Tuesday I found out that one of the drivers at work breeds tarantulas! Turns out, he has 2,000 of them!! Not only that, but then he offered to bring me some! So today he handed me a plastic container full of deli cups! Here are the contents:
0.0.1 Acanthoscurria geniculata (Brazilian Whiteknee)
0.0.4 Cyclosternum fasciatum (Costa Rican Tiger Rump)
0.0.3 Grammastola aureostriatum (Chaco Golden Knee)
0.0.2 Lasiodora difficilis (Brazilian Fire Red)
0.0.2 Brachypelma albopilosum (Curly Hair)
0.0.2 Poecilotheria regalis (Indian Ornamental)
0.0.1 Heteroscodra maculata (Ornamental Baboon)
0.0.1 Orthoporus ornatus (Desert Millipede)
This means we tripled our menagerie instantly! They all (except the Gold Knees) have price tags on them, but he gave them to me! They are all (except for the millipede) slings. Several of them are TIIIINY, but some are a little larger. One Golden Knee appears to have not survived the trip. It also looks like one of the Tiger Rumps died before I got it. I'll check on them more closely tomorrow. We'll be fetching meal worms tomorrow, I guess.
This guy also plans to bring me a couple adult male Rose Hairs to attempt mating with our Rose Hairs. No charge. I even asked, if my girls kill them, no charge? He just hopes we'll get some slings out of them. Like I said, he is a breeder and has 2,000 spiders! He also sells snakes. I asked how long it takes him to water his spiders. He said it takes about 4 days of 6-8 hours straight watering! He only does it once per month, though, so that helps.
I am SO excited to have found a LOCAL breeder! And talk about service, personal delivery... and FREE (so far)! We may purchase spiders from him in the future, but this was just such an amazing surprise! I was bouncing off the walls at work!
Upon further examination, 2 Tiger Rumps and 1 Gold Knee were DOA. I'm glad we still have some of each left.
Showing posts with label new pets. Show all posts
Showing posts with label new pets. Show all posts
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Sunday, December 12, 2010
New Pet!
The Oklahoma Reptile Show was in town again today! Elmo has been itching to replace Sam, but we haven't found anything for sale in the area other than Rose Hairs (of which we have two already). We went to the Reptile Show a couple of months ago and missed the Cobalts, but today there were still three left!
These photos do not do the colors justice. This is a gorgeous spider! However, they are one of the more aggressive species. For such a newcomer to the hobby, Elmo sure goes all out!
 Haplopelma lividum (Cobalt Blue) |
 Haplopelma lividum (Cobalt Blue) |
These photos do not do the colors justice. This is a gorgeous spider! However, they are one of the more aggressive species. For such a newcomer to the hobby, Elmo sure goes all out!
Friday, November 5, 2010
Great Investment!
My recent investment into 1 Avicularia versicolor (Antilles Pinktoe) and 1 Brachypelma albopilosum (Curly Hair) has really paid off! My A. versicolor (S.B.) is my first arboreal species. She wasted no time in building a tunnel web up the corner and then a hammock type web over from the top. She has been interesting to watch, though not otherwise very active.
Then there is the B. albopilosum (Señor Fuzzy Britches)! He originally didn't seem to be changing his new habitat at all. Then he) was slowly moving dirt from one end of his Kritter Keeper to the other. Eventually he had a mound almost to the top of one end of the cage and one opposite corner was dug out all the way to the bottom. Now he has begun to dig a hole in the bottom of the mound and some of that dirt is being carried into the original empty corner. It is fascinating to watch! I love that while he is burrowing, he is doing it where we can still watch! Earlier he was making some sort of squeaking noise... I think it is the sound of his feet sliding against the plastic. It has been cool to watch dirt being carried in the chelicerae!
Note: These babies are all juveniles, so the he/she is really just a guess at this point. We think of S.B. as a girl and SFBritches as a boy.
