Shy Tarantula

[PhilK]

Hey everyone, I have a tarantula and I realise that they aren't an active pet, but I swear mine comes out of his little toilet roll hide about once every year or so!! He is always webbed up in there, and doesn't eat much at all. I get a shed every year and a half or so... What's up with it?

 

[Adandiluvsmyreptiles]

How often are you offering food to him?

Tarantulas are very secretive.

 

[PhilK]

Just whenever he's out of crickets. I'll put one or two in, when they're gone I'll wait a week or so and wack some more in but these hardly ever get eaten, so I just take them out and wait an arbitrary amount of time/

I've had it for years, so it isn't dying or anything, I just thought I'd ask

 

[urodacus_au]

A stationary Thera is a happy Thera. If theres plenty of food theres no need for it to come out, much safer to stay webbed in from a survival point of view. The tank size can make a difference as well. I used to keep my adults in 350mm glass tanks and theyd normally lay a mat and wait on it, not bothering to burrow or hide. If the enclosure is too big they will dig for security and to maintain the correct humidity/temperature for them to survive.

Scorpions are much the same, if obligate burrowing species are kept in small humid enclusures they wont attempt to burrow.

Jordan