[HighlandYorkies]

Originally Posted by jp4m2

We only have one in our home, it was going to be discarded by someone so we took it, I really didn't expect it to survive long since we had never owned one before, but here we are 5 yrs later & he's still here...

A couple of years ago we thought he was lonely and he needed a friend, so we bought one for him...the next day he was all alone again .....I don't think he'll be getting another friend....

What were you thinking of ? Poor thing !
Do you know what kind of spider it is ? If not, tell me the colour or post a pic.
There are very few - almost none - Tarantulas that you can keep together.

Even when you mate the correct species together, you feed them as much as they will take - the female especially, and only then introduce them, and have tongs ready, because she will kill him before or deffo after mating unless you get him out of there quick ! You never put different species together to mate - this is completly frowned upon, as it ruins the species left, and we are trying to save them from extinction.
I am glad you saved the poor thing, but you should go on my hubby's forum on The Tarantula Store....google it, and ask some questions about your spider. They will help you lots - my hubby is Highlander (Kenny)....even if you haven't much clue, they will teach you loads, and it's people like you who have one already who can pass on info to others.

By the way, if it is fully grown....it's a female you have - and are very lucky to have one !
Males only live for a year or two while they moult and mature and grow....after their last shedding into adulthood, they slowly die. You only have a short time to mate them if that is what you are going to do.
If your spider is that old I would assume it was a female - but I would love to know what kind, as she may be sought after for breeding if she is rare. Also she could be worth up to $300 if sought after.
You can earn very good money(thousands/hundereds per egg sac) for a successful egg sac and spiderlings of rare or popular breeds....but breeding is very hard to achieve.
Females can live up to 15 years or more depending on breed.

Well done you for saving your tarantula !
Debra x x x x