Official weblog of the world's cutest Chaco Golden Knee tarantula  
 
 
     
 

Happy Labor Day!

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2015   |   POSTED BY MICAH GARTMAN

 
     
 

It has been a long, hot, stagnant summer for everyone in southeast Texas. El Niño has provided us with long bouts of humidity and heat intertwined with torrential downpours and flash flooding. Perfect weather for South American tarantulas!

Actually, Sydney Sue is most comfortable with the A/C set at 78° and her ceiling fan spinning on low. She is not a fan of the Texas heat.

In July, her prized burrow collapsed when she removed too much dirt from beneath her water bowl. After three days of brooding atop her flattened lair, I replaced the water bowl with a piece of plastic tubing. The tube has become her de facto hiding spot when I open the lid to her condo.

We were able to coax Sydney Sue from the tube this morning for a physical exam and a few pics for the family photo album. Judging by her timid demeanor and the dark color of her opisthosoma, it appears as if she is in pre-molt. Here she is in all her soon-to-get-much-bigger glory:

 

 

 

     
   
     
   
     
   
     
   
     
 

Look at those stripes!!!

Last weekend Diane and I attended the Repticon Convention in Pasadena, TX. This is the same event where we purchased Sydney Sue last year. Our goal was to find a tube of cork bark that Sydney Sue can use as a hiding spot in her soon-to-be new home. We expect her to outgrow her current home after her next molt. We also found her a new condo—complete with tinted windows and lots of ventilation. It even has a sunroof!

 

 

 

     
   
     
   
     
   
     
 

With all of the changes, trials and tribulations the summer has brought us all, let's look forward to the health, happiness and giant spiders the fall has in store for us.

Na zdravje!!!

 

 

 

     
 
 
     
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