Then there is the B. albopilosum (Señor Fuzzy Britches)! He originally didn't seem to be changing his new habitat at all. Then he) was slowly moving dirt from one end of his Kritter Keeper to the other. Eventually he had a mound almost to the top of one end of the cage and one opposite corner was dug out all the way to the bottom. Now he has begun to dig a hole in the bottom of the mound and some of that dirt is being carried into the original empty corner. It is fascinating to watch! I love that while he is burrowing, he is doing it where we can still watch! Earlier he was making some sort of squeaking noise... I think it is the sound of his feet sliding against the plastic. It has been cool to watch dirt being carried in the chelicerae!
Note: These babies are all juveniles, so the he/she is really just a guess at this point. We think of S.B. as a girl and SFBritches as a boy.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Oklahoma Reptile Expo - New Pets!
Today was finally the day for the Oklahoma Reptile Expo! Elmo and I both had trouble sleeping last night due to excitement! We got up too early this morning and eventually gathered up the girls to go to breakfast. Then it was a stop by Target before we headed to the hotel hosting the expo. We went in the front door... won't do that again! We were sent upstairs and then "just keep going" down a hall. We even walked through a part of the hallway with NO lights! Eventually we discovered that there was, indeed, a back door close to the expo itself. We chose that for our exit later.
I had been concerned that the Reptile expo might not offer any spiders. I emailed the guy that puts on the event, but never heard back from him. When I talked with him today, he felt certain he had replied. I check my spam folder, but I'll check again.
We walked into the expo and immediately spotted 3 tarantulas. I was SO excited already! We walked around the outer circle, then the inner circle. I found someone selling log hides and asked her about mold on them. I was appreciative of her expertise and advise. There were only 2 vendors with tarantulas, but the other one had a lot to choose from. Both vendors offered good deals.
Sasha got restless, so we all went into the hallway for a break. Sasha had a little milk and then ran around free for a bit with Tyler. It was a nice open space. Meanwhile, Elmo & I discussed what we wanted to actually purchase and how much we would have to spend to get habitats all set for them. We had some stuff at home, but not everything we needed.
Elmo got 1 Theraphosa blondi (Goliath Birdeater) and 1 Heterometrus longimanus (Asian Forest Scorpion). The Goliath is a juvenile, so we do not know the sex. It is maybe 2-3 inches now, but will eventually get to 12-15 inches! We didn't think to ask the sex of the scorpion, but we're pretty sure it is full grown. It looked so much bigger when we got it out of the little deli cup! I got 1 juvenile Avicularia versicolor (Antilles Pinktoe) which is the first really exotic (read: colorful) species with which I fell in love. I also got 1 juvenile Brachypelma albopilosum (Curly Hair) which intrigued me, especially when the vendor said that they are the most docile and friendly tarantulas he's ever seen. They will crawl right out onto your hand!
For those trying to keep count, you can see our collection listed on our About Us page. I will mention, though, that this Curly Hair is the 2nd Brachypelma species I've got now.
The vendor had some other species that we had wanted to find, but they sold yesterday. :-( We'd still like to attend the KC Reptile Show sometime, which is ONLY on Sundays so we should have better luck. The vendor that had so much for us today is from there, so he would have much more to offer at that show... or we could just go to his store!
I had been concerned that the Reptile expo might not offer any spiders. I emailed the guy that puts on the event, but never heard back from him. When I talked with him today, he felt certain he had replied. I check my spam folder, but I'll check again.
We walked into the expo and immediately spotted 3 tarantulas. I was SO excited already! We walked around the outer circle, then the inner circle. I found someone selling log hides and asked her about mold on them. I was appreciative of her expertise and advise. There were only 2 vendors with tarantulas, but the other one had a lot to choose from. Both vendors offered good deals.
Sasha got restless, so we all went into the hallway for a break. Sasha had a little milk and then ran around free for a bit with Tyler. It was a nice open space. Meanwhile, Elmo & I discussed what we wanted to actually purchase and how much we would have to spend to get habitats all set for them. We had some stuff at home, but not everything we needed.
Elmo got 1 Theraphosa blondi (Goliath Birdeater) and 1 Heterometrus longimanus (Asian Forest Scorpion). The Goliath is a juvenile, so we do not know the sex. It is maybe 2-3 inches now, but will eventually get to 12-15 inches! We didn't think to ask the sex of the scorpion, but we're pretty sure it is full grown. It looked so much bigger when we got it out of the little deli cup! I got 1 juvenile Avicularia versicolor (Antilles Pinktoe) which is the first really exotic (read: colorful) species with which I fell in love. I also got 1 juvenile Brachypelma albopilosum (Curly Hair) which intrigued me, especially when the vendor said that they are the most docile and friendly tarantulas he's ever seen. They will crawl right out onto your hand!
