So we are now the proud owners of a chile rose... she arrived yesterday and has promptly plonked herself in her waterdish... which is a shallow shell... have been told to give water by soaking a sponge or cotton wool but then also been told thats not the way to do it at all... so help! Have upped the humidity and the temp is at 71 is this ok?? She is in and out of the water but this is not something i expected her to do at all.....
Sorry if I seem a bit vague, but we all gotta learn somewhen... and this is new to me... dogs I know upside down and inside out but I'm just a worried new mom!

Thanks

haha no worries mate.
she's probably doing that cause she's a bit dehydrated.
make sure she has plenty to drink, and if it seems that she hovers around her water dish all the time in the coming weeks, you can seal off some of the airholes with cling film to decrease ventilation.

i would personally advice not to use cotton or kitchen roll. this is a breeding ground for bacteria. unless she's very small (i'm talking under 2 inches), she will do fine with a shallow water dish just filled normally. you can use the lid of a jar or a bottle cap. if she's smaller, just spray some water down the side for her to drink at her leisure

in general humidity is not a huge concern for adult G roseas. they inhabit fairly dry areas, so she'll do fine if all you do is add a water dish and fill it til it overflows somewhat. like i said, if she hovers by it all the time, you can seal off the airvents to prevent evaporation.

also, she'll get alot of moisture from prey, so she'll probably feel better after a feed.

if she doesn't feed, don't panic...G roseas go off food for months sometimes! if she looks healthy and is active, she's fine. just keep trying on a weekly basis...
if she's in a moult cycle and you can tell, be a little more vigilant with the crickets, as they can attack a moulting spider.
in general, if food is still walking around after 24 hours, remove it and try again in a week, barring an actual moult, where you should leave her be without food for at least a week or longer.

just a few bits i've gleaned from other helpful souls over the years since i first got my two G roseas! hope it helps


hope that helps!

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Black Metal contra mundum

Thankyou... (huge sigh of relief!)
Just want to make sure I'm doing things right... I know from having other animals (dogs, chickens, ferrets etc) over the years that they teach you a lot if you take notice...

it's so true!
the fun with tarantulas is you never stop learning...and over time, you'll get a feel for what works with your spider
nice to have a bit of a leg up at the start, though.
G rosea's are very hardy, and yours will probably flourish despite any minor mistakes at the beginning!

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Black Metal contra mundum