum? I get confused with common names!

[Stephen jordan]

Shes an Aphonopelma bicoloratum

[Larry Shone]

Shes an Aphonopelma bicoloratum

Ah, thats another species i want,lol

[Stephen jordan]

My wishlist is a whopper get there eventually! Yeah, my A bicoloratum is a lovely little spider well worth owning. I want an auratum too lol

[John chambers]

Hi, I have an adult female mexican bloodleg, and she's very docile, good feeder... nice spider all together.

hi Stephen. can you tell us more .. and what age you got her..
size they get to.. ect.. it gives me as much info as posible to help me single out the right one to start with.
regards.
John.

[Larry Shone]

My wishlist is a whopper get there eventually!

Tell me about it! :O

[Stephen jordan]

Hi John, I'm not entirely sure how old she is as I bought her as a sub adult from spidershop last year. I'd say she has a body lengh of between 6 - 7 cm, fantastic colours. Not sure what part of Mexico it was collected from but apparently they are found in some parts of Texas too, They don't get as large as the Brachypelmas. Mine has a very docile disposition, will run and hide if startled and has not flicked hairs or shown any defensive behaviour. Has only refused food once, I'm really happy with her as she was a present from my grandmother. I keep mine on a bone dry substrate of coir/sphagnum moss mix and once a week when I change her water I'll spray a quarter of the tank to keep humidity around the 60/70% mark, temperature depends on the weather as it's fixed at 22C on the stat but if the suns out the ambient room temp fluctuates this by a few degrees. I have photos of her on my deviant art page, I can pm you with the page address if you wish? She's a cracking spider John and a good choice!

[Jimmy Burridge]

Hi John, at the moment in raising a sling B Smithi
i got pudding when s/he was no bigger than an ant and now pudding is 2 1/2 leg span. still a long way to go but i love to watch the behaviour
Granted s/he just hides in his borrow .... but pudding loves to eat
i dont think he knows how to be aggressive
should be getting colours soon .... i hope
hope this has been helpfull
p.s with spiderlings you must keep them pritty moist ... cos there only 'lill

[John chambers]

is this right?... got it from a breeder/keeper.
((( It really depends on the personality of the indvidual T. Some can be very calm, others not. Ts can be sexed around 1-1.5 inch mark.)))

[Kurt Baird]

Hey,

I've got all 2, maybe 3, not sure on the common name you used.

I got the Red Knee 18 months or so ago, she's about 4 - 5" Legspan. She was a juvenile when we got her, can't give you an exact age but maybe 2-3 years old. She's very docile, she occasionally kicked hairs in the past but she seems to have stopped that now. She doesn't use her burrow much so makes a good display spider. She's kept in a 18"x10"x10" Clear Seal fish tank.

My Red Leg is only a sling. Got her / him about 13 months ago. She's maybe 1.5 - 2" legspan, and has her full colouration. I'm guessing she is about between 12 and 18 months old. Again, very docile (especially for a spiderling; slings can be a touch more nervous). She doesn't hide and I haven't witnessed her kick any hairs. She's kept in a pot at the moment.

I'm not actually sure if I have a Blood Leg. I've seen Brachypelma boehmei labeled as a Blood Leg, as well as Aphonopelma bicolouratum, but both look very similar. If it is the B.boehmei you mean, then as above really. We got him about 17 months ago, about 3" legspan. He is now around 4.5" - 5" so is probably 4 years old or so. Used to flick hairs a fair bit, but has stopped completely and is very docile. Doesn't hide so is a good display. He's kept in a 18"x10"x10" Clear Seal fish tank.

All three are kept at around 70F and quite dry. They all have a water bowl and are hardly ever (if at all) sprayed with water. All will live a fairly long life (10+) years presuming their females, males will live significantly shorter than that.

Hope this helps.