For those trying to keep count, you can see our collection listed on our About Us page. I will mention, though, that this Curly Hair is the 2nd Brachypelma species I've got now.
The vendor had some other species that we had wanted to find, but they sold yesterday. :-( We'd still like to attend the KC Reptile Show sometime, which is ONLY on Sundays so we should have better luck. The vendor that had so much for us today is from there, so he would have much more to offer at that show... or we could just go to his store!
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Spiiiiiders!
So last night the temperature got down pretty low (compared to recently). So this morning, the guys at work found a huge Oklahoma Brown Tarantula (Aphonopelma hentzi) on the wall in the warehouse! Knowing I'm such a spider (esp. tarantula) freak, I couple of people sent me pictures of it. Someone was even trying to catch it for me!
I got my largest cage out of the closet, rinsed it, and put some fresh substrate in it. On my way to work it occurred to me that I probably should have taken something to catch the spider since I didn't know if they'd caught it or not. I got to work and Lia immediately took me out to the dock to find it with me. This is funny because she has arachnophobia. On our way out, we saw the cleaning guy and he asked if we were looking for it (I was, after all, carrying a cage). He pointed across the building to an Exit sign. The black spot on the top right corner? That is the spider! Holy cow, we could see it from across the warehouse! "Huge!" I thought. We got over to it and I backed a tugger cart up to the wall so I could stand on it. I put the cage up against the side of the Exit sign and slid the spider into it using the lid. I had caught it in about 2 seconds! No problem! And, it was NOT that big! Turned out to be an adult male, so he is small.
Courtney said Kelsey was the one who claimed it was as large as his fist (and he is not a small guy). When he got back from lunch and looked at my new pet, he said it wasn't the same one! He said this one is half the size! We referred back to pictures and sure enough... the one Kelsey had seen was a larger one, most likely a female! Lia and I (and then some other folks) went back out to hunt, but she was gone. I need to take all my gear to work, though. As fall blows into town, we'll likely see more of them!
I was SO giddy! And lots of people had questions about spiders and tarantulas. I love to talk about them! So it made for a great day!
I've had an Oklahoma Brown before and am keeping this little guy in the same cage. My friend let her sons catch Special K for me. I haven't named this new one yet... and I'm open to suggestions!
I got my largest cage out of the closet, rinsed it, and put some fresh substrate in it. On my way to work it occurred to me that I probably should have taken something to catch the spider since I didn't know if they'd caught it or not. I got to work and Lia immediately took me out to the dock to find it with me. This is funny because she has arachnophobia. On our way out, we saw the cleaning guy and he asked if we were looking for it (I was, after all, carrying a cage). He pointed across the building to an Exit sign. The black spot on the top right corner? That is the spider! Holy cow, we could see it from across the warehouse! "Huge!" I thought. We got over to it and I backed a tugger cart up to the wall so I could stand on it. I put the cage up against the side of the Exit sign and slid the spider into it using the lid. I had caught it in about 2 seconds! No problem! And, it was NOT that big! Turned out to be an adult male, so he is small.
Courtney said Kelsey was the one who claimed it was as large as his fist (and he is not a small guy). When he got back from lunch and looked at my new pet, he said it wasn't the same one! He said this one is half the size! We referred back to pictures and sure enough... the one Kelsey had seen was a larger one, most likely a female! Lia and I (and then some other folks) went back out to hunt, but she was gone. I need to take all my gear to work, though. As fall blows into town, we'll likely see more of them!
I was SO giddy! And lots of people had questions about spiders and tarantulas. I love to talk about them! So it made for a great day!
I've had an Oklahoma Brown before and am keeping this little guy in the same cage. My friend let her sons catch Special K for me. I haven't named this new one yet... and I'm open to suggestions!
