Caribena versicolor care

[scarletsnow]

Hi y'all. I'm very very new to the world of tarantulas. I've been doing reading/research for a little over a year before finally picking one up. I went with a sub adult (I think? I forgot to ask) caribena versicolor. I was told she recently molted and it went really well. I did just do some reading for one of the more popular posts on here about how to care for her. She is in an arboreal container with coconut fiber substrate, a chunk of soft wood from the shop, a cap with water. I still need to add leaves. No misting. Where I am it gets stupid humid in the summer so I'm not worried about that part regardless.
I moved her in yesterday after some very gentle coaxing with the softest cosmetic brush that I own. I'm currently keeping my bedroom around 70°. But this is not sustainable long-term as I tend to be a fairly toasty person. Would it be okay to place her enclosure in a larger glass tank with a heating pad attached to the inside of the glass tank to add some warmth for her? I found a thermostat controlled heating pad. I don't want to directly apply the heading pad to the acrylic enclosure for obvious reasons. The larger tank is wide so it hopefully wouldn't obstruct the cross airflow.

Another question is a bioactive terrarium. I live in eastern Pennsylvania and was curious about adding some moss from some of my hikes. I know it would need to be cleaned. But even after cleaning is that a safe choice for the tank? I found a glass one with two mesh side panels for a lot of air flow. This is the link to the tank. Https://a.co/d/9mYVRSQ

is it safe to try to feed her today or tomorrow? She hasn't started spinning yet but I'm assuming that she's acclimating and it will take her a week or two to start.

for all the research I've done, I suddenly feel like a new parent who's forgotten half what they learned in child classes. I'm not touching her or really going near the enclosure. I'm assuming that she's better left alone while she settles in.

thanks y'all!

 

[fcat]

I'm at work so my responses will be a little short, sorry, but welcome to the boards.

I think that glass enclosure is way too big, but could be doable with enough water dishes, hides, and thoughtfully placed feeders. And if you cover the mesh so your T can't get stuck on it. Makes it an expensive frankenclosure.

You anticipate chilling your room below 70? To what? And for how long? At 70 I wouldn't use a heat pad.

Not an expert but moss needs a lot of moisture and usually a freeze to thrive. Don't put plants in that have different requirements than your T.

Happy avics are not on the ground. I leave one down there for 911 emergencies (so they can find water if they are sick or injured before I can get to them).

I keep my female versicolor in a 12x12x18 with 4 or 5 different hides!! 3 water dishes, and dry substrate (I overflow all three dishes but it dries within a day or two, I live in the desert)

 

[scarletsnow]

I keep my female versicolor in a 12x12x18 with 4 or 5 different hides!! 3 water dishes, and dry substrate (I overflow all three dishes but it dries within a day or two, I live in the desert)
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12x12x18 at full grown? Excellent! I know I know don't read the papers. I ignored the misting and focused on good air flow and available hydration. But I kept reading that the enclosure needs to be at least 3x their size. But hey if I don't that's awesome! My girl is currently in a 4x4x8 enclosure. I've got the bark propped up bit still haven't added foliage. I've been afraid to overcrowd but it sounds like a little more filler might not be the worst thing. Her water dish is on the floor. I wasn't sure how to fix one up higher in her current space.
I usually keep my room about 60-62 at night Even in the summer. But that's not warm enough for her. That's why I wanted to put her current container in another one so there wouldn't be direct heat to her enclosure but still keep the ambient temperature high enough for her to be comfortable. She wouldn't come in direct contact with the larger tank. The bigger tank is open on top and wide so it shouldn't restrict air flow.
Thought I knew enough but I'm realizing there's so much that I never thought to ask about. of course if there's ever doubt that I can give her the most excellent care and quality of life I will ensure that she is placed with someone with a lot of experience and knowledge.

Also thank you so much for replying!

 

[fcat]

They can be tricky to keep but I believe you are most likely out of the fragile stage and will probably see adult colors next molt. I put my girl in that enclosure as her forever home, she was only 3 inches at the time but I door dashed every meal, and still water her webbing about once a week, she drinks from it every time I do! I don't trust any of mine to use a water dish. Any species lol. At those proportions, I considered it risky... One of those things I would take on with great planning and oversight but maybe not recommend to anyone else. One example is the feeding. You really shouldn't tong feed tarantulas because they can get injured so bad they can't eat. You can plan all you want but you can't choose where your T is going to set up shop. Remember I water them too...there has to be webbing to water, and there has to be a settled or happy enough T to web. Food went there too.

I have a male that came in a 8x8x12 and I never moved him out of it. He's the largest male I've owned (over 5") and I gotta say I wouldn't go any smaller. But with a male, I wouldn't go any larger because once they mature it's just more space for them to traverse and blow through their time left. A majority of my males have matured under/around 4 inches, closer to 3 actually lol. Am I a slumlord? Maybe, but I try to keep my boys alive and well long enough to meet a girl somewhere and start a family. It's also much easier to monitor them in a smaller enclosure.

Nothing wrong with rehousing as they grow either, they can rebuild their palace and more in mere days.

Edit: never answered your question about feeding. I usually do my rehouses with a cricket in fangs, unless they just came out of a shipping box. Just pull the food after a day of not interested and don't be surprised if not.

 

[scarletsnow]

Thank you so much for everything.i was going to offer food today. So far she hasn't webbed. But now that I think about it, the enclosure she was in when I got her was pretty big and she seemed to be thriving. The person who was caring for her really seemed to love on her a lot. Normally I'm against pet store buys but I asked a lot of questions. They told me where she's from (captive bred), what she likes to eat, her temperament.

Before she settles in too much should I just get a bigger enclosure? Or let her settle in for a few more molts before setting her up in her forever home?

 

[viper69]

Don’t let it settle for a few months.

how would you like being moved every so often?

If you never owned an Avic read my link in sig file, come back with specific questions if you have them.

 

[scarletsnow]

I'll start off with thanking you both for your response and also for your post. I read it before I picked her up. Many people referenced it and I was super grateful for that. I misunderstood the sizing for her enclosure and I couldn't bring her home in the one she was in. That's why she's in the one I have now. I don't have the full size one. I read some things about making sure her enclosure wasn't too big and since she's only about 2 in, I figured a 12x12x18 enclosure might be too much for her right now. I found an enclosure that I want. I just have to have my husband modify it because there are mesh panels. He has access to thin plexiglass at his job and can drill the correct size and amount of holes to provide good air flow.

You're right. I wouldn't want to move every few months. I'll be honest, I'm kind of feeling like an idiot because I have been reading for over a year, but for whatever reason my search has never brought me to this message board up until the last week and a half. I'm sure even the research I've done isn't enough. I tried to follow the important things. Proper air flow, water dish instead of soaked substrate, warm comfortable environment with no direct sunlight or extra bright room. Chose my bedroom because other than sleep I'm never in there. I'm not even sleeping in there for the first week to try to reduce stress on her. I'm going to convert my oversized bookshelf into a tarantula cabinet so I can open my bedroom curtains if I need to without having to worry about disturbing her too much. I can drill extra holes along the back and sides to make sure there's enough air flow from all sides. I didn't get a sling for the first one (for the same reason I refuse to get kittens). Don't handle her more than absolutely necessary. (That one is easy enough because I too do not like to be touched so it's an easy boundary for me to respect) no tong feeding.
I guess the biggest thing was not knowing about the tank size. I figured she could live in this one, get a molt or two in, wait for her body to heal and strengthen, and when it's time to do a full cleaning anyways, take that opportunity to move her into her final house.

I'm going to do everything to not be that person that shows up in a couple weeks crying about a dead spider.