How often to feed slings...searched but got different answers

As posted before, I have 2 slings...a Nhandu chromatus 3/4-1" and a Lasiodora parahybana 1/2" or so.
I bought some B. Lateralis pinheads and they've been eating fine. I don't wanna over feed them OR
under feed them however. I want to feed them as much as they can handle but is that ok?
They dug nice sized dens deep in their substrate, so don't wanna put too many Lats in, b/c it's hard to
see 100% of they're eaten or not.
The few times I've fed them, I dropped the Lats in their den and watched, and the little guys wrestled
them dead and ate them, BUT if not eaten right away is it safe to leave them in there?

I normally feed my small slings 4 - 5 times a week. More feeding just means faster growing and more frequent molting. And no, it is never safe to leave living prey items in the enclosures, if it's not eaten within 24h, take it out. Also make sure that the slings are not in pre-molt or molting when feeding live prey. Live prey are capable of injuring and killing molting Ts. I like to offer pre-killed and leave it at the mouths of their burrows/tube webs, that way uneaten prey can be easily removed, and you can observe whether the T is eating or not. Small slings gets easily startled by prey items, why I find pre-killed easier, I also never drop prey directly into their burrows. I leave it at the entrance of their burrows. They'll come out when hungry and stumble apon it and scavange on it. I like to remove the heads from crickets, as they stay alive for a day or two, but don't move much - so no food wastage, so if it doesn't get eaten I feed it to another sling. Also, no head = no mouth parts to injure a T when in pre-molt. If I suspect pre-molt I always offer pre-killed to both slings and adults. I only start feeding live prey when the slings reaches a size of 1.5" - 2", I'll occasionally then switch between live and pre-killed as the Ts gains a bit more confidence and doesn't get startled as easily. When they are confident enough in catching live prey-items I always offer live, unless in pre-molt.

lalberts9310 said:

I normally feed my small slings 4 - 5 times a week. More feeding just means faster growing and more frequent molting. And no, it is never safe to leave living prey items in the enclosures, if it's not eaten within 24h, take it out. Also make sure that the slings are not in pre-molt or molting when feeding live prey. Live prey are capable of injuring and killing molting Ts. I like to offer pre-killed and leave it at the mouths of their burrows/tube webs, that way uneaten prey can be easily removed, and you can observe whether the T is eating or not. Small slings gets easily startled by prey items, why I find pre-killed easier, I also never drop prey directly into their burrows. I leave it at the entrance of their burrows. They'll come out when hungry and stumble apon it and scavange on it. I like to remove the heads from crickets, as they stay alive for a day or two, but don't move much - so no food wastage, so if it doesn't get eaten I feed it to another sling. Also, no head = no mouth parts to injure a T when in pre-molt. If I suspect pre-molt I always offer pre-killed to both slings and adults. I only start feeding live prey when the slings reaches a size of 1.5" - 2", I'll occasionally then switch between live and pre-killed as the Ts gains a bit more confidence and doesn't get startled as easily. When they are confident enough in catching live prey-items I always offer live, unless in pre-molt.

Click to expand...

Awesome info. Thx. I find when feeding them the B. Lats, I crush them and drop em in anyway, so I'm glad u said that. I will drop it at the den entrance, and if it's gone, I know it's eaten. If still there, I'll remove it. Now, with something so small
what do I look for to know they're in pre molt?

big abdomen and often appears shiny they will also refuse food and often hide in there burrow.

Rickyo1991 said:

big abdomen and often appears shiny they will also refuse food and often hide in there burrow.

Click to expand...

ok thx. Learning a lot

Large abdomens, that gets dark and shiny (usually you'll be able to see this better from the underside of the abdomen). And if they seal off their burrows and don't come out. They usually sit at the mouth of their burrow or poke their legs out when hungry, if you see webbing covering the entrance and less activity you can almost be sure it's an upcoming molt. Most will refuse food beforehand but I had slings eat pre-killed a day or two before a molt.

lalberts9310 said:

Large abdomens, that gets dark and shiny (usually you'll be able to see this better from the underside of the abdomen). And if they seal off their burrows and don't come out. They usually sit at the mouth of their burrow or poke their legs out when hungry, if you see webbing covering the entrance and less activity you can almost be sure it's an upcoming molt. Most will refuse food beforehand but I had slings eat pre-killed a day or two before a molt.