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Dinner Bell
I love my babies so much! I was in the neighborhood today and have been wanting to pick up some crickets, so I stopped and got 3 for each of them. I gave their dirt a good soaking, too. Then I dropped 3 large crickets in with Anansi. She's looking a little thin. Within about 10 minutes, she had snagged all 3 and was kind of balling them all up into her chelicera all greedy-like. SOOO cute!
Next was Chaos's turn. She really likes her log (again), though this one also has some fuzzy looking spots on the end closest to the plastic. She has dug down in the corner of the log against the plastic. I saw her kind of go toward the exit once she noticed something was out there. She snagged the first cricket pretty quickly. She started up the hill that leads to the top of her log as a cricket seemed to be taunting her from there. She was so cute watching for it. Then she started laying down her webby table cloth. She isn't thin at all, but she hasn't molted since I got her, so she doesn't have any real reason to be thin. Still, she looks all pretty, pink, and large... made me wonder if she'd bury her exuvium if she did molt. hm
Finally it was time for my wild-caught spider I got at work. I have no idea what it is, I haven't really tried to ID it yet. This one has lined the entire bottom of it's cage with webbing. It's a circle, so it kind of pulls up into a bowl. Then the spider hides in the corner, just outside the bowl. I could tell this one noticed the movement in the habitat and was waiting for something to get close enough. I looked away for a minute and SNAG! First cricket bit the dust. I could have sat there for hours and watched them all process their dinner...
While I was at PetSmart, I was looking at habitats. I'm really wanting to get an arboreal species, but I'm concerned about habitat. So... I'm slowly researching my choices. I noticed a topic on one of my spider communities about pros/cons between arboreal and terrestrial. So I'll be reading those comments further and perhaps asking for suggestions on arboreal habitat that is available at the local pet stores. I really, really need to build (or buy) a shelf of some sort to go over my desk, but then it'll be too cold there this winter (it is an outside wall).
Next was Chaos's turn. She really likes her log (again), though this one also has some fuzzy looking spots on the end closest to the plastic. She has dug down in the corner of the log against the plastic. I saw her kind of go toward the exit once she noticed something was out there. She snagged the first cricket pretty quickly. She started up the hill that leads to the top of her log as a cricket seemed to be taunting her from there. She was so cute watching for it. Then she started laying down her webby table cloth. She isn't thin at all, but she hasn't molted since I got her, so she doesn't have any real reason to be thin. Still, she looks all pretty, pink, and large... made me wonder if she'd bury her exuvium if she did molt. hm
Finally it was time for my wild-caught spider I got at work. I have no idea what it is, I haven't really tried to ID it yet. This one has lined the entire bottom of it's cage with webbing. It's a circle, so it kind of pulls up into a bowl. Then the spider hides in the corner, just outside the bowl. I could tell this one noticed the movement in the habitat and was waiting for something to get close enough. I looked away for a minute and SNAG! First cricket bit the dust. I could have sat there for hours and watched them all process their dinner...
While I was at PetSmart, I was looking at habitats. I'm really wanting to get an arboreal species, but I'm concerned about habitat. So... I'm slowly researching my choices. I noticed a topic on one of my spider communities about pros/cons between arboreal and terrestrial. So I'll be reading those comments further and perhaps asking for suggestions on arboreal habitat that is available at the local pet stores. I really, really need to build (or buy) a shelf of some sort to go over my desk, but then it'll be too cold there this winter (it is an outside wall).
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Long Time No Update
I recently expanded my spider family. I was at the PetCo to see what they had. I can't get the guy at e-Spiderworld to return my calls or reply to my emails. I feel like some kind of stalker, but I've been a good customer... I just prefer to purchase my spiders in person and carry them home rather than having them shipped.
So I was at PetCo... hoping to find an arboreal species... even though I prefer not to purchase from a pet store. They only had one tarantula... a Grammostola rosea (Chilean Rose Hair).
I guess I had the new pet itch, because I just had to have it. The guy working really didn't like the spiders, so he was happy to let me get her out of the aquarium myself. He brought me this little cardboard box and I looked at him like he was crazy. I bought a kritter keeper (only by some other company) and put it directly into it. Off the top of my head, I can't recall if it's a boy or a girl and now it is hiding. This was a month ago or so. My life got real chaotic... so I finally named it the other day - Chaos. I put in one of those log things and Chaos liked to hang out on top of it... I guess now got more used to it because Chaos is hiding IN it and even dug some extra dirt out from under it.
