My Pet Chilean Rose

Looks like its another #spiderday here I introduce you to my pet Chilean Rose Tarantula.

She is pretty large almost as big as your hand.

We take her out on walks sometimes. They are very gentile spiders that don't typically bite.

The key to handling them is to let them go at their own pace to feel things out. If you are too quick with them they might think you are prey.

Also these large spiders need to be handled close to the ground, if they happen to fall their weight will cause them to splat if they fall from a high enough level.

She is the same species of spider they used in the movie Home Alone where it lands on the burgler's face.

They only look scary but are quite friendly. Their large hairs help them differentiate prey from larger things. So to them a hand is something they wouldn't even try and bite because it is too large.

Her eyesight is terrible but all these hairs help her sense vibrations in the ground and her surrounding turning her whole body into a sensor for predators and prey. The tiny eyes are only good for differentiating if it is light or dark outside.

Here she is on top of her coconut house.

You can kind of get a sense of scale compared to how large a coconut is.

I finally caught a good photo of her rose hair color. They are copper looking at certain angles especially after a molt.

Here is her molt. They may look heavy but these molts are paper thin and light as a feather.

Here is the lid they first push off during their molting process right above their eyes.

Once they pop off the lid they usually turn upside down then squeeze out of their exoskeleton.

After that they sit still to harden their new exoskeleton.

Overall she is an easy pet, and she will live up to 30 years so if you want one be prepared for a long haul. Happy #spiderday :-)