So many Molts!

EEEEK!  Every time I peek into a jar or keeper, it appears that someone is molting.  I thought that molting had to do with species….unless they were all hatched around the same time, and I just happened to get the bunch that happen to be on the same schedule….hmmmm…..  is it possible?

Anyway, this morning, Zero (C. fasciatum) is flipped over. Yesterday it was Athene (N. Chromatus) the day before that it was Raven (L. parahybana) then the day before that it was Serj (A. chalcodes.)

Last week it was Flora (N. coloratvillosus) and the week before that it was Isis (B. Smithi.)

That equals half my collection.

Tarantulas are funny, yet seemingly scheduled creatures. I will post an updated Molt Date/New Leg Span/Picture blog on Sunday if I can.  Might as well do them all at once.

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Another Day, another 1/4″.

Today is Wednesday, which in my world is feeding day (As is Saturday and sometimes Sunday.) All the little spiderlings are brought down to the floor in their jars, deli cups, and now a kritter keeper.  I stack my 2 small roach keepers, and place an empty potato salad cup on top.  I bring down all my tools: Metal and plastic tweezers, empty film container, paint brush, flash light etc.

One by one, each tiny deli cup (2 L. parahybana slings and 1 B. boehmei sling) is placed in the larger potato salad cup so that when I open the lid for feeding, the spiderlings can’t escape far if they get out. I then retrieve a small cricket from the small cricket tank, and put it in the film container.   I gently crack open each lid (one at a time) and lay it on top of its container.  I then grab the isolated cricket with the tweezers, and plop it into the opened spiderling deli cup.

Tonight I found that one of my L. parahybana had molted.  It was Raven, and I have been expecting this for about 2 weeks now.  FINALLY!!

She has also grown from a tiny 1/8″ to a monstrous 1/4″!!  WHOOOO!!

As for the rest of the feeding process, the other spiderlings are in jars so I am able to keep their lids off during feeding.  Serj (A. chalcodes) looks a lot like my Nhandu sp. since yesterdays molt, but I am fairly certain that she will get her Arizona blond markings soon enough.

Tank (Aphonopelma sp.) has not been eating, so I expect his gummy physique to molt out as well in the next week or 2.

So, tonight marked the 3rd molt of September, and everyone was fed pretty well.  Sid (my A. avicularia) tried to climb out of his tank while I grabbed a cricket!  It was pretty cool watching those little pink toes come up over the edge!  I managed to toss him a cricket, which appeared to land right in his fangs. Way to fetch Sid!!  He’s a good boy 🙂

I even updated everyone’s note cards with acquisition dates, molt dates and LS”.  All 12 have cards now, and I am exhausted.  Luckily for me though, not everyone needed to be fed.  Besides the newly molted, I busted Isis with a giant B. dubia roach in her mouth last night.  It was one of the left overs that lives in her soil from my deceased colony. I have a few left in some of the jars, and even catch them from time to time eating the remains of crickets not consumed by the spiderlings.  They must be eating well because this sucker was bigger than the snacker herself!!  (Her abdomen at least) and I know it wasn’t that big when I put it in there several months ago!

Feeding day was a success, and even though I am tired from a long day at work, and then an hour of feeding/record keeping/blogging, I am happy to finally be getting the rhythm of this invertebrate keeping down.  Spider checks in the morning, and in the evening, with Giant Cockroach checks at some point after work.

I am now ready for bed.

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Pictures and Measurements!

I got a couple of Serj and Tank, as well as Isis and Annabel Lee a few days after their molts.  I measured both, and here are the results:

Annabel Lee:

Old LS- 1/8″ New LS-1/2″

Isis:

Old LS-3/4″ New LS- 1 1/4″ (WHOO!!)

I held Isis (Brachypelma smithi) for the first time about 4 days after her molt, when she was out and about looking for food.  Though I didn’t get any of her in my hand, I did get a few of her last night!

Isis 8.29.10

Here is Isis eating a cricket!

Alee- Lasidora parahybana- (as compared to a Cheerio..since I couldn’t find a dime):

Alee 8.29

Alee on the side (By a Cheerio)

Alee by a meal

Here is are a couple of Serj (Aphonopelma chalcodes):

Serj on the Jar

Serj 8.29 With Notecard

Tank (Aphonopelma sp.):

Tank 8.29

Tank and the Cheerio

Alee Molt Pics!

As stated earlier, Annabel Lee molted this morning!  She looks to be about 1/4″, but I can’t quite measure her yet. In the first photo, her molt is sitting on top of the dime.

Annabel Lee's 8.20.10 Molt

Alee Molt 8.20.10

Molting!

Annabel Lee is Molting!  She is one of my tiny L. parahybanas, and it looks like she is just about done with the process.  I recorded her and her sister at about 1/8″, but Alee was just a bit tinier than that!

When I get home from work, I will do my best to post pics!

I love days like this 🙂

Newbie Tools- Things I have been learning…

Here is a short list of things I use, or have learned over the past few months as a newbie keeper.

1- Naming is important if you don’t want to say proper names over and over again:  EXA- Cyclosternum fasciatum, Brachypelma boehmei (which I had been mispronouncing for weeks!), Aphonopelma (unnamed sp.) “Davis Mountain Rusty” etc…..  Zero, Aphrodite, and Tank are much easier to say, and much easier for my husband to pronounce when he is talking to me.  It is the common place in which he can understand the language that I am speaking…all else leaves him utterly confused….

2-Film containers are the gifts of GODS!!  They can be used for scooping, digging, hiding, transporting and subduing prey.  They are also great for dead cricket removal!

