A Few Questions About Keeping Arboreal Species

Aether Bunny said:

So after a year of caring for a rosie I'm looking to obtain another T, something a little more exotic (I love my rosie but she's a pet rock: the only time she moves is when there's a cricket nearby). I've narrowed my choices down to either Grammostola pulchripes or Avicularia Avicularia. I'd love to have a monster T but arboreal species interest me also. I like the Avics for their beautiful blue colouration and tree-dwelling ways but I'm wondering about the work involved in maintaining humidity, ventilation and cleanliness of damp substrate.

So for the experienced owners of arboreals requiring high humidity I have a few questions:

-What is the best way to maintain humidity: misting, overflowing the water dish or both?

-Will a screen-top terrarium provide adequate ventilation?

-Will I have to worry about mites or other unwanted critters in the substrate?

-How often should I clean the tank and/or change the substrate?

-Also does the added moisture & humidity affect the temperature of the enclosure? I have an oil radiator-type space heater I can put on the other side of the room to raise the air temperature without drying the enclosure or exposing the T to direct light. (My T room is in a basement so its a degree or two cooler than room temp)

If I do get an Avic I will of course have a hygrometer and air thermometer to go by but I want to know the best way to go about caring for the animal: if I lost a T due to improper care I'd be heart broken... Anyway thanks for reading, any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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Aether Bunny said:

I heard many avic avics die in captivity due to drying out so I wanted to get educated on how to avoid this.

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Poec54 said:

Just the opposite. The biggest killer of Avics is moist, stuffy cages. They need a combination of humidity and ventilation; stagnant air is lethal to them. People incorrectly give them moist substrate and then mist too much and too often. Then they soon have a soggy cage with condensation and the poor Avic dies. Avics are not for beginners. Get the care terrestrials down before you get a arboreal.

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Poec54 said:

Just the opposite. The biggest killer of Avics is moist, stuffy cages. They need a combination of humidity and ventilation; stagnant air is lethal to them. People incorrectly give them moist substrate and then mist too much and too often. Then they soon have a soggy cage with condensation and the poor Avic dies. Avics are not for beginners. Get the care terrestrials down before you get a arboreal.

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cold blood said:

I'll answer all these questions, but know, that based on these questions I think its clear you should get the G. pulchripes and not the Avic. Pulchripes is a spectacular spider in every way...good eaters, beautiful coloration, active and easy to care for. This should be your next.

The best way to provide humidity is simply by providing a water dish, its as simple as that, care-sheets and such that you've read cause more confusion on the subject than anything. Most of us keep the substrate predominantly DRY, use a water dish for humidity and add a few droplets of water to the webbing weekly for easy drinking. Misting is useless as its effects are very short lived...misters re popular, but COMPLETELY unnecessary for keeping t's. Adding water by pouring, sprinkling or injecting water into the sub re far more effective.

Screen tops have NO PLACE with t's. They are dangerous as the t can get caught in them or even chew through them. On top of that, top ventilation kills any micro-climate you are trying to form, basically over-ventilating...screen tops are a horribly bad idea. Ventilation, especially for arboreals, needs to be cross ventilation....meaning venting needs to come from the sides, not the top.

If you keep the sub predominantly dry, mites wont be an issue. Proper ventilation helps with mites and such...if you get them, its not a big deal, just dry the enclosure out. Keeping the enclosure clean and free of dead prey or bolus' is also important.

The substrate doesn't just need to be changed normally...only in an emergency situation, like if you get a massive mite or mold infestation...but proper ventilation and husbandry basically prevents this.

A space heater is enough for the cold months, in the summer, you should not need any additional heating...I certainly hope you are not heating your rosie. DIrect sunlight won't hurt a t, it will just cause it to hide, like when its sunny in the wild. Sun isn't something to be worried about, people suggest keeping them away from windows and such because it can cause temps to rise dramatically...so in a window is a bad idea.

You DO NOT need EITHER a thermometer OR a hygrometer. Temps shouldn't be any concern as long as its not cold. Heating importance is not a critical aspect of t keeping, despite what the LPS would like you top believe....same for hygrometers....they actually cause more problems than they could EVER solve. See, people read these worthless care-sheets, believing they need some magical number specific humidity. So they get a hygrometer, and add water until their doohickey reads that magic number they are searching for....by then the enclosure is severely over moistened, which leads to their next thread they start...which is the classic "my dead avic" thread we see with unbelievable regularity.

I use an oil filled heater for my room for the winter months, it does dry air out a bit, so to compensate, I will add a little extra moisture to the substrate...but only a little.

G. pulchripes, however, is a better choice IMO.

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Stimpack said:

Wow I learned more on this thread than I did during the hours upon hours of reading care sheets and info sites before all the slings I purchased. Thank you all so much!

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