curly hair help

[Truffs1178]

Glenn is right. GBBs can be skittish but so can any tarantula. They have different personalities. Chilean roses are supposed to be calm, docile and perfect for beginners but mine is really aggressive and rears up allot in a defensive display. Red knees are a great choice and it's true that they grow slowly but that doesn't mean they aren't brown for a long time. This Red Knee has only just turned a year old and already has plenty of colour. When I got it a year ago it was less than 1/4" and was only £7.99.

Edit: 3/4" will be more than 2nd instar.

[Lija]

i have a very bad feeling here.... Ts may be even more addictive then frogs, gosh you can leave them for a week and go camping, they need small cages and don't need all that stuff sticking out of my other cages, they don't even need thermometers/hydrometers and then on top they're so awesome.. i'm in trouble....
my curly hair by the way ate another cricket yesterday, and was sitting out on a nice cork piece i have in there, it should probably mean he is all right.

what does instar mean?

[Glenn]

Edit: 3/4" will be more than 2nd instar.

While true for B. smithi (they are ~1/4" at 2nd instar) GBBs are actually relatively big at second instar. The largest individuals I observed were even a hair above 3/4" after molting into 2nd instar!

i have a very bad feeling here.... Ts may be even more addictive then frogs, gosh you can leave them for a week and go camping, they need small cages and don't need all that stuff sticking out of my other cages, they don't even need thermometers/hydrometers and then on top they're so awesome.. i'm in trouble....
my curly hair by the way ate another cricket yesterday, and was sitting out on a nice cork piece i have in there, it should probably mean he is all right.
what does instar mean?

Yup, they seemingly thrive on neglect!
Instar is basically used to describe the developmental period of some inverts, measured by the amount of molts. Being N^th instar mans the individual had molted N times since "hatching". With tarantulas, we are mostly only concerned with the first few and the last one (for males); Most species become fully formed little predators at second instar and are typically ready to sell/ship out at that time. You will have many to choose from at the Red deer show. Not only will Dawn (Tangled in webs) be there, but Bruce (Arachnophiliacs) and Martin & Amanda (Tarantula Canada, though I'm not sure if they will personally be there). Vancouver has a couple of shows a year, and the local spider vendor recently quit the hobby, so I'm pretty jealous you get to see three big vendors in one show. A couple of other species to look out for at the show are B. Emilia, and G. pulchripes. Both slow growers, but look great when they get their adult colors, and are among the most docile.

[Hypnotic]

I know what you mean, my curly was my very first tarantula, bought him as a sling and he's an adult male now.
He enjoys neglect, he gets feed weekly but eats about once a month-2 months, aslong as the back is nice and round, the spider should be healthy.
Mine has escaped 3 times, at first I thought I was being careless and forgetfull, but my spider actually slides open windows, so it has a little lock on them now.

I actually own two tarantulas, I would advise looking up Aphonopelma moderatum, I currently have a sling of that species and it's looking awsome, Can't wait untill it's an adult.

[Lija]

i must say GBB and red knee look the most striking, such a bold colors, we are gonna have another show in Calgary, but i don't think i can wait this long lol

[Hypnotic]

I've actually owned a female red knee, ended up selling her on to a breeder. From all the animals I've owned, that spider has got to be the most boring, foul mooded creature I've ever met. Everytime I even got close to the terrarium, I got a face full of hair.

[Lija]

hm... interesting...
is care is the same pretty much for everybody? or should i say as less care as possible lol ?

[Hypnotic]

Yeah, it's pretty much the same for all tarantulas, there are always some exceptions though. But most caresheets I've read up on, say the same thing.

[Monza geckos]

good advice jaquiline

[Truffs1178]

Thanks Benny. How's Ember and when are you getting your Gargoyle Gecko?

Edit:Private message me. It seems a bit rude making someones Tarantula thread into a Gecko thread lol.

[Glenn]

no, no hooks present, should i assume it is a female and wait for a shed to confirm?

Not necessarily.
If it doesn't have tibial hooks or bulbs, that only means it's not a mature male. It could still very well be an immature male as well as a female. If you happen to catch it up on the glass, take a close photo with the macro on of the ventral side of the abdomen, with a clear view of the area between the first pair of book lungs, like this. I know my way around a furrow and can probably tell you the sex .

As for how old it is, there is no way to know for sure. As I said in a previous post, growth rate varies greatly depending on how warm it was kept, how often it's been fed, and what sex it is. A tarantula at that size could be anywhere from a 2 - 15 years old!

[Lija]

Not necessarily.
If it doesn't have tibial hooks or bulbs, that only means it's not a mature male. It could still very well be an immature male as well as a female. If you happen to catch it up on the glass, take a close photo with the macro on of the ventral side of the abdomen, with a clear view of the area between the first pair of book lungs, like this. I know my way around a furrow and can probably tell you the sex .

As for how old it is, there is no way to know for sure. As I said in a previous post, growth rate varies greatly depending on how warm it was kept, how often it's been fed, and what sex it is. A tarantula at that size could be anywhere from a 2 - 15 years old!

will try, but s/he never on a glass, I'll wait for it to be bigger or just for a shed.
to be honest i don;t care much male or female, i will never bred them anyway, but males live shorter so it would be nice to have a female. either way life span is counting starting maturity, is it right?