Click to expand...

Ok thx. I'll have to check even closer from now on. It's hard to see the buggers when they're in their mazes

To reiterate much of what Lolla mentioned;

At that size you should only be feeding one prey item at a time...even small prey is a good meal for them. You don't find definitive answers because their aren't any...feeding schedule can vary greatly depending on the situation. Temps play a role, cooler temps mean less need for more food. You could have 100's of slings and feeding for growth rate isn't a high priority and weekly or even a 10 day schedule will be fine....but most want their slings to grow up quickly and don't have hundreds or even dozens, so they can dote on them a little more and encourage faster growth rates. For instance I keep my room warm, quite warm all winter and feed most slings with faster growth rates (Nhandu and Lasiodora are both big eaters and fast growers) every 2-4 days depending on where they are in their molt cycles.

Regardless their is always a chance they will reach their fill and refuse, so as I get near the molt, I offer pre-kill just because its easier for a sluggish t to catch should it desire, and its easier for me to retrieve should it go uneaten. Both of your species like to eat and often eat almost right up to molting. I've raised a bunch of chromatus, and I always got molt periods in the 24-34 day range until they got to about 3" when they slow. One of my favorite species to raise in bunches to be honest. Lasiodora ain't bad either to raise....lots of food and lots of frequent molting in both cases.

Growing and getting out of the vulnerable spiderling stage ASAP is imperative for survival (in the wild) and their #1 goal in life at this young stage. Se feed as often as you like, because you simply cannot overfeed a sling and certainly not either of the species you inquired about.

I would avoid leaving live food of any kind, aside from maybe a waxworm, in the enclosure with the slings for any extended period of time. There shouldn't be any reason to even chance it, they should eat quickly and if they don't, I will remove the food in 30 minutes, and that may be waiting too long, cause if they want to eat, it won't take too long. You shouldn't need to be putting the prey into their burrows, feed when the sling is at the burrow mouth (that's them saying "feed me"), they will have no issue hunting from the burrow mouth.

Unless they are pre-molt, there should be NO need to pre-kill anything for them, they're natural born killers right from the get go.

Enjoy them Like I even gotta say that.:laugh:

SpiderDad61 said:

Ok thx. I'll have to check even closer from now on. It's hard to see the buggers when they're in their mazes

Click to expand...

It gets easier with practise, at 1st you don't really know what you're looking for, but it gets easier. I also had a hard time at 1st to distinguish the difference between the looks of pre-molt and a T far from molting. When they grow larger (well in NW terrestrials and avicualria) they'll develop a bald spot on the abdomen where urticating bristles are rubbed off, the bald spot will turn almost black and shiny before a molt, then it's easy to tell. But NW aboreals such as psalmopoeus and OWs are quite difficult since they don't develop these bald spots because they have no urticating bristles. And I mainly have experience with those, so I usually look at the underside of the abdomen, and if it gets dark and shiny I know a molt is near.

lalberts9310 said:

When they grow larger (well in NW terrestrials and avicualria) they'll develop a bald spot on the abdomen where urticating bristles are rubbed off, the bald spot will turn almost black and shiny before a molt, then it's easy to tell. But NW aboreals such as psalmopoeus and OWs are quite difficult since they don't develop these bald spots because they have no urticating bristles. And I mainly have experience with those, so I usually look at the underside of the abdomen, and if it gets dark and shiny I know a molt is near.

Click to expand...

The bald spots only come from kicking, which not all adult ts do...Arboreals I find easier to notice by looking at the femurs, as they tend to get that pre-molt shine....Psalms (cambridgei to be precise) I can only tell by looking at the underside of the abdomen, then its obvious.

Thank u both for the info. Much needed.

cold blood said:

The bald spots only come from kicking, which not all adult ts do...Arboreals I find easier to notice by looking at the femurs, as they tend to get that pre-molt shine....Psalms (cambridgei to be precise) I can only tell by looking at the underside of the abdomen, then its obvious.

Click to expand...

I know, that's why I said "rubbed off" :biggrin: