Help with troubleshooting why my 2 T's seem unsettled

Hello All,

Long time lurker, 1st time poster here...

My issue is that I moved approximately 1 month ago, and since then my L. parahybana (Itsy Bitsy) and my G. rosea
(Priscilla, Queen of the Desert) have been spending a good deal of time hanging out on their glass. They have been
sharing a divided 15 gallon terrarium for the past 3 years quite happily. Priscilla has been a typical pet rock, and now
she's all over her tank and frequently on the glass just above her substrate. Bitsy has always been very active, but
rarely just hung out on her glass. Now she's rarely on the ground. Both are eating normally, Bitsy as voracious and
aggressive an eater as ever, and Priscilla, who was never much of an eater (she went 14 months without eating once) has even eaten a few crickets since the move.

I know there must be *something* about the new place they don't like, it's just too much of a coincidence that they're both acting off and we just moved. I don't think it's the move itself though, as they've both moved with me before with no
issues and it's been a little over a month and they're not settling down. My new place is warmer than the last, and I
have no control over the heat here, but I'm in Canada, so we're talking wearing a t-shirt indoors and being comfortable warmer, not anything extreme. Their terrarium is on the same self of the same shelving unit as before, also located
beside a window but on the same wall as the window, so no direct sunlight, exactly the same as before the move. I
haven't changed their substrate, humidity, feeding schedule or any other husbandry (I did fill in a deep burrow that
Priscilla had made as her hide was at risk of falling in the hole and I didn't want her accidentally crushed).

I'm going nuts trying to figure out what's bugging them, and I'm distressed that they're distressed. I want my 8-legged kids happy again. I also am planning to get a B. smithi sling this weekend, and slings are so iffy to keep alive at the
best of times, so I want to know I'm bringing it into a good environment, you know? Two factors that I've thought of as
possibilities are that they are much closer to both the TV and the wireless router. Could vibration and/or radio waves
be the culprit?

Any help/thoughts/advice would be most welcome.

Thanks!

Smudge

Did you cup them and redo their setups when you moved? Or move the whole tank with them in it?

They will pick up close audio waves and be bothered, depending how loud they are and close. I had a pink toe have a slap fight with the glass before because of a loud stereo nearby.

Are they hanging on the side farthest from the wall? Could be a cold wall and the other side is warmer. Colder wall could also chill the substrate more than the ambient air temp could warm it.
Idk, just possibilities.


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One possibility is that they are unsettled from the move, as you've said, you've moved before in the past and they were fine but perhaps this is a one off. In any case from the sounds of things you have no need to worry, sticking to the glass is a common phase Ts go through sometimes. They are both eating normally so you don't need to worry, they may just be a little shaken up from the change in environment and they'll adjust shortly.

As Keith asked when you moved did you leave them in the enclosure or did you cup them while moving? You know at first when you said they have been together in a 15 gallon for the past three years I was completely stunned, but then I saw the word 'divided' haha!

---------- Post added 03-22-2014 at 09:07 AM ----------

One possibility is that they are unsettled from the move, as you've said, you've moved before in the past and they were fine but perhaps this is a one off. In any case from the sounds of things you have no need to worry, sticking to the glass is a common phase Ts go through sometimes. They are both eating normally so you don't need to worry, they may just be a little shaken up from the change in environment and they'll adjust shortly.

As Keith asked when you moved did you leave them in the enclosure or did you cup them while moving? You know at first when you said they have been together in a 15 gallon for the past three years I was completely stunned, but then I saw the word 'divided' haha!

i have a MF C.fasciatum that does the same but i'm pretty sure mine is settled already plus it does have semi-arboreal habits as observed by other keepers as well. i'm pretty sure you could easily tell a tarantula that is comfortable sticking on the glass than a tarantula who's like struggling to stay at the side.

best of luck!

Yes, Scorpio, they do in fact spend most of their time on the front glass. I'm going to check the temp variation there. Thanks!

Pics of the setup?

I had a female Chilean Copper go vertical for over a year, and she stopped eating, no change in sub, no moving, no nothing hah.

Pics of setup



Here's a pic of their setup, you can see Priscilla in her uncomfortable-looking huddle at the front of the tank that she's been doing, and Bitsy has just climbed down off the glass a moment before I took the shot.

I did measure the temps at the front and back of the tank and there is a 2 degree Celsius difference, which is quite a bit for a span of 12", so I'm going to try putting some heat tape along the back of the tank.

Smudgereeroo said:

View attachment 125337

Here's a pic of their setup, you can see Priscilla in her uncomfortable-looking huddle at the front of the tank that she's been doing, and Bitsy has just climbed down off the glass a moment before I took the shot.

I did measure the temps at the front and back of the tank and there is a 2 degree Celsius difference, which is quite a bit for a span of 12", so I'm going to try putting some heat tape along the back of the tank.

Click to expand...

You know your Ts better than anyone. W/that said, I have Ts in both of those positions at times. Right now my Chaco is in the position of yours on the right. I can't say they are uncomfortable mind you. I think mine at least, are just being Ts

Smudgereeroo said:

My new place is warmer than the last, and I
have no control over the heat here, but I'm in Canada, so we're talking wearing a t-shirt indoors and being comfortable warmer, not anything extreme. Their terrarium is on the same self of the same shelving unit as before, also located
beside a window but on the same wall as the window, so no direct sunlight, exactly the same as before the move.

Click to expand...

So your new place is warmer, yet you are now thinking of adding additional heat?...what are the temps in the enclosure? What are the now warmer house temps (day/night)?