red knee tarantula

[Lrptls]

finally got a mexican red knee, been wanting one for years now. this is my first spider too. i'm not sure how old this one is, just keeping him in a pretty small critter keeper (quite roomy for his size) with dirt as the substrate. i just have a few quick questions...

is it ok to use a soda bottle cap with water in it to drink? or should i put something in the water like cotton or whatever they use in the pet stores?

should i give him something to climb on/hide under?

and they told me he was eating small crickets, how often should i feed him?

thanks for any answers/comments.

[jaracas]

how big is it?

this may help
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/the.tarantula.store/spiderling-care.htm

[Lrptls]

whenever my camera decides to work i will get a picture of her (iv decided to call her alice because i like the name and probably wont ever know the sex).

the site helpd in that i know i can feed her maggots and give her a film canister to hide in but i still have no clue how often i should feed her. or how i should give water.

[jaracas]

feed it once or twice a week and mist one side of the container every couple of days (it really depends how well the container holds humidity)

[Lrptls]

here she is next to a quarter

[Lrptls]

and here is just a much better picture of her

thanks for the help

[jaracas]

at that size she should be eating a couple of large crickets a week.
water can be given in a bottle cap, but don't put any cotton or anything in it it will just grow bacteria.

[Davey312]

I was wondering if cricket water (the blue jelly like substance) can be used for tarantula's instead of giving them actual water..
Thanks,
Davey

[SaIiLdVaEnR]

why not just use regular water?

[Davey312]

because i use such a shallow dish the water evaporates quickly, i have to refill very often.. if i was able to use the cricket water i wouldnt have to fill it up as much..
Thanks,
Davey

[SaIiLdVaEnR]

I have heard things like that the tarantula cannot consume it normally. I wouldn't give it the cricket gel, it's a waste of my money. A deeper dish is all you need.

[sc00t]

I know a friend that has 100s of spiders and he uses the cricket jell and says it works fine.

[RaVeNo888o]

I'd stick with regular water still. Even if you have to put more in every day. How long would you say its taking for it to evaporate? I know people who dont even use a water dish for slings and just put a few drops of water on their web or on the ground using an eye dropper, so i imagine that a water dish, despite evaporation, would be more than enough :)

[sc00t]

They make Gut Load for Spiders I saw it at an Exotic pet store by my house and thats what they use for their spiders but yea a water dish would work fine you could even damp a spoung and put it in the water dish which is easier to change I think

[SaIiLdVaEnR]

Originally posted by sc00t
They make Gut Load for Spiders I saw it at an Exotic pet store by my house and thats what they use for their spiders but yea a water dish would work fine you could even damp a spoung and put it in the water dish which is easier to change I think

I see heat rocks being sold at pet stores. Does that mean it should be used?

I see arachnid food in cubes sold at pet stores... does that mean that your animal will even notice them?

If you said yes to either of these... well... you need to do some research (and possibly be slapped over the head)

Sc00t: never make another sponge comment like that again. A sponge is the worst thing to put in the water dish... it is a bacteria breeding ground.

Spiders do not stumble upon anything like cricket gel in the wild, and most will walk by it without noticing it. Water is much more natural.

[Craggy]

Yea basically pet shops sell a lot of crap that is un-needed and expensive. Use a bottle top have a cup with water and a pipette in ur room put a few drops in a day. not too hard! I got an indian ornamental, red knee, red rump, pink foot and all of them have bottle tops and are alive :)