Now a concern - the end of the log close to the plastic of the habitat has some furry green spots on it. I'm going to post to a spider community to see if this is cause for concern or no big deal. I don't like to have mold around... but Chaos really likes this log!
So I was at PetCo... hoping to find an arboreal species... even though I prefer not to purchase from a pet store. They only had one tarantula... a Grammostola rosea (Chilean Rose Hair).
I guess I had the new pet itch, because I just had to have it. The guy working really didn't like the spiders, so he was happy to let me get her out of the aquarium myself. He brought me this little cardboard box and I looked at him like he was crazy. I bought a kritter keeper (only by some other company) and put it directly into it. Off the top of my head, I can't recall if it's a boy or a girl and now it is hiding. This was a month ago or so. My life got real chaotic... so I finally named it the other day - Chaos. I put in one of those log things and Chaos liked to hang out on top of it... I guess now got more used to it because Chaos is hiding IN it and even dug some extra dirt out from under it.Now a concern - the end of the log close to the plastic of the habitat has some furry green spots on it. I'm going to post to a spider community to see if this is cause for concern or no big deal. I don't like to have mold around... but Chaos really likes this log!
Monday, December 18, 2006
Special K
A friend of mine had her boys catch a tarantula in their driveway for me. They brought it over right away (she doesn't like spiders). I named him (a fully mature Oklahoma Brown {Aphonopelma hentzi}) after the container they used. His name was Special K. (They used to use it to hold Special K cereal.) That was a while back (early October or before), but he has now passed. I honestly think he simply died of old age.
I haven't gotten rid of the carcass yet, in case he is just molting. I learned my lesson with Bunny!
Male tarantulas do not live long after reaching maturity.
 Aphonopelma hentziphoto from a couple of weeks ago |
I haven't gotten rid of the carcass yet, in case he is just molting. I learned my lesson with Bunny!
Male tarantulas do not live long after reaching maturity.
Wednesday, August 9, 2006
Spider Identification Help... Common Topic
I have a couple of new spiders in my collection. One of them survived. Here are two photos of it...
It is TINY... the leg-span width (not length) is about as wide as my thumbnail is long... if that helps at all.
So... any idea what it is? I gave it a small cricket... hoping it could manage. It did, the cricket was drained dry by morning! It's a pretty lil thing.
I caught it in our garden in front of the house. (Gosh, do you think it could be a GARDEN spider??) I couldn't find it in my Field Guide.
Here is the other spider...
I can't be confident I've identified it from the field guide or online searches. This one was caught in a web at the top of the inside of a porta-john. My Husband caught it for me, ain't he sweet?! And so I named it Johnny. heh
This one liked to play dead a lot. I'd think it was dead, but when I'd pick up the container, it would start moving around again. It liked to get into this odd position where it would hang with all it's legs forward (or up). Very strange. Any ideas as to the species?
Thanks all!
 unidentified white spider |
 unidentified white spidersorry this shot is SO yellow! |
It is TINY... the leg-span width (not length) is about as wide as my thumbnail is long... if that helps at all.
So... any idea what it is? I gave it a small cricket... hoping it could manage. It did, the cricket was drained dry by morning! It's a pretty lil thing.
I caught it in our garden in front of the house. (Gosh, do you think it could be a GARDEN spider??) I couldn't find it in my Field Guide.
Here is the other spider...
 the other spider |
I can't be confident I've identified it from the field guide or online searches. This one was caught in a web at the top of the inside of a porta-john. My Husband caught it for me, ain't he sweet?! And so I named it Johnny. heh
This one liked to play dead a lot. I'd think it was dead, but when I'd pick up the container, it would start moving around again. It liked to get into this odd position where it would hang with all it's legs forward (or up). Very strange. Any ideas as to the species?
Thanks all!
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Update
By the way... I did feed Anansi a couple of weeks ago. She ate.
