little? he huge! google everything - to find out what to feed him etc...

The markings on its abdomen are really cute

"Cute"

I don't I'd describe that thing as "cute" ;s

Don't *think* I'd describe that thing as "cute" ;s

Fortunately, my watchers have the same appreciation for all life as I do, while common people get snarky and/or insulting about it. If you don't like the look of my pet, just don't say anything at all. Cat, dog, bird, tarantula or cockroach -- a pet is exactly that, and it's rude to purposefully make a comment like this about someone's PET. I won't tolerate it.

s/he's beautiful!!! :D

ah here's a pic. Im a derp. I can post this on my FB and have you an answer by the end of the day. ;)

oh awesome <3 Thank you!

I'm betting on h. minax

Nope. It's a Vietnamese Earth Tiger

also known as
Haplopelma vonwirthi


aggressive buggers who like to burrow and you NEVER see them again. We have one. She and my other Haplopelma have dug a tunnel and I havent seen them in over a year. =/

Totally called it an Earth Tiger last night on twitter lol.

Woot! I swear I would have recalled it faster if I was half awake and if ours showed itself more often. I half ass forgot what she looked like.

When I saw it's butt spots I instantly thought of the Sun Tiger and knew there were other lesser colored ones like it. :3

This is a pic of ours

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/7234667/

atleast that's what I -think- it is. Ill ask around just to be sure. If you google that the photos that come up look just like it.

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/gal.....mageuser=55419

ohh wow<3 s/hes is absolutely gorgeous ;;
once you find out what kind this bby is you gotta tell me! I'd love to get one, and i was looking to get a reptile this summer but if i can convince my gfs dad i'd rather get one of these....

annd yep. This is ours when we first got her ((before I moved her onto better substrate))

Very similar.

http://www.furaffinity.net/full/5431470/

Ill stop spamming up your comments now. lol

...wellll, shit. :I
Maybe the pet store will let me trade it in for the ACTUAL birdeater they have :S I already have one old world and just having one in the house is enough to keep many of my friends and family from visiting me. :C I've never returned a pet in my life.

Yeah the old words tend to be more on the cranky side. Especially the ones with the words 'tiger' or 'baboon' in their names. I wish you lived closer. We have young salmon pink bird eaters Id probably trade you one for her so she wouldn't go back to the petstore.

I don't have the conscience to do it, I'll try to find a home for it later and just see how aggressive it turns out to be... I know sometimes it can depend on the individual. It might be just stress but s/he seems very laid back and slow (the guy who took her out for me actually slipped and s/he was running all around on his shirt, but she didn't seem all that fast... he was so sweaty though. lol)

They sold you a Haplopelma as a bird eater? *sigh* Pet stores are always calling ANY tarantula a "bird eater" sad it bugs me so much. If you want a technically bird eater you'll want a Theraphosa blondi, those are what people originally called bird eaters. Ask them for the scientific name and if they can't give it to you then they have no business selling tarantulas.

Haplopelmas are only aggressive if they are kept wrong. If you keep him/her in a tank that has at least 20 cm of Substrate, rather more, and pre dig him a straight tunnel e.g. with a broomstick (best near a side so you can take a look in the tunnel when your spider's hiding in there) he/she should be totally fine!
In German, there's a word for terraria specially designed for Haplopelma and other tunnel inhabiting spiders: a Haplo-Tank. Here are some example pictures:
http://myspiders.files.wordpress.co.....omtata-004.jpg
http://www.abload.de/img/haplovhu.jpg

You can easy build one yourself :) It is necessary that there are drainage holes at the front bottom of the tank, so you can provide the necessary humidity in the ground while not drowning the spider ^^ You can place such a tank in a bucket of water for an hour or so and then take it out. Excess water will drain out of the holes at the front bottom of the tank. Usually the spider can stay inside the tank while watering (because her hairs protect her from the water), but if you assemble a new terrarium, you can just put her in after you watered the ground. The substrate should be humid enough after doing this for at least half a year, so no additional watering will be required.
I can provide you a .pdf with building instructions for a haplo-tank, if you want. It is only in German, but there are pictures that explain pretty well how it works. And if there are any questions, feel free to leave me a note :3
http://www.dearge.de/arachne/doc/leseprobe.pdf
The instructions begin on page 8. They used a box where you usually store cereals or noodles in. It measures 18,5 cm (lenght) x 10,5 cm (width) x 22,5 cm (height).

Oh, if the measurements are too small for your spider, you sure can use a bigger box for it (or if you have the possibilities, you could build a proper glass terrarium for your Haplopelma).

I dont think mine are kept wrong, but they are down in their tunnels and I'm not about to attempt to dig them out. OBTs also tend to be on the cranky side. More than any of our others. I dont recommend holding any of these guys.

It sure is not easy to keep such cranky spiders. I would rather don't recommend them for beginners, too.

Agreed!

What happens if they bite you? I was under the impression that tarantulas were not venomous. But maybe thats only certain kinds. I have no clue about these guys. Does it just suck? Also what is the appeal of owning a pet that you can not handle? In no way am I judging, just trying to understand. I like to hold all my fuzzies and crawlies. XD

All tarantulas, spiders, scorpions have venom. Some are just less likely to bite you than others. With these guys I've heard can be mainly flu like symptoms for about a week. Others are just like bee stings.

also you cannot hold fish either, yet alot of people have them. ;)

Ew, No thx flu. Thats a strange reaction to venom...

Touche on the fish. Lots of people -do- have those. But not me. XD
Do you feed your birdeaters birds? Or is that just a name? They sound menacing! I know that I've seen spiders eat birds, but they can't start out that big!
I feel like all of my questions are stupid or really obvious. Especially in a place where almost everyone here knows more about them than I do. lol

Flu as in...sore and achey for about a week.

Bird eaters eat crickets and every once in a while mice.

So I guess -for me personally- they have a rather calming effect like fish do for some people. I love to watch them eat and web their enclosures. I love how many different ones there are. We have so many and I keep finding others I want to add to our collection.

Like I said on Twitter, I'm sorry she's not what you want! I adore mine (sold to me as "Haplopelma spp. Black", but likely H. vonwirthi as well), whereas a T.blondi is something I never want to have to deal with. Heh. Shame you're across the country: like serotonin, I'd happily trade for her.

Whatever it is, enjoy your new pet hole.

Oh man this tarantula is absolutely gorgeous! I love the strips on its abdomen. c:

lovely <3

arachnids are quite the amazing critters.

I have considered having a emperor scorpion

Spiders are awesome.

So from what I gather if you try to touch that velvety looking butt it will bite you. Shame, it looks so velvety...