Are skeleton tarantulas normally fast and unpredictable?

Question

I recently purchased a young skeleton tarantula...he's about 1 1/2" and he'll start off slow and docile and then suddenly without warning he'll sprint really fast...i was holding him a second ago and everything was fine and then he suddenly leaped from my hand onto the floor and took off...i caught him but he jumped about 3 feet to the ground...it was kinda weird...and now I'm afraid he is traumatized from the fall and i may not be able to hold him again...someone help me...are they fast? and will i be able to hold him again?

Answer 1

It seems he has not adjusted to the new environment yet, give him time to settle and he should be back to being docile.

Answer 2

tarantulas are more resilient than you might think,providing he's not leaking anywhere he should survive most falls,he should become accostomed to handling eventually,just in case hold him low to the floor.Also as he's male he'll generaly be more active than his female counterpart.females like to hang around their burrow or retreat waiting for prey and potential mates,while the male tends to range further. Your species is arboreal(lives in trees) so jumping is a rare yet observed phenomenon

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