New to inverts!

[el_phantasmo]

Right, I've had a look through the "Beginner" stickies and the awesome care-sheet stickie and just wanted to see what the general consensus was on "first spider" thoughts.

I've kept herps for about 2/3 years now, got 3 royals, 8 corns and a Leo all at various ages.

And my interest in arachnids has been peaked again (It was always a toss-up between snakes and spiders..). I always figured that Chilean Rose would be the best first spider but I've had a couple of very experienced spider keepers to tell me to go for something a little more challenging and interesting.

Now, I'm not saying I want anything old-world, far from it - I prefer the looks of the new world spids, but what is there beyond the normal g.Rosea (That right?) that is suitable for a beginner in reality?

Also - adult or sling? I prefer to get anything from as young as possible, but with slings being so small until a few moults in I was thinking maybe an adults would be best to begin with?

(Did see a nice sub-adult at the weekend whilst I was down south - was told it's easy to keep like the Rose but I can't recall it's common or scientific name for the life of me. A "something" black I think?)

[MartinShuter]

Welcome mate,

This conversation has been had a few times before. I think people advise the rose and others like red knee and maybe pink toes because they are relatively docile and not as defensive as some.

I personally started off with a red knee, moved to king baboon after that and so on.

I suppose any apider is capable of biting you but that depends on how sensible and carefull you are. Are you after an arboreal T or terrestrial T?

[TEENY]

These two are great spiders

Brazilian Black ( G.Pulchra ) Are nice looking spiders, good eaters but grow slow
Salmon Pink ( L.Para) grow fast eat like demons buuuuut get to around 10 inches

oooooooooor if you want docile get an avic of some sort

[el_phantasmo]

Originally Posted by MartinShuter

Welcome mate,

This conversation has been had a few times before. I think people advise the rose and others like red knee and maybe pink toes because they are relatively docile and not as defensive as some.

I personally started off with a red knee, moved to king baboon after that and so on.

I suppose any apider is capable of biting you but that depends on how sensible and carefull you are. Are you after an arboreal T or terrestrial T?

Yup, the inevitable "I'm new!" thread that all the regulars hate.

Most of the sites and threads err towards the Rose, Red Knee and Fire Leg I think (All nice and tbh I may end up with more than just one ... I always said "Only one!" about snakes too ... ).

I think terrestrial for my first, though I have seen some nice pics of arboreal ones but I haven't looked into their care too much.

How sensible and careful am I? Good questions. I'd like to think "Very!" to both, but no doubt some would argue that. Though I've never had any of my snakes strike at me or anything so I figure I'm doing something right ... or at least not overly wrong.

Originally Posted by TEENY

These two are great spiders

Brazilian Black ( G.Pulchra ) Are nice looking spiders, good eaters but grow slow
Salmon Pink ( L.Para) grow fast eat like demons buuuuut get to around 10 inches

oooooooooor if you want docile get an avic of some sort

It might have been the Brazilian Black - I recall being told they're slow growers. Totally pitch black yeah?

10"? Blimey. Hefty spid! Ideally I think the biggest I'd look for in my first would be 5 or 6" I think. (Notice I said "first" as I accept the inevitability in my getting more!)

[invertasnakes]

Originally Posted by el_phantasmo

Yup, the inevitable "I'm new!" thread that all the regulars hate.

Most of the sites and threads err towards the Rose, Red Knee and Fire Leg I think (All nice and tbh I may end up with more than just one ... I always said "Only one!" about snakes too ... ).

I think terrestrial for my first, though I have seen some nice pics of arboreal ones but I haven't looked into their care too much.

How sensible and careful am I? Good questions. I'd like to think "Very!" to both, but no doubt some would argue that. Though I've never had any of my snakes strike at me or anything so I figure I'm doing something right ... or at least not overly wrong.



It might have been the Brazilian Black - I recall being told they're slow growers. Totally pitch black yeah?

10"? Blimey. Hefty spid! Ideally I think the biggest I'd look for in my first would be 5 or 6" I think. (Notice I said "first" as I accept the inevitability in my getting more!)

You won't get flamed here mate, its not the snake section

I think for me the general rule of thumb is all T's regardless of their "known" temperament are for display purposes only. With that i mind theres no real reason why you couldn't go for a H.lividum (cobalt blue) as a first T. Known to be aggressive and defensive, but the only occasion you'd ever have to get close is to feed and pull out a moult maybe, all of which can be done with a set of small feeding tongs.
Personally a big reason why people tend to advise rosies and red legs is down to the fact that they are relatively easy to keep, pretty hardy etc.

As long as you do your home work on perfect conditions for your chosen T, eg. temps, humitidty, substrate requirements you should be fine with anything.

[gazzab1990]

Personally I think Avics might not be the best first spiders because of they're humidity requirements. I got a Rosie for my first but she's pretty defensive and strickes at anything that touches the floor.

