Obsidian Spineless Sanctuary and Rescue - OSS

28/05/2022

Story time!

Disclaimer: I am not a breeder and have not mated this spider.

Awhile back, when leaving my aunt's house after assisting her post-shoulder replacement, Lagretha here was found in the garage. As I knew she wouldn't be long for this world if left in that urban environment (not many people are fans of large wolf spiders), I brought her home with me to set her up in a habitat where she would be well cared for, and wouldn't have to worry about food/drink ever again. Knowing that she was a mature female, I knew there was a chance she would be gravid. Turns out, she was. After carrying around an egg sac for some time, she now has her own family on her back. Once they have matured a bit and leave their mother, I will be collecting them and placing them in the wild, so they can live out their lives the way nature intends. So, everyone enjoy the picture of this proud mama as she carries her babies into the future!

22/05/2022

Due to a couple recent trips, I have been more focused on taking care of the babies while I am home than producing content or updates for the page. I will be back in town shortly and will try to get some updates rolled out for everyone on how all the babies are doing. Thank you for your patience during this hectic time!

-Nathanial

12/05/2022

It's Threat Pose Thursday! Okay, so that's not a regular thing here, obviously. These babies have never really thrown a threat pose at me, and still haven't. So, when this little one from the Orion Communal (Monocentropus balfori) kept throwing this cute little threat poses as the crickets, I absolutely had to get some pictures!

Note: Overlook my brother in background, he was enjoying watching them hunt, too.

27/04/2022

A very important discussion to have!

27/04/2022

Enjoy the update on the Orion communal! These babies have been very busy laying down some absolutely gorgeous webbing. Couldn't be happier to see them thriving and doing well! I will be continuing to update on tiktok, so feel free to follow that account!

Update on the Orion communal webwork

26/04/2022

Enjoy one of our new residents, Fawkes!

Fawkes, the Stromatopelma calceatum, or Feather Leg Baboon.

20/04/2022

Short feed video with Lagretha. Be sure to follow on tiktok as I will be posting videos there a fair bit!

Feeding Lagretha, the Hogna carolinensis, or Carolina Wolf Spider

14/04/2022

Transferring Blue to their (I use neutral pronouns until they are old enough to determine s*x) home. It went so much easier than I anticipated it would, as Blue spent considerable time yesterday attempting to run away and not cooperate. That said, let's do a little educational block here!

Blue is a young Caribena versicolor, or Antilles Pink Toe. For those of you who are unfamiliar with tarantulas, it is more common to use their scientific name than their common name. I will try to use both whenever possible (some have no common name).

Blue is a new world arboreal tarantula. This means they prefer to have places to climb rather than spending time on the ground or in an underground burrow. They are entirely beautiful, as you can see! Their diet will consist primarily of crickets and small worms until they get bigger when they will also be a big fan of roaches.

14/04/2022

Recently I was contacted by a spood care taker who was no longer going to be able to take care of their spoods. The reasons are irrelevant, as the only thing that truly matters is that this person wanted to ensure that their babies were cared for. So, yesterday, with the assistance of my brother, William Mullins (an arachnophobic person, but is working his way through it by assisting with the mission here), we made the 15 hour round trip to pick up these sweet babies.

Things went relatively smoothly. Marty, an adult female Aphonopelma seemanni (Costa Rican Zebra) was housed in a manner which was safe for transport, but I did have to transfer Shortcake, an adult female Avicularia avicularia (Guyana Pink Toe), and Blue, a spiderling Caribena versicolor (Antilles Pink Toe) into temporary travel habs for safe transportation back to the sanctuary. Everyone is now all settled in and good to go!

Yes, I know the pictures are a little rough, but I spent more time concerned about ensuring their safety than taking pictures. And, quite frankly, spoods who have been traveling for awhile and are irritated are often difficult to get good pictures of. So, here are the babies, as they are. I will work on updates in the near future, and some better pictures for everyone!

Bonus: in just a bit, I will be posting a rehousing video of one of these sweet 8 legged babies.

10/04/2022

So, I have been asked a time or two if I sell tarantulas or if I breed this species or that species. I would like to clarify here that I am not a breeder, and I am not a purveyor of tarantulas. That is not what this organization is about. I am here to care for my invertebrate companions, and to help those who aren't able to help themselves. When someone can no longer care for their babies, that's what I am here for. To ensure they have a happy, healthy life to the best of my abilities.

28/02/2022

Well, story time, and one of my weirdest rehousings, yet. This is Dhahabu. Dhahabu is an Aphonopelma seemanni, or Costa Rican Zebra Tarantula. Since this baby molted recently, they have been digging/excavating more, and got to the point that the old hab was filled all the way to the lid, making feeding and watering a little difficult. No biggie, I have plenty of habs ready to go. Since I can't sleep anyway, might as well do a rehousing. After a bit more research into the flooding method, I decide to do that, since they are fossorial, stay at the bottom of a tunnel, and can be a little feisty. So, get the new hab set up, little cork bark hide with a nice little depression under it to start a burrow, water dish, we're all happy. Time to move from one house to the next. Have my catch cup (thankfully), my little paintbrush, and my water sprayer. New hab is about twice the size of the old one, so I just set the new one down in there. Start adding water. Everything is going great! As the water level slowly rises, Dhahabu starts exiting the other hole. Perfect! This is going better than anticipated! Little more, little more, perfect. I can get the brush behind them, now. Bring the brush up from behind, and now they decide it's time for a swim. All the way back down. Fully submerged. I know they will be fine, but, I want this rehousing done. So, now I collapse the rear tunnels so they can't go anywhere but out. Plenty of back and forth with light prods, now it suddenly time to come out. Nice and slow? Of course not. Like a bolt of lightning, jumping between the habs and down the new hab to try to escape across the floor? You betcha! Activate catch up. Caught. Perfect. Where's my cardboard to slide underneath? Great. That's what I forgot to bring in here. Dhahabu is big enough to tip this little cup. That's fine. Coax up the side of the cup with the paint brush, remove old hab from the new, then transfer over. Get cup over new hab... Time to bolt again! Catch again... Same process. This time, success! Right under the cork bark. Pop the lid on, and manage to get a quick pic while the exploration of the new surroundings commences. Stress? Sure. But which one of us got more of it? The world may never know!

Note: They/Them pronouns are used here as I do not know if Dhahabu is male or female.

Extra note: Dhahabu is the name of the zebra from The Lion King, and also means 'gold' in Swahili

28/01/2022

It is a sad day, today. When he became healthy once more, my friend and martial arts/hollywood celebrity Harry Mok, had agreed to help get OSS out there. To many, he was a martial artist, to many, he was an actor/producer/stuntman. To all, he was a friend. And what many didn't know was that he also had a companion of the Poecilotheria metallica variety. He loved his spood friend and loved the idea of this sanctuary. His loss will be deeply felt around the world. It was a distinct honor to call him brother in this life. May he rest easy.

10/01/2022

Good morning everyone! Just to keep everyone up to date on the goings on here, we have been working to set up some various sized habitats in the event they are needed for new residents. Essentially, this comes down to obtaining various sized containers and ensuring they are adequately ventilated. Unfortunately, as much as I love building habs, that is about as far as I can take them as each species has its own specific needs as far as substrate, hides, anchors, etc. Even still, just the basic setup is an enjoyable process, and I look forward to new residents moving in soon! Everyone stay safe, stay warm, and remember that our 8 legged friends need our love just the same as we do!

02/01/2022

Welcome to 2022 everyone! So, here's the exciting news! Obsidian Spineless Sanctuary and Rescue is now live! After a bit of research into everything to ensure there would be no legal issues, it was determined (primarily with the assistance of one of our board members) that we can take rescues prior to incorporating and filing for the non-profit status.

So, with that said, welcome to the show! In the coming days, I will be working to get the word out a bit more, putting together some educational materials for everyone to enjoy, and taking steps to ensure that we are ready to receive new residents. Please feel free to share us around, as this is the best way to help us grow and enable us to care for more of our 8 legged friends who need a healthy home!

26/12/2021

Greetings and salutations one and all! I hope everyone has had a wonderful time with family over this holiday season. May everyone have a beautiful new year! We are continuing work behind the scenes to get everything together for the greatness that is to come!

22/12/2021

Greetings, and welcome! My name is Nathanial Hoge, but you can call me Nate. The purpose of this page is to reach out and share the goings on of this project. It is currently in the infant stages, though I am working alongside some friends and colleagues to get this off the ground as a non-profit organization in the not-too-distant future. I have, over the years witnessed too many people who have a spider or tarantula companion who can no longer care for it, or their circumstances change and they can no longer keep them. Sometimes they find homes for them, sometimes they cannot. This is where I will be stepping in. I will be taking in any of our 8 legged friends who need a caring home, and ensuring they receive the care and love that they deserve. I'm sure there will be the odd scorpion or giant millipede here and there as well! I look forward to sharing with you all as things develop, and may you all have a wonderful holiday season!