3-A DIG KIT IS NECESSARY!  My dig kit contains the above mentioned film container, a paintbrush, the bottom of a sweater gift box (The kind that lazy people like me use to give sweaters at christmas ’cause I am too lazy to wrap OR get a better gift!) I also have a flashlight on hand at all times, and a spoon.

4-Dig Kits Are Necessary when someone like me wanted a better view of my spiderlings and put them in jars with too much soil. (and then a week or so of NOT seeing my spiderlings at all!,  10 minutes with the jar and a dig kit, and you may  find your spiderling somewhere in the big brown soil void.  I like to use my dig kit on the bed.  My husband likes to sit on the couch at these times.

5-Holding a tarantula in bed is fun- unless your husband is eating. Apearantly he does NOT want to see Sarva, no matter how sweet she is!

6-Tarantulas are a great way to spend the money you saved from quitting smoking!  If your husband does not want the tarantulas, offer to take up smoking again.  Chances are, you will be a master keeper in no time!

7- Tarantulas dance.  I call it the “I Got Food” dance.

8-Forums are useful!  You may look like a newbie, but little do those people know, you are only asking stupid questions so that real newbies won’t have to be embarrassed when they go to ask them!

9- 3 cool tarantulas beat your neighbor’s froofy Bischon poodle yappy thing in the pet department hands down. Your dog wears T- Shirts?  My tarantula does the “I got food” dance.- a 10cents cricket is well worth the spending! …..no Cesar Milan video necessary.

10- Crickets are for quick feeding, or you will surely pack up and leave your home from the stench.

I have many more newbie thoughts…and these are in no random order.  I will keep the list running, and if you have a newbie thought, please share!  Real newbies would hate to feel alone and retarded when it comes to keeping…

Feeding, Sexing and a pig named Zero

You might be wondering why I have 2 videos of Zero here.  Let me explain:

Last night was feeding time on the Desktop, and after everyone was given their crickets, I had one large cricket left.  Zero was already feasting on a cricket, but since I know how much she loves to eat, I decided to give the last one to her.

In the videos, you can see her chewing on one, next to the cricket she was originally feasting on!  PIG!!!

If you notice, Zero’s sex is being referred to as “SHE”.  Thanks to one of my many learning aids, I am pretty sure she is a FEMAL!!  WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!! (Just learned about doing this roughly 45 minutes ago!)

Feeding:

Everyone got a cricket except for Aphrodite- who appears to be not eating.  My N. Coloratvillosus traded its cricket for a roach that was living in its soil (iin a new enclosure.)  Both Nhandu sp. were moved into jars!  WHOOOO!!!

Isis is also not eating…..but I think the last cricket may have filled (her?) up for a while….

Raven ate well (L. parahybana), but her sibling is also not eating…hmmmmm..

Success and Cool Spider Dancing Update

I am winning the battle of spiderling feeding!  I have 2 L. parahybana’s that are roughly 1/8″ and feeding them was one of those tasks that I have been deathly afraid of!

So, taking the advice of everyone, I tried killing feeder roaches with no success, as they (apparently) do not die very well. Then, still taking the advice of everyone, I tried killing mini crickets with huge success!!  One parahybana took about a minute before it pounced on the head of the dearly departed cricket, and the other was showing interest.  I AM WINNER!!!

On another note, I have noticed that one of my Nhandu sp. burrows while the other likes to remain in view…weird!  Both of those guys are pretty good eaters with an appetite for living crickets.

Even my Tigerrump is enjoying larger crickets, but the last one it was given just wound up being tossed by a hole that my spider made…. I don’t know if this is normal behavior, but it was interesting to see.

As you guys may have seen, I posted a video of my Tigerrump (I call it Zero) eating it’s first meal at home.  I thought it was cool because it appears to be dancing with the food in its mouth.  Tonight, I noticed the same behavior from my N. chromatus sling, and have seen it also from my older Chilean Roses.  I am calling it the Spider I GOT FOOD dance- which oddly resembles an 8 point turn.  Very cool to watch!!

On one last note, I have learned by watching that even 1/8″ L. parahybanas WILL kick hairs.  An (unfortunately) alive roach found this out when he managed to piss off my little one, and I got to witness it.

Sorry for the long update, but I wanted to just let you guys know what’s happening, and share my feeding success.  This was a huge step for me, and no one was lost, smooshed, or injured during the process-except for a few crickets….

New Spiderling Pictures!!

Zero the Tigerrump and Buddha

Nhandu chromatus spiderling

Aphrodite the Brachypelma boehmei

Annabel Lee the Lasidora parahybana

These are just some of the pictures I have of the new spiderlings.  I am now in possession of Serj photos (A. chalcodes sling), which I have been lacking and will post later.  There are also some Hissers I will be posting.

My N. coloratvillosus likes to hide in her deli cup, so she was MIA for photo time.  I even have a second L. parahybana named Raven that will be featured later.

And The Winners Are:

Saturday, I make some additions to the Buggy Zoo, and to the desktop of Sid and Nata.  As stated in an earlier blog, I have been grabbing  quick info care sheets for some of  the species I was considering. Those can be found in the care sheets page on this blog.

I was going to announce my picks on Friday, but circumstances have led me to make an earlier decision.  The winners of the Spider Throw Down are:

L. parahybana

C. fasciatum

B. boehmei

N. chromatus

and

N. coloratvilosus!

Congratulations to all the winners!!

Also, as a special treat for Tara- the A. insignis who lost her male friend, another male A. insignis and BABIES will be coming to live  in the zoo on the desktop!

I, myself, am SUPER STOKED!!  Thanks to all the neato websites, videos, and care sheets that made my search both educational and fun!