newbie - Brachypelma Albopilosa

[jasonweald]

Hi this is my first post although been reading some real helpful and interesting facts on the forum as I purchased my first sling (B. Albopilosa) 5 months ago venturing away from reptiles for the first time. I have to admit its been a real education and a pleasure. My little sling has been steadily digging his burrows in his small pot and hopefully eating the crickets i have been giving him/her. Was wondering over last few weeks when he would eventually shed and saw him on his back two weeks ago but was in his burrow and turned back over the following day. Anyway hadn't seen much of him since then and he was not eating the cricket so I guessed shedding may still be taking place. To my surprise and excitement I looked in on him 2 days ago and saw some dark hairy legs poking out the mouth of his hole so dropped a cricket in and woosh this great big (three times the size) handsome spider came rushing out and snatched the cricket and was gone!!! Amazing and I'm totally hooked. He/she is a real calm spider and sits their and watches your movement and does his/her own thing. Was worried I hadn't been giving him the right conditions although following all the advice on here and from the seller so was real glad to see him looking so great.

[martin hudson]

Hi, Jason, congratulations on a successful moult(your 'T' not you) its a real sight when you see your 'T' after a moult & it has grown out of all recognition! sounds as thou your doing every thing as you should,& your spider is well & happy! its a totally addictive hobby, & i am shore you will soon have more 'Ts' to look after!

[jasonweald]

Thanks Martin...yes have to admit its very addictive and such a buzz to see it doing well and thriving. Been looking at other slings but think I will take small steps and make sure 'Curly' (my kids have named the T) keeps doing well. I check the peat/soil regularly but would you recommend changing it or leave it as unless I spot mould or any bad smells. (So far clean and no odours and no waste food, although dont know where the T's shed skin is??

[Peter Roach]

I check the peat/soil regularly but would you recommend changing it or leave it as unless I spot mould or any bad smells. (So far clean and no odours and no waste food, although dont know where the T's shed skin is??

If you do a regular cleanup. ie. . remove the food bolus when seen there is not really any point in changing the substrate although if you are extremely wealthy and have more money than sense, you could change the substrate in 2 or 3 years time LOL IF you really feel the need.

As tarantulas are basically clean and produce very little waste, the substrate can and will last for years without changing.
You could add a few woodlice as a clean up crew (either garden or tropical species) and they will eat any mould, fungus and food bolas to make the substrate spotless for you.

[jasonweald]

Thanks for the tip Peter and no I definitely don't have more money than sense !! I take it the T won't eat the woodlice?

[martin hudson]

Thanks for the tip Peter and no I definitely don't have more money than sense !! I take it the T won't eat the woodlice?

I do use woodlice in my ''tropical'' enclosures, but in a curly,werly, set-up i would not bother, as it should be to dry for the lice to live, & as Peter has stated, if you clean out any bolus that you see& remove any uneaten crickets, you will be fine.
I doubt that your sling has eaten its moult! its most likely in its tunnel some were,you don't always find them when they are small slings!but fear not you will have plenty more to come

[jasonweald]

Thanks Martin. He/she has become quite bold now and walks around his container during the day. Can't wait til he/she gets fully grown and I can find out what sex he or she is!! You just get that sense when watching them that they are so much more switched on than your common house spider

[martin hudson]

You wont have to wait till its fully grown to sex it, you can sex them from the moulted exo at any age, but it may be to small to do by eye at the moment, but as he/she gets a bit bigger you should be able to sex it, try a eye loop! probably best done at around,5-6.instar,(for ease).
I would say that all spiders have a great deal more to them,than your every day person would give credit for, all of witch is pre-programmed,just got'a love the little beesties,

[Lee Furness]

All T's are oddballs, my B. albo is no exception either.
It spends 75% of it's time just sat in the burrow - but when it's hungry it will come out and sit on the exact same piece of bark and wait right there until the top comes off and a cricket is dropped in, took me a few times to realise it was doing this, it's almost like a kid sitting at the dinner table with knife-n-fork at the ready waiting for the plate to be put in front of it.
I was howling one day when it *missed* the initial grab at a cricket, which then started hopping all over the box with the spider in hot pursuit behind grabbing like mad and springing all over until it nailled it!

Once every few weeks it seems to like to re-arrange all the furniture too, usually burying the water bowl as deep as possible in the process - so naturally I dig the bowl out, rinse and re-fill it.... only to find the next morning that it's covered with another mound of substrate (grrr!).

[jasonweald]

Yes they certainly have character. Just purchased a G.Rosea sling with the red colour morph. Seems the bug has truly bitten!!

[Lee Furness]

Congrats on the Rosie sling, I've just picked some up too this week - very long wait ahead now for them to grow!!

[jasonweald]

Yes what sort of time period am I looking at for example half full size growth and does it depend on gender ?

[Peter Roach]

How long is a piece of string or how far is it to there and back again ?

That is about the same thing as asking about the growth of a chile.

Males do generally grow faster than females but grammies are in a league of their own so dont hold your breath.

Much depends on temps, amount and quality of food ect etc but I would have a guess at least 3-5 years to half size.

[jasonweald]

Thanks Peter.....guessed that would be the case