Injured Tarantula

[sunset]

Thanks. I’ll go to Petco tomorrow and buy a proper home for him and environmental things to set him up with a nice safe place. I greatly appreciate all of your help. Thought I’d never have a creature around like this but I’m committed now. I hope he’ll survive.

 

[sunset]

yes, please let us know how it goes. they really are such incredible creatures, and i can relate on how I never thought my self to be a T keeper either lol but I'm already looking to get more. I'm addicted or in love lol
t's can be resilient. plenty of rest and quiet, lets hope for the best.

 

[sunset]

Going to get him the proper home and things needed for him tomorrow. Thanks for all of your guidance on this.

anytime, glad to help

 

[goldenpumpkin]

This tarantula will not likely make it in the wild without a successful post injury molt. Strongly consider keeping it.

I've only been keeping for 1 month but I was under the impression that keeping wild caught tarantulas was frowned upon by T hobbyists; are injured Ts usually considered an exception?

 

[finley8445]

Please keep us informed. Your story has me captivated. I look forward to hearing more about your awesome save.

Absolutely! I’ll update as we go along.

 

[finley8445]

I've only been keeping for 1 month but I was under the impression that keeping wild caught tarantulas was frowned upon by T hobbyists; are injured Ts usually considered an exception?

I have no idea. Didn’t even occur to me. My plan is to release him back to my backyard once he is recovered but until then I’m providing him with a safe place to do so.

 

[finley8445]

I have no idea. Didn’t even occur to me. My plan is to release him back to my backyard once he is recovered but until then I’m providing him with a safe place to do so.

I may check around tomorrow if there is a rescue place that he should go to instead of staying with me.

 

[sunset]

I've only been keeping for 1 month but I was under the impression that keeping wild caught tarantulas was frowned upon by T hobbyists; are injured Ts usually considered an exception?

injured t's can have a hard time going back to the wild. they also need to have a postinjury molt and sometimes that can take multiple molts.
All T

 

[sunset]

sorry post sent to early, but all T's were originally wild caught. a lot of the rare specimens are also not in the trade or are hard to breed in captivity so they are always wild caught. If you can get them from a breeder that is great, but they are also loosing habitat more then we are taking from the wild s in a sense i guess if you do have a wild caught, depending on the location, you could be helping with conservation of the species. Imo and I'm still learning too, as long as we keep them to the best of their world and our abilities, I think herping, not sure if that's the right terminology here, is okay as long as the land and the species is not under threat or protected. Captive do come with the added bonus of being healthier due to parasites' and such. I think it is a personal preference really.
Great discussion question! Id love to hear other keepers thoughts on this....

 

[DustyD]

Has the species been established? A. chalcodes? That might help with determining captive care and how to release it if it comes to that.

 

[finley8445]

Has the species been established? A. chalcodes? That might help with determining captive care and how to release it if it comes to that.

I’m checking with Fish and Game tomorrow and will pass on what they say.

 

[DustyD]

Sounds like you are on the right track.
For substrate coconut fiber is usually readily available. I have mixed it with Creature Soil, which I believe is available at Petco. Coco fiber is available in compressed bricks, but you have to add the water to get it to expand. I usually just buy the bags of coco fiber which is more convenient but also more expensive.

 

[finley8445]

Thanks for the info. I’ll be looking into that. A trip to Petco tomorrow.

 

[x_raphael_xx]

I've only been keeping for 1 month but I was under the impression that keeping wild caught tarantulas was frowned upon by T hobbyists; are injured Ts usually considered an exception?

I think the main issue is when there is a large demand for a species and they are ‘harvested’ from the wild in large numbers, decimating the natural population.

 

[VaporRyder]

It’s always best to buy captive bred where you can to avoid taking specimens from the wild unnecessarily. But, as has been mentioned, all our Ts come from a spider that was once taken from the wild, some new (to the hobby) species still have to be, and habitat loss complicates things further.

An injured T that wouldn’t make it on its own if left in the wild is a different story. Well done to the OP for a great save.

 

[WolfSpider]

I've only been keeping for 1 month but I was under the impression that keeping wild caught tarantulas was frowned upon by T hobbyists; are injured Ts usually considered an exception?

In the US, many A. species (chalcodes, hentzi) are so plentiful, WC specimens are accepted. In fact, Ken the Bug Guy has made a small fortune selling WC juvie chalcodes.

 

[finley8445]

Has the species been established? A. chalcodes? That might help with determining captive care and how to release it if it comes to that.

No I don’t know the species. I’m comparing to pictures on Google but am still not sure.

 

[Teresaisrad]

No I don’t know the species. I’m comparing to pictures on Google but am still not sure.

I'm guessing Aphonopelma chalcodes.

 

[goldenpumpkin]

sorry post sent to early, but all T's were originally wild caught. a lot of the rare specimens are also not in the trade or are hard to breed in captivity so they are always wild caught. If you can get them from a breeder that is great, but they are also loosing habitat more then we are taking from the wild s in a sense i guess if you do have a wild caught, depending on the location, you could be helping with conservation of the species. Imo and I'm still learning too, as long as we keep them to the best of their world and our abilities, I think herping, not sure if that's the right terminology here, is okay as long as the land and the species is not under threat or protected. Captive do come with the added bonus of being healthier due to parasites' and such. I think it is a personal preference really.
Great discussion question! Id love to hear other keepers thoughts on this....

I appreciate the input! Good to know

 

[goldenpumpkin]

I think the main issue is when there is a large demand for a species and they are ‘harvested’ from the wild in large numbers, decimating the natural population.

That makes sense. I have seen people jump down other's throats for keeping a wild caught tarantula, so I was confused at the mixed responses. Ty for your input!