Last night I removed her from her bowl, then sifted through the dirt (looking for cricket bits) and put the dirt into a slightly larger kritter keeper. I know I saw some old cricket carcasses resurface, but all I found was a single cricket leg. I sifted through the dirt with tweezers... I don't know... maybe they composted.
Anyway, she seems to like the new space just fine. I put a cricket in before I put her into the new cage. She ate. Yay! Bunny is doing fine, too. I need to clean his cage, but I need to wait until all the crickets are gone. I don't want to catch ALL of the critters to clean it. I got a new spider, too. My Husband caught it for me in the porta-john at the local skate park. It's pretty cool. I need to get photos so I can post them and ask for identification help. I looked in my reference book, but couldn't find anything like it. The new spider is in Anansi's old container. I love the new container for Anansi... I can actually SEE in there. It is maybe twice the size of the old one. I think I'll go see if there are any more crickets left and feed her another one... I also wonder if the new spider has eaten yet. I think it is used to gnats... and I gave it a small cricket.
Anyway, thanks for reading... I know I really need to post new photos. I haven't forgotten.
EDIT: I guess I was wrong. Bunny has died. I immediately caught some other kind of spider. It's white. I might catch another jumping spider, I really like them. Oh yeah, and since Bunny died, I caught the last two little crickets in with him and put them in with Anansi. She ate them each immediately as they were given to her.
Last night I removed her from her bowl, then sifted through the dirt (looking for cricket bits) and put the dirt into a slightly larger kritter keeper. I know I saw some old cricket carcasses resurface, but all I found was a single cricket leg. I sifted through the dirt with tweezers... I don't know... maybe they composted.Anyway, she seems to like the new space just fine. I put a cricket in before I put her into the new cage. She ate. Yay! Bunny is doing fine, too. I need to clean his cage, but I need to wait until all the crickets are gone. I don't want to catch ALL of the critters to clean it. I got a new spider, too. My Husband caught it for me in the porta-john at the local skate park. It's pretty cool. I need to get photos so I can post them and ask for identification help. I looked in my reference book, but couldn't find anything like it. The new spider is in Anansi's old container. I love the new container for Anansi... I can actually SEE in there. It is maybe twice the size of the old one. I think I'll go see if there are any more crickets left and feed her another one... I also wonder if the new spider has eaten yet. I think it is used to gnats... and I gave it a small cricket.
Anyway, thanks for reading... I know I really need to post new photos. I haven't forgotten.
EDIT: I guess I was wrong. Bunny has died. I immediately caught some other kind of spider. It's white. I might catch another jumping spider, I really like them. Oh yeah, and since Bunny died, I caught the last two little crickets in with him and put them in with Anansi. She ate them each immediately as they were given to her.
Sunday, February 26, 2006
New Baby!!
Here is a photo of my new baby that I went to OKC for today...
That's a quarter this time. I even got to hold her before leaving there! I also held a full grown B. smithi. I had Eric show me as much of his collection as he wanted to show off and I took photos! I'll be getting those edited, sent, and posted... but for now, this was the most important shot.
Now I'm debating a name for her. Here is the poll (updated with results):
Tara (as in TARAntula)
3 (27.3%)
Taren Tula (I don't think so)
0 (0.0%)
LeeLou (5th Element)
2 (18.2%)
Anansi
3 (27.3%)
Agent Smith (she's a B. smithi)
0 (0.0%)
Mallory (again)
0 (0.0%)
Millicent
1 (9.1%)
Morticia
2 (18.2%)
 Brachypelma smithi spiderling |
That's a quarter this time. I even got to hold her before leaving there! I also held a full grown B. smithi. I had Eric show me as much of his collection as he wanted to show off and I took photos! I'll be getting those edited, sent, and posted... but for now, this was the most important shot.
Now I'm debating a name for her. Here is the poll (updated with results):
Tara (as in TARAntula)
3 (27.3%)
Taren Tula (I don't think so)
0 (0.0%)
LeeLou (5th Element)
2 (18.2%)
Anansi
3 (27.3%)
Agent Smith (she's a B. smithi)
0 (0.0%)
Mallory (again)
0 (0.0%)
Millicent
1 (9.1%)
Morticia
2 (18.2%)
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