There are a few Euathlus Sp. at The Spider Shop which are really well priced, apparantly very docile, attractive, and grow to only a reasonable size so a massive expensive tank wouldn't be neccessary.

Other than that, Smithis are usually a safe bet, if a bit on the expensive side

[TEENY]

Originally Posted by el_phantasmo

It might have been the Brazilian Black - I recall being told they're slow growers. Totally pitch black yeah?

10"? Blimey. Hefty spid! Ideally I think the biggest I'd look for in my first would be 5 or 6" I think. (Notice I said "first" as I accept the inevitability in my getting more!)

Yus they are pitch black so could well be the one. Salmon Pinks are only for people who have space for a 2-3 ft set up lol

How about a curly hair ???
They are easy to keep, grow at a reasonable rate, eat well and are pretty docile

[SpiderFreek]

I'd go with anything from the Brachypelma genus for a first tarantula

-Matt

[spicewwfc]

As long as you do your research and, know what you are getting yourself into then I cant see why you cant get any T you like, maybe not a p ornata or a h mac, but there is no reason you cant get a more intermediate T like an n chromatus, or a psalmopoeus sp of some kind.

I see a lot of people saying that avic's are not good for beginners because of their humidity requirements , but I think they are perfect if you want something different, they dont flick hairs, dont bite, and are sooo cute.
As long as the tank is well ventilated and you mist every few days then, there wont be a problem.

If you want a terrestrial as your first spider, and something a little different then I would recommend:
g pulchra (Brazilian Black)
g pulchripes (Chaco Golden Knee)
a geniculata (Giant White Knee)
l parahybana (Salmon Pink)
c cyaneopubescens (Green Bottle Blue)

to the addiction.

[el_phantasmo]

Originally Posted by invertasnakes

You won't get flamed here mate, its not the snake section

I think for me the general rule of thumb is all T's regardless of their "known" temperament are for display purposes only. With that i mind theres no real reason why you couldn't go for a H.lividum (cobalt blue) as a first T. Known to be aggressive and defensive, but the only occasion you'd ever have to get close is to feed and pull out a moult maybe, all of which can be done with a set of small feeding tongs.
Personally a big reason why people tend to advise rosies and red legs is down to the fact that they are relatively easy to keep, pretty hardy etc.

As long as you do your home work on perfect conditions for your chosen T, eg. temps, humitidty, substrate requirements you should be fine with anything.

I always like to do plenty of research before I think about making a purchase. Not a fan of those kind of people who get something and the question what it's diet is, or what kind of habitat it needs. Always research first - thats my mantra!

Originally Posted by gazzab1990

Personally I think Avics might not be the best first spiders because of they're humidity requirements. I got a Rosie for my first but she's pretty defensive and strickes at anything that touches the floor.

There are a few Euathlus Sp. at The Spider Shop which are really well priced, apparantly very docile, attractive, and grow to only a reasonable size so a massive expensive tank wouldn't be neccessary.

Other than that, Smithis are usually a safe bet, if a bit on the expensive side

I shall have a looksie at your suggestions - cheers! See what kind of shopping list and wishlist I can create. Meant to be going to the states in April ... I can see me just not spending anything while I'm there so I can get Ts when I return!

Originally Posted by TEENY

Yus they are pitch black so could well be the one. Salmon Pinks are only for people who have space for a 2-3 ft set up lol

How about a curly hair ???
They are easy to keep, grow at a reasonable rate, eat well and are pretty docile

Must be them. I google-fu'ed at lunch and I'm pretty certain it was. Tempting!

Curly hair? They the ones that look like a ball of pubes? I may take a gander, think the curlyness of 'em may put me off on a purely aesthetic reaction, but ya never know!

Originally Posted by SpiderFreek

I'd go with anything from the Brachypelma genus for a first tarantula

-Matt

Duly noted and added to my list of stuff to research! Cheers!

Originally Posted by spicewwfc

As long as you do your research and, know what you are getting yourself into then I cant see why you cant get any T you like, maybe not a p ornata or a h mac, but there is no reason you cant get a more intermediate T like an n chromatus, or a psalmopoeus sp of some kind.

I see a lot of people saying that avic's are not good for beginners because of their humidity requirements , but I think they are perfect if you want something different, they dont flick hairs, dont bite, and are sooo cute.
As long as the tank is well ventilated and you mist every few days then, there wont be a problem.

If you want a terrestrial as your first spider, and something a little different then I would recommend:
g pulchra (Brazilian Black)
g pulchripes (Chaco Golden Knee)
a geniculata (Giant White Knee)
l parahybana (Salmon Pink)
c cyaneopubescens (Green Bottle Blue)

to the addiction.

The Brazilian Black and the White Knee are ones I've checked pics of - must admit they're quite likely first purchases.

I shall research more and have a look at whats around at the moment!