So with roseas you going to have a nice time worrying about them mine fasts at months at a time, heard some that fast for more than a year but still perfectly healthy. Don't worry too much about it they seem to know what they doing, just try popping a roach or cricket in every 2 weeks until it takes it. O and theyr extremely slow growers, I got mine 2 years ago as a juvie, nearly adult and I still dont think shes fully grown don't worry about it You can try this if you want, it was getting a bit cold lately and I don't usually use heat pads, but put a heat pad up against her cage, temp got to about 28-30 during the day and I tried to feed it a roach and she took it. You can try it, might not work

My chilean hasn't eaten since november last year and the last time it molted was last year August. They are tough and you shouldn't really worry if conditions are right then there is no reason for there to be a problem

Scarab wrote: NOBODY says is better than Uncle Stanley... READ HERE ...

"Uncle Stanley," eh? :woohoo:

Scarab wrote: ... Come back if you have more questions...

From the tone of shawn ds' posting, reading Stan's Rant might also be a good idea.

Pay particular attention to reading the four recommended books. NOTE THAT I DIDN'T TELL YOU TO GO OUT AND BUY THEM! (Although that's clearly an option.) One or two of the titles should be available off the shelf at your friendly, neighborhood, public library. The library should be able to order the others through something like an Interlibrary Loan System.

Don't order them from the library all at the same time! It's far too much reading to swallow all at once. If you can, get them and read them in the order they are listed, but don't obsess about this too much.

The common misconception presented by pet shops and hobbyists alike is that tarantulas are as easy to keep as plastic philodendrons, and to some extent they're correct. But, if you really want to get to know these fascinating creatures, you need to do a lot of research, and beginning with those four books is the surest, if not the easiest route to take. And, trust me, there's a lot to know about these bizarre creatures!

Once you get those books under your belt you'll have a firm foundation for understanding, and in many cases passing judgement, on what other hobbyists are talking about on these forums.

Lastly, has anyone told you of the tarantula enthusiast's lament?

LIKE THOSE POTATO CHIPS, YOU CAN'T HAVE JUST ONE!

You've been warned! :laugh:

By the way, what spider is that in your avatar?

@ Caret - an OBT perhaps???

it is an obt

i bought it and 2 other t's from a pet store about 2.5 years ago. they had a "special". 1 curly, 1 chilean and the obt for R120. all slings. all i can say is wow! compared to the other 2 the obt was in a category all to its self!! it grew 10 times faster than the curly and 20 times faster than the chilean. also when it came out from inside the web, much prettier in my opinion. it was about 6 months old in this pic.

for some reason (probably my fault) it moulted and then didn't or couldn't exit its cocoon. i knew it was not to be handled so i left it for a week or so before checking if it was alive. it looked as if it had died a day or so before. the pet shop has since closed but i must say that i quite miss that obt monster. i didn't take enough pics of it in hind sight.

i think that once i become more experienced in the art of keeping T's i will get my hands on another.. with a permit i no doubt.