heeeeerree cricket cricket...

stewstew8282

Arachnoknight
Joined
Jun 16, 2011
Messages
166
so my new arrival p metallica seemed petrified of the cricket i gave it after it was housed. took me a hot minute to get the friggin crix out.
(p metallica is apx 1.5 in & crix is 1/8 in abt size of abdomen) so i wait until tonight to try again (1st time was jul 29th) and same thing. now that the t has webbed considerably, i can no longer chase the crix from the back of enclosure and smash the <edit> out of it with some tongs so i dont have to try catch it..lol sooooo..my question is..how can i lure the crix out without stressing the t out too much?

i was almost tempted to stick a thread through the crix with a needle and just pull the sucker out, but i figured the string would do way more harm to the t in the long run..lol
 
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skar

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 19, 2010
Messages
434
Just leave it in there if you want put a piece of carrot in with it, or try a mealworm..
 

audax

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 27, 2011
Messages
40
Forgive my ignorance but I'm new to this, but I see people talking about feeding their T's once a week and I was wondering is it bad just to put more food in the container than the T needs and just let him eat whenever he's ready?
 

Jwest

Arachnopeon
Joined
May 20, 2011
Messages
4
Forgive my ignorance but I'm new to this, but I see people talking about feeding their T's once a week and I was wondering is it bad just to put more food in the container than the T needs and just let him eat whenever he's ready?
There are a few reasons why it is bad to do this but the main one is that when the crix get hungry they will eventualy try to eat the T. Cage match style. Also they can drown in the water dish and generaly just make a mess of the enclosure. If your T's are anything like my G. rosea they will eat everything thats in the cage she goes Jason Vorheese :mask: on everything in site when it comes to feeding time
 

Querx

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jan 27, 2011
Messages
41
If I ever find that a cricket refuses to leave my T enclosures, I usually just dampen the substrate which normally makes the cricket head for the top of the enclosure. Doesn't always work but otherwise the only option really is to destroy the Ts webs to get at it.
 

Austin

Arachnosquire
Joined
Nov 2, 2010
Messages
53
I liked the string idea haha, but i agree it might do more damage to the T in the long run. I gotta ask have you ever tied a string to a bee before? is that where you got this idea haha. You can try maiming the crickets before putting them in, like pull off both their jumping legs :) or something to that nature.
 

Quazgar

Arachnoknight
Joined
May 11, 2011
Messages
257
If you just got the tarantula, it wouldn't be a bad idea to wait a few days for it to settle before feeding it. My P. striata is so nervous that when I open its cage it scampers everywhere and hides itself refusing to even acknowledge the cricket I threw in there. I just leave it over night and by the next morning the cricket is gone.
 

stewstew8282

Arachnoknight
Joined
Jun 16, 2011
Messages
166
If you just got the tarantula, it wouldn't be a bad idea to wait a few days for it to settle before feeding it. My P. striata is so nervous that when I open its cage it scampers everywhere and hides itself refusing to even acknowledge the cricket I threw in there. I just leave it over night and by the next morning the cricket is gone.
id be afraid to leave it overnight and wake up to see a eaten/dead $150 T 8(
 

Alexandra V

Arachnosquire
Joined
Jun 8, 2011
Messages
148
id be afraid to leave it overnight and wake up to see a eaten/dead $150 T 8(
When I feed, if they don't take the cricket right away I leave it in there 24 hrs. If the crickets were kept with the proper food and water source prior to being offered as food, they shouldn't get hungry enough to try to eat the T in 24 hours. A lot of time the tarantulas will prefer to eat at night, when there is less movement in the house and it's dark.
 

Verneph

Arachnosquire
Joined
Jun 16, 2011
Messages
144
Well, crickets are only truly dangerous in groups. A single cricket probably won't be able to harm your T. That's not to say that there isn't some risk, but not as much as if you had multiple crickets. Skar's carrot idea would work or an apple slice or a banana piece or really any kind of fruit or vegetable could lure the cricket out in the open so you can get to it.
 

Verneph

Arachnosquire
Joined
Jun 16, 2011
Messages
144
Would a cricket actually do that, wouldnt that be like me trying to take a bite out of T rex?
Depends on the size of the cricket and the size of the T. As I said, multiple crickets that gang up on a single T are usually what cause deaths. A single one, so long as it's not bigger than the T, probably won't be able to do much although an injury is certainly possible.
 

Hobo

( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
Staff member
Joined
Jul 27, 2009
Messages
2,208
The only time you really have to worry about crickets is if your tarantula is currently in the process of molting.
Otherwise, give your spider a little credit.
Just because they don't want to eat doesn't mean they can't defend themselves.

The cricket is 1/8th the size of the abdomen of your spider, right?
Yeah. I think it will be fine. If it doesn't eat overnight, get the cricket out when/if you can.
 

Quazgar

Arachnoknight
Joined
May 11, 2011
Messages
257
The only time you really have to worry about crickets is if your tarantula is currently in the process of molting.
Otherwise, give your spider a little credit.
Just because they don't want to eat doesn't mean they can't defend themselves.

The cricket is 1/8th the size of the abdomen of your spider, right?
Yeah. I think it will be fine. If it doesn't eat overnight, get the cricket out when/if you can.
Exactly. I give mine the requisite time to harden up after molting, then I figure worse case scenario is even if it doesn't want to eat, if the cricket harasses it too much, it can kill the cricket with no problems. Remember pokies have quite potent venom. One bite and the cricket is no longer an issue. So long as a) the cricket isn't bigger than the T and b) the T hasn't just molted, I don't worry too much about single crickets in any of my OW tanks.
 

BCscorp

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
Joined
Oct 22, 2007
Messages
1,125
The only time you really have to worry about crickets is if your tarantula is currently in the process of molting.
Otherwise, give your spider a little credit.
Just because they don't want to eat doesn't mean they can't defend themselves.

The cricket is 1/8th the size of the abdomen of your spider, right?
Yeah. I think it will be fine. If it doesn't eat overnight, get the cricket out when/if you can.
^agreed.....
 
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