Hi, I'm Jennifer from Florida

[Jace]

Wow-that is very neat. Sorry to hear about all your losses, though. I can understand how that would be frustrating. I am thinking of getting a Pink Toed tarantula, so I am trying to get as much information as I can before actually taking the plunge. If you have the chance, photos would be great, thank you. How is the frog decision going? Do you have it narrowed down to a couple of dozen yet??

[JenniferinFL]

I haven't really been able to narrow down the frogs at all.. lol.. I keep looking at them and as soon as I'm sure I like one I find another I like just as much.. Are there any really good frog books out there? I may just need to go get a book for easier browsing through the species..

Tarantulas are really about the simplest creatures to keep. The only significant drawback to them is their sensitivity to pesticides and so forth if you have a neighbor that treats their lawn a lot or is otherwise crazy with the bug sprays. We've eliminated pretty much all pesticide use because of them. The only pesticide we still use is the topical frontline/advantage for the dogs and cats. There's some disagreement about whether or not they are sensitive enough to be bothered by that just in the same room, but, to be safe the dogs and cats aren't allowed in the room the tarantulas are in just in case. But, I imagine that there are probably frogs that are just as sensitive to that stuff.
The other nuisance-y thing is that as of now there's no 'treatment' for simple things like a nematode infestation because the stuff that would kill nematodes would also kill tarantulas.
But, in captive bred animals, that's pretty rare.
Aviculara's grow pretty quickly, so a well fed spiderling will be decent sized in a year or so.
Probably I would say most of them are for sale as .5" to 1" spiderlings as far as captive bred ones go. That's a TINY spider. But, feeding them isn't complicated like tiny frogs would be, you just cut up a cricket if you don't have small enough or just give them a cricket 'drumstick' (leg) and they'll eat that. Because small ones molt frequently and they are completely defenseless after a molt, it's best to feed prekilled crickets because they can easily bite a hole in a newly molted tarantula. If your getting a tiny one, then housing is easiest with one of those little plastic cubes you can buy at Michaels craft stores. You can either drill air holes in the cubes or melt holes in them with a small, hot nail, but if you melt them do it outside, wash it very well and let it air out for at least a week before housing anything in them.
You can do a false bottom with them because they like humidity and their enclosures mold up really easy otherwise. Just a 1" or so layer of those little I believe they're called hydroton? balls, then a layer of sphagnum and then coconut fiber if you like.. Most people don't use false bottoms with them, but, it really makes sense. I never used them with my arboreals either, but I plan to on my next rehouse just to help prevent the bottoms of the enclosures from getting too stagnant.
Spiderling enclosures should be more utilitarian and basic, a stick to climb on for arboreal species and once they get a solid 1" in size, they can have a tiny water dish, like a milk jug lid. Otherwise they get moisture from their food or sometimes from drinking misted water off the enclosure. Once they get to 2" juvies, you can start making their enclosure fancier if you wish.
Too big of an enclosure and they will starve instead of going to get food, at least when they're small. Bigger juvies and adults don't seem to have as much of a problem with that.
Pretty much though, really simple, if you can keep frogs happy and healthy, then tarantulas shouldn't pose much trouble. Arachnoboards.com is a great forum for talking about them. I've bought a lot from sellers on there too, there's some selling wildcaught, but a lot of people selling captive bred too.
I only feed my adult tarantulas about once per week and they're all chunky. Small spiderlings though you can feed a couple times per week.

[Jace]

Wow, thanks for the info. The Pink Toed I am looking at is at least a couple of inches now-it's been at the petstore for a few months now. They say it has molted at least twice since they have had it. I have a plastic 2 gallon sitting empty, but I also have a 5 gallon aquarium I could use as well. I am doing research on how to sex it (I would like a female), but I'm finding that to an inexperierenced person, I have a very low chance of being able to tell. Oh well-as long as it is healthy, I don't much care. I'm just worried about humidity as I live in a desert climate and my house has low humidity....all my frogs require mistings several times a day to keep them moist.

[Kurt]

We've eliminated pretty much all pesticide use because of them. The only pesticide we still use is the topical frontline/advantage for the dogs and cats. There's some disagreement about whether or not they are sensitive enough to be bothered by that just in the same room, but, to be safe the dogs and cats aren't allowed in the room the tarantulas are in just in case. But, I imagine that there are probably frogs that are just as sensitive to that stuff.

Frogs are more sensitive to toxins in the enviroment.

[JenniferinFL]

Frogs are more sensitive to toxins in the enviroment.

That doesn't surprise me at all, that's what I had thought.. I wouldn't have even considered keeping frogs if we weren't far enough from neighbors to prevent pesticide poisoning..

Wow, thanks for the info. The Pink Toed I am looking at is at least a couple of inches now-it's been at the petstore for a few months now. They say it has molted at least twice since they have had it. I have a plastic 2 gallon sitting empty, but I also have a 5 gallon aquarium I could use as well. I am doing research on how to sex it (I would like a female), but I'm finding that to an inexperierenced person, I have a very low chance of being able to tell. Oh well-as long as it is healthy, I don't much care. I'm just worried about humidity as I live in a desert climate and my house has low humidity....all my frogs require mistings several times a day to keep them moist.

About the only way you can sex them is from a molt, and with smaller tarantulas you may need a lighted loupe. Unfortunately, often the part that gets shredded in a molt is the part you need to be able to sex them.. lol.. Isn't that always the way? What you are trying to look at is the inner lining of the underside of the tarantula. A tarantula's body is split into two obvious sections, and your looking for the little piece right around where those two pieces connect.
Here's a good site with the underside drawn. http://tarantulas.tropica.ru/en/node/608
Basically, a female will have a little pocket on the inside lining of the molt right where that vent is in the underside. You usually have to soak the underside of the molt because that part wrinkles right up. Then spread it out with a small paintbrush. It's really not all that complicated, to actually sex, there's either an obvious pouch or there isn't. The complicated part is getting a molt that hasn't been chewed and then it can get a bit aggravating to get that wrinkled piece spread out.
Our last aviculara lived in a 5 gallon hex tank and made good use of the space. BUT, that one was an adult. For a smaller one, a 2 gallon would probably be fine.
If you just mist when you mist your frogs, you'd probably be fine. It may not even need that much misting. Of course, also provide a water dish. They really get most of their moisture from their prey items, but will occasionally drink..
I kept my avics at least 50% humidity but usually closer to 75%.

[Amphibians]

Jace, my pink toed tarantula is one of my favorites! It's arboreal nature is really whats cool about it, When I go to feed him he races down and grabs 2 or 3 crickets then climbs up the wall to eat them vertically. It's very fun to watch. I would be careful if your going to get one through a petstore, just be weary of the conditions its been kept in. Great tarantula!

[Kurt]

My favorite is Avicularia versicolor. Drop dead gorgeous!

[Jace]

Thanks for the information, Jennifer. I am not too concerned about sexing, really. I usually pick odd names that could go either way, though I am always up for a challenge!! I think I'll start it off in the smaller enclosure and then upgrade to the 5 gallon down the road. Lol-I haven't even got it yet, and I am already making plans!

Thanks for the heads up, Richie. How can you tell if the tarantula is healthy in a petstore?? I'm excited to see one feed and make its nest-I've read they can be quite amazing.

Kurt-I looked up Avicularia versicolor and all I can say is...WOW. Drop dead gorgeous is right!!