# Spiders~!



## pugsly (Jun 2, 2006)

Cleaning out the rat tubs last night founf 5 of these guys! under the tubs,on the tubs, near the chickens.. anyway got a few shots as usual, he let me get pretty close to him. Even smiled for the camera haha. Missing an eye too..


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## Retic (Jun 2, 2006)

Wolf Spiders can give you a nasty bite and don't mind having a go


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## Lucas (Jun 2, 2006)

They'll go each other. Pretty good to watch


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## DrOsteo (Jun 2, 2006)

Yuck! Gives me the creeps. Hate 'em!


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## pugsly (Jun 2, 2006)

Haha, yeah have been bitten before, when i was 11 i used to poor water down there holes and they would come charging out.. Stupid kids hehe got me on the finger once.. stopped doing that! 

Yeah I used to keep them all the time when i was a stupid early teen. (lol nothings changed about the stupid part hehe)


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## shazam (Jun 2, 2006)

Love spiders,nice photos.... 8)


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## Lucas (Jun 2, 2006)

We've got Bird Eating Spiders at the shop. Big buggers. Not a fan of em :?


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## shazam (Jun 2, 2006)

I got 3 Bird eating spiders, I just love them to bits...


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## Lucas (Jun 2, 2006)

Each to their own. My partner's little cousin catches and keeps funnelwebs :? . really not my thing.


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## NoOne (Jun 2, 2006)

Heres a pair of chompers from one of our Aussie T's






Ellie the crazy cow:






The beautiful Jewel:






doing the wild thing:






We have around 60 aussie tarantulas (bird eating spiders) great fun to keep, if at times a little worrying :lol:


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## Lucas (Jun 2, 2006)

Those things are huge!!!!!!!! Been bitten?


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## jessop (Jun 2, 2006)

*hmmmm.*

Not a spider fan at all... Don't know whats worse, spiders or sharks? :shock: nice shots though!


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## Spike14 (Jun 2, 2006)

nice pugs!! i got my selenptypus glenelva (type of aussie T) and scorpsthe other day, i love them, interesting to watch, hoping to get more types of spiders and scorps in coming years


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## NoOne (Jun 2, 2006)

Lucas said:


> Those things are huge!!!!!!!! Been bitten?



Nup, i don't go sticking my hands that close, you can get pretty close while taking pics but thats it, we don't handle them, it's just not good for them.
I've seen them jump 30cm in the air.


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## shazam (Jun 2, 2006)

Dugadugabowbow your house sounds like it's heaven,60 aussie tarantulas.
nice photos too...


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## Lucas (Jun 2, 2006)

Knowing that I'll be a little more careful while i'm around them


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## NoOne (Jun 2, 2006)

It's my girlfriends obession, shes does the spiders i do the snakes....it's not bad  I just stand back and say sweetie don't put your hands that close :shock:


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## shazam (Jun 2, 2006)

Your lucky, :shock: my girlfriend hates my spiders,snakes and lizards...


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## Spike14 (Jun 2, 2006)

poor shazm, my mums hates them, but i have a good lie, " But mum i found it in the horse paddock down the street can i kepp it", that works with all the bugs hehe


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## shazam (Jun 2, 2006)

you should of seen her face the first time she walked into my house,I think she was hopeing they were my flatmates pet's :twisted:


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## hugsta (Jun 2, 2006)

Great photos pugs and duga. I would hate to get a set of those stuck into a finger....ouch!!! Hope to be up your way soon duga, may have to get you to show me some....


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## NoOne (Jun 2, 2006)

We can do that got enoug of the bloody things


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## hugsta (Jun 2, 2006)

LOL, I am sure you have. Didn't Nome have like 400 or something at one stage??


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## NoOne (Jun 2, 2006)

We had babies everywhere a few months ago


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## salebrosus (Jun 2, 2006)

No offence to spider lovers but they do give me the creeps. Too many bites....put me in a room with brown snakes would make me feel more comfortable

Simone


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## triptych_angel (Jun 3, 2006)

Oh my...that is scary! I have serious Arachnaphobia (sp)? I even have nightmares on a regular basis about being covered in spiders...so i could never own one.


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

That's not a spider.....this is a spider :lol: 





My all time favourite spider, the Goliath Bird Eater, this is actually a small one as they grow to 35cm across.


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## triptych_angel (Jun 3, 2006)

ohhhhh thats just nasty! Now that is giving me the willies.


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

Most big spiders can be very gentle and rarely if ever bite. The ones we get here are quite often aggressive and mostly can't be handled.


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## hugsta (Jun 3, 2006)

Aren't they supposed to be an aggressive spider Boa?


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

Not really, we had a big female slightly larger than that one and she was quite placid, they actually usually defend themselves by flicking urticating hairs from their abdomen rather than biting.


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## dee4 (Jun 3, 2006)

When measuring them Boa, do you include the legs in overall size?
Geez, they are ahuge spider anyways!!!!


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

This is a Chile Rose that my wife used to have, they are the absolute best spider to keep, they are never aggressive and can be handled safely by anyone.


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

Yes 35cm is right across the legs at the widest point, that is dinner plate size and about the weight of a small rat :lol: 



dee4 said:


> When measuring them Boa, do you include the legs in overall size?
> Geez, they are ahuge spider anyways!!!!


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## triptych_angel (Jun 3, 2006)

What do u feed these spiders?


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

We used to feed them crickets mostly and the larger ones ate small mice.


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## dee4 (Jun 3, 2006)

At that size they would probably eat what was on your plate. :shock:


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## DrOsteo (Jun 3, 2006)

Yuck! Yuck! Yuck! Yuck! Yuck! That's all i can say on the matter! :shock: :?


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## triptych_angel (Jun 3, 2006)

I second that Dr Osteo.....its just Nasty~!


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## Kersten (Jun 3, 2006)

I've heard people say that about something...can't quite think what....it wasn't about spiders, it was ummm.....oh something else that starts with s....what was it? :?: :lol:


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## shazam (Jun 3, 2006)

Wow boa always wanted to handel my spiders but never had the knolige to do it right...  8)


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

It's not so much a matter of knowledge although it helps to 'know' you spiders a little. 
I wouldn't generally recommend handling Australian species as they can be quite aggressive and unpredictable. That's not to say you can't handle them obviously but you really have to know the spiders personality a bit.


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## PimmsPythons (Jun 3, 2006)

wouldn"t mind getting into big spiders but don't know too much about our local ones.how many breeds of turantula/bird eating spider do we have here?any breeds more placid than others?i was in the amazon in equador last year and found about 15 turantula's and they were quiet as.i'll post some photos of them on me at a later date.


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## Malley (Jun 3, 2006)

This might be a stupid question, but you dont need any type of licencing to keep spiders do you?


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## Nome (Jun 3, 2006)

They should NEVER be handled, the Australian species. Believe me, they pack a nasty bite and will bite, and also you greatly risk injuring the spider if you drop it or flick it off once it sinks it's fangs into you. The tarantulas here don't kick their hair, so their first defence is biting.

This is as close to handling one as I would recommend....this is Jewel's moult (without her abdomen). Duga posted of pic of her earlier.


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## shazam (Jun 3, 2006)

cool Nome,point taken...


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## krusty (Jun 3, 2006)

not a big fan of spider's my self but each to there own..........


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## dee4 (Jun 3, 2006)

Are they similar to snakes and lizards with the frequency of shedding?
How often are they fed?


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## pugsly (Jun 3, 2006)

Wow good to see this thread took off and everyone played nice!

Beautiful spiders duga and nome.


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## Retic (Jun 3, 2006)

I guess not everyone is into spiders. :lol: 



pugsly said:


> Wow good to see this thread took off and everyone played nice!
> 
> Beautiful spiders duga and nome.


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## shazam (Jun 3, 2006)

Nome I get the feeling you've been tag by one... :?


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## Magpie (Jun 3, 2006)

I just think of them as land crabs.


mmm, crab.


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## Nome (Jun 3, 2006)

Pugs, I didn't get to see your photos, they aren't coming up on my computer for some reason? 

I've kept and bred Australian tarantulas for a long time, problem with that was I got too complacent and yes I have been bitten. For the record, I have rarely handled them and once was only because it was necessary. I feel I 'know' my girls very well...but put them in a different situation, such as new enclosure, and they are a different spider for a while and extremely reactive to situations. Breeding them tends to be a little hands on and gets quite tense at times...I was supposed to breed 'Ellie' last year but due to her extremely defensive and confident nature I did not, it would have no doubt ended with her up someones arm in a bid to run for it and she would have no hesitation in biting, she's bad enough when I just open the lid to her enclosure most of the time, she doesn't like it at all and usually stands up, hisses very loudly at me and hangs her fangs right out. She's the only spider I'm a little afraid of lol

The adults usually only moult once a year, the spiderlings moult every month or so as they are growing fast.


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## zulu (Jun 3, 2006)

*re Spiders*

Nice Spiders,more hair on them than your averge pussy


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## hugsta (Jun 3, 2006)

What do you feed the spiderlings Nome, small crix??


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## Spike14 (Jun 3, 2006)

i feed mine small crix at this stage, hoping to get them bigger fast, i would love to see more pics of people arachnids


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## GreatSage (Jun 18, 2006)

Spider Girl,

In the photo of the spider shedding, you say without her abdomen? Has she not got one?
What for is this you say?


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## Retic (Jun 18, 2006)

The photo was of a shed skin, when a spider sheds it's skin the abdomen is the only 'soft' part so it appears like they don't have an abdomen. The skin of the abdomen is the little shrivelled bit at the back.


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