Tarantula Feeding & Care Beginner Guide — Species Selection, Feeding & Handling

Feeding captive tarantulas requires understanding their natural diet, prey preferences, and feeding schedules. While tarantulas are fearsome predators, feeding them humanely is essential for keeper ethics. This comprehensive guide covers prey selection, feeding techniques, and nutritional considerations.

Natural Prey Items

In nature, tarantulas eat insects and small vertebrates. Crickets and grasshoppers are primary prey. Roaches, beetles, spiders, and small vertebrates supplement diets.

Captive tarantulas thrive on similar prey. Variety ensures nutritional completeness.

Cricket Selection

Crickets are the most common prey. House crickets (Acheta domestica) are easiest to maintain. They're available commercially and breeding them is straightforward.

Cricket size should match tarantula size. A general rule: prey should be about 1/3 to 1/2 the tarantula's leg span. Too large prey risks injuring the tarantula.

Roaches as Prey

Dubia roaches are nutritious and commonly kept for tarantula feeding. They reproduce readily and provide sustainable prey. Breeding your own roaches reduces costs.

Traditional roaches like German roaches are less suitable due to ability to escape and infest the home.

Locusts and Grasshoppers

These provide variety and different nutritional profiles. Grasshoppers have higher calcium content. Their larger size makes them suitable for adult tarantulas.

Small Fish and Vertebrates

Small fish, tadpoles, and small lizards supplement some tarantulas' diets. Feeding vertebrates is more ethically complex and should only occur if the tarantula naturally seeks them.

Nutritional Balance

Different prey offer varying nutrition. Varied diet ensures complete nutrition. Cricket-only diets may lead to calcium deficiency. Roaches and insects with exoskeletons provide better calcium.

Occasional vertebrate prey supplements nutrients but isn't essential.