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What Do Tarantulas Eat?  

What Do Tarantulas Eat?  

Updated on July 18, 2024
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Reviewed by Dawn Burch
Director of Animal Care, Education & Compliance (ACE) at Petco

What do tarantulas eat in nature?  | What do pet tarantulas eat?  | How to feed a tarantula   | How often to feed a tarantula   | The size of your tarantula | Gut loading and dusting  | How to know if your tarantula is well-fed?  | Molting  | Experience

tarantula

Tarantulas can be fascinating pets for adventurous pet parents. These arachnids can live up to 25 years—depending on their gender—so adding a tarantula to your family is a big commitment. While these spiders are generally easy to care for, new pet parents may question what these pets eat in nature and what would make for a proper tarantula diet in their home. 

Fortunately, these large spiders are happy to eat a variety of different things that are easy to find at your local pet store. If you’re a new parent to one of these curious pets, it shouldn’t take long to learn how to feed a tarantula—just check out our Tarantula Care Sheet for loads of useful information!  

What do tarantulas eat in nature? 

Tarantulas are opportunistic feeders in nature and will gobble up nearly anything that moves—as long as it isn’t too large. In their natural habitats, tarantulas feed at night and mostly prey on insects, other spiders, lizards, snakes and frogs.  

What do pet tarantulas eat? 

When it comes to pet tarantula food, you don’t have to duplicate your pet’s natural diet. There’s no need to drop spiders, snakes or lizards into your tarantula’s enclosure. While your veterinarian will be your best resource when creating a diet and feeding schedule, they may recommend some of the following live foods found at your neighborhood Petco Pet Care Center. 

  • Crickets  
  • Roaches 
  • Mealworms
  • Hornworms  
  • Superworms 
  • Frozen pinky mice 

Crickets are a very popular food choice for tarantulas and easy to find at your local pet store. Vita-Bugs crickets have high nutritional content and are enhanced with vitamin E, vitamin A, beta-carotene, omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids.

Mealworms can be a good tarantula food, as they provide vitamins A and E, plus fatty acids and essential protein. Mealworms are also easily found at most pet stores. They are simple to raise and can be stored in your refrigerator between feedings. Just keep an eye on them, as they tend to burrow into the substrate. Superworms are larger and more active than mealworms—and should not be refrigerated—and may be a better option if your tarantula has a bigger appetite. Just be vigilant when placing them in your spider’s terrarium, as they can bite and injure your tarantula.  

Dubia roaches, which contain up to 28% protein, can make a good meal for larger tarantulas but are inappropriate for smaller or juvenile spiders. They are relatively inexpensive and easy to raise but also tend to burrow and hide.  

Finally, thawed frozen pinkie mice are only appropriate for large-sized tarantulas. Keep in mind that these spiders should not be offered prey larger than they are. Also, many of these arachnids hunt based on the movement of their prey—you may need to use feeding tongs to shake a pinky mouse to get your pet’s attention and let them know that dinner has been served.  

How to feed a tarantula  

Providing a meal to your pet is simple—just carefully remove the lid of their enclosure, drop in the food and close the top. If you drop insects or worms close to your spider, they may notice the food more quickly. This can also help prevent worms and roaches from burrowing. If possible, feed your tarantula in the evening to encourage their natural nocturnal hunting patterns.  

If you choose to feed your spider larger insects, it’s generally a good idea to offer one at a time, as multiple live insects could harass or injure your pet.   

Keep in mind that tarantulas are born hunters. When hungry, they can almost always detect and grab prey on their own—all you have to do is provide the food, step back and let your spider follow their instincts.  

If your tarantula doesn’t eat prey within a few hours, it could mean your pet just isn’t hungry or is beginning to molt. Never feed a tarantula that is molting, as insects can injure their delicate exoskeleton. After 24 hours, remove any live food or leftovers from your tarantula’s enclosure. If your pet didn’t eat—and is not molting—you can try feeding them again the next day.  

If you suspect your tarantula is having trouble feeding, contact your veterinarian.  

How often to feed a tarantula 

How often and how much to feed a tarantula is a topic that is often debated in the community. In general, you can provide food to adults once a week. Juvenile and baby tarantulas expend much energy growing and need to eat more often— around every day or two. Your vet can help you determine a more specific schedule based on your spider’s age and size. 

The size of your tarantula matters 

When purchasing tarantula food, choose prey smaller than your spider. This can make it easier for your tarantula to hunt and eat their prey successfully, and larger prey may injure or even kill your spider. Crickets, mealworms and superworms come in various sizes, making it easy to find just the right nutritional option for your tarantula.

Gut loading and dusting 

Your tarantula receives all their nutrition through the food you provide. You can increase the nutritional density of your tarantula diet by providing Vita-Bugs and/or gut loading your crickets, mealworms and other prey before giving them to your pet. For instance, you can gut load crickets by feeding them a commercially available gut loading diet. Give the crickets about 24 to 72 hours to absorb the nutrients from their meal before giving them to your tarantula. Your pet will then absorb these healthy vitamins and minerals through the crickets. 

You can also dust your crickets in commercially available multivitamins before feeding them to your spider.

How do you know if your tarantula is well-fed? 

Since your pet spider can’t tell you if they’re hungry or ask for more food, how do you know if you need to feed them more? You’ll need to observe your pet closely—a well-fed tarantula should exhibit a full and round abdomen. 

If your tarantula is underfed or dehydrated, they may have a small or a football-shaped abdomen. If you notice this change in their appearance, try giving your pet food and clean water immediately. You may also want to contact your vet to ask for advice.  

Molting 

Have you noticed that your tarantula isn’t eating? It may be that your pet is preparing to molt. For a tarantula to grow, they need to shed their hard casing—known as an exoskeleton—in a process called molting.  

Adult tarantulas typically molt every one to two years. Baby and juvenile tarantulas grow much faster than adult spiders and shed more often—as much as once every month.  

Often, these invertebrates will stop eating a few days before molting. It can take anywhere from three hours to an entire day for a tarantula to molt. You may notice your spider on their back or side during this time—this is normal behavior. Do not touch your tarantula while it is shedding. After the molt, it will take several days for your tarantula’s new exoskeleton to harden. During this time, your spider is extremely vulnerable. Do not add food to your tarantula’s enclosure for at least a week after molting, as prey can harm your weakened spider.   

Experience is key 

Determining the right pet tarantula food for your spider may seem confusing when you first bring them home. However, with time and experience, you’ll be able to formulate your pet’s proper schedule and diet. You’ll learn what foods your spider likes, how much they prefer to eat and early molting signs to hold back on food appropriately. If you have any questions about how to feed a tarantula, seek guidance from your local vet. 

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