New A. avic owner - looking for feedback on enclosure

[Timmah1988]

Hello, I am a new tarantula owner and decided to begin with an A. avic. I bought this guy from a local, privately owned pet store and one of the employees offered to set up the tank for me. I understand Avics are arboreal, and have done a lot of research since the purchase in order to give the little guy a good home. The more I read, the more I am leaning toward replacing the large wooden hide with something more tree-like. I'm still getting used to taking care of spiders (primarily owned reptiles and amphibians in the past) so I am trying to avoid stressing him/her out by manipulating the tank too much. If this enclosure is fine, then I will happily let the fella do his thing. If there are some changes which need to be made, I would love some feedback to become better. The tank is an Exo-terra with front, rear, and top ventilation (I've noticed this is very important) so I believe the only change needed would possibly be the decor. Please let me know what you think!

P.S.- Please ignore the dead cricket, he was very elusive and, being a new tarantula owner, I figured letting one cricket roam until it died is better than stressing the Avic out more than it already is from the move. If you have any advice on how to gain access to the tank when the guy is latched on to both the door and the top, I would appreciate that as well!

 

[18ebolling]

Looks good one thing you should do differently is take that log hide and plant it into the substrate a little and have it go vertically up the side of the cage

 

[Timmah1988]

Looks good one thing you should do differently is take that log hide and plant it into the substrate a little and have it go vertically up the side of the cage

Good idea! Thank you!

 

[Stan Schultz]

Hello, I am a new tarantula owner and decided to begin with an A. avic. I bought this guy from a local, privately owned pet store and one of the employees offered to set up the tank for me. I understand Avics are arboreal, and have done a lot of research since the purchase in order to give the little guy a good home. The more I read, the more I am leaning toward replacing the large wooden hide with something more tree-like. I'm still getting used to taking care of spiders (primarily owned reptiles and amphibians in the past) so I am trying to avoid stressing him/her out by manipulating the tank too much. If this enclosure is fine, then I will happily let the fella do his thing. If there are some changes which need to be made, I would love some feedback to become better. The tank is an Exo-terra with front, rear, and top ventilation (I've noticed this is very important) so I believe the only change needed would possibly be the decor. Please let me know what you think!

P.S.- Please ignore the dead cricket, he was very elusive and, being a new tarantula owner, I figured letting one cricket roam until it died is better than stressing the Avic out more than it already is from the move. If you have any advice on how to gain access to the tank when the guy is latched on to both the door and the top, I would appreciate that as well!

Welcome to the hobby!

Forgive me for blowing my own horn, but I know of nowhere else to point you. Read the section on arboreal tarantulas in the Tarantula Keeper's Guide, beginning on page 246 of the current edition. Yes, I wrote the book, but this is not a sales pitch. Save yourself $20 and check out a copy from a local public library for free! You should also thumb through the various pages of the Spiders, Calgary website, reading in detail those that attract your attention. They can save you a lot of money and a lot of dead tarantulas.

Lastly, be careful about believing everything that pet shops tell you about caring for tarantulas. Many of them are far more interested in inflating the sale than giving good advice. In fact, a lot of them have no idea what they're talking about where tarantulas are concerned!

If you have any additional questions, feel free to ask them here (start a new thread for each) so others can critique and maybe benefit from them.

Best of luck.

 

[Phil]

Welcome to the hobby!

Forgive me for blowing my own horn, but I know of nowhere else to point you. Read the section on arboreal tarantulas in the Tarantula Keeper's Guide, beginning on page 246 of the current edition. Yes, I wrote the book, but this is not a sales pitch. Save yourself $20 and check out a copy from a local public library for free! You should also thumb through the various pages of the Spiders, Calgary website, reading in detail those that attract your attention. They can save you a lot of money and a lot of dead tarantulas.

Lastly, be careful about believing everything that pet shops tell you about caring for tarantulas. Many of them are far more interested in inflating the sale than giving good advice. In fact, a lot of them have no idea what they're talking about where tarantulas are concerned!

If you have any additional questions, feel free to ask them here (start a new thread for each) so others can critique and maybe benefit from them.

Best of luck.

I have read your book cover to cover many times. Its an honour to have you as part of the family.