After losing one of my two, mature, male GBB's a few months ago, I purchased a B Smithi sling (3/8"). After a meal or two and one molt, I put the B Smithi in an enclosure which may have been just a little big for it (a Container Store box - small, but still around 8x and 12x larger than its leg span.
It ate once while in that larger enclosure and then promptly burrowed and disappeared. The only indication of life I had was when substrate material shifted.
I hadn't seen the sling in about a month. I continued to add a few drops of water onto the substrate every day or two and toss in a teeny-tiny cricket (head pinched to immobilize it - just in case). Week after week - the cricks were semi-alive/dead - so I put them down and disposed of them. A couple days ago I was >THIS< close to asking for opinions as to whether or not I should dig down to search for Schroedinger's Tarantula which I figured was dead at the bottom of a deep borrow.
Yesterday I woke up, checked on the T's (which I do before even hitting the showers) and, "TAAA DAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" The Smithi opened up the entrance to its burrow! Looking around with a flashlight, there he/she was! He/she was like, "What the hell!" and scrambled around - so I turned off the light.
IT'S ALIIIIIIIIIIVE!!!!!!
He/she went back underground but I chucked in a tiny cricket (which it didn't come up for a couple days before). A few hours later, the tiny crick was gone.
So, once again, T's have taught me that I need to very patient with T's. Mother Nature actually DOES know what she's doing.........
That's what I've learned and, for any other newbies out there, I hope this helps. This hobby can be just as frustrating as it is rewarding
-Mike in SC
It ate once while in that larger enclosure and then promptly burrowed and disappeared. The only indication of life I had was when substrate material shifted.
I hadn't seen the sling in about a month. I continued to add a few drops of water onto the substrate every day or two and toss in a teeny-tiny cricket (head pinched to immobilize it - just in case). Week after week - the cricks were semi-alive/dead - so I put them down and disposed of them. A couple days ago I was >THIS< close to asking for opinions as to whether or not I should dig down to search for Schroedinger's Tarantula which I figured was dead at the bottom of a deep borrow.
Yesterday I woke up, checked on the T's (which I do before even hitting the showers) and, "TAAA DAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" The Smithi opened up the entrance to its burrow! Looking around with a flashlight, there he/she was! He/she was like, "What the hell!" and scrambled around - so I turned off the light.
IT'S ALIIIIIIIIIIVE!!!!!!
He/she went back underground but I chucked in a tiny cricket (which it didn't come up for a couple days before). A few hours later, the tiny crick was gone.
So, once again, T's have taught me that I need to very patient with T's. Mother Nature actually DOES know what she's doing.........
That's what I've learned and, for any other newbies out there, I hope this helps. This hobby can be just as frustrating as it is rewarding
-Mike in SC