Bob (Grammostola rosea)

I bought Bob from a local pet shop on 02/09/2000. He molted into a mature male on 08/31/2000, and was sent off for breeding on 09/25/2000. The common name for this species is Chilean Rose Hair.

Quick stats:
Name: Bob
Species: Grammostola rosea
Sex: Mature male
Size (approx): 5½" legspan
Enclosure: 5.5 Gallon aquarium
Substrate: 4-5" deep peat/bed-a-beast
Furnishings: Cork bark shelter, terra cotta water dish
Purchased on: 02/09/2000

Bob's photo album

Species Information:
Grammostola rosea is possibly the most common tarantula in the hobby right now. They are captured from the wild and sold at pet stores at very cheap prices. The come in a couple different color morphs; Bob happens to be the less interesting brown/copper colored one.

  Bob, about to be shipped
Bob, right before he got shipped out.

Feeding:
He'll eat just about whatever I give him. He's an adult male now, so he doesn't need much. He does a cool dance after he eats. He sometimes goes on long, unexplainable fasts. 		  Crickets! Mmmmm, tasty!
"C" is for crickets, and that's good enough for me.

Housing:
He lives in a 5.5 gallon aquarium with a cork bark shelter and about 4-5" of substrate. The top is a screened lid with the screen replaced with plastic with holes melted in it. He got his claws stuck in the screen a couple times his first night in the cage, so I replaced that pretty quickly.

I keep his mostly dry. About 50% humidity give or take is fine for this species. They're tough as nails, so they're not really critical about it. If it gets too high, he starts climbing the walls though. The subtrate is left mostly dry, and a water dish is provided. Any moisture in the substrate is provided by very infreqent mistings and semi-intentional overfilling of the water dish. The temp is about 80-84°F for the whole spider room.

Temperment:
He's tame, and I've handled him, but he's spunkier that what I've heard is typical of this species. He tends to explore if he is taken out of the cage.

Molting:
 Date  Old LS  New LS 
 08/31/2000  4½"?  5½"? 
  - Notes: